Situational Leadership is a refection of leading with your best self according to another man named Colin.

Many managers mistakenly assume that leadership style is always a function of personality rather than strategic choice. Their leadership style is based upon their innate signature talents and this represents their default leadership behavior. However, leaders can choose a different leadership style that best addresses the demands of a particular situation.

Being unaware that we can change our leadership style to match the situation at hand, we unconsciously engage our default behavior. Only when we become aware of something, are we able to make choices as to the action we wish to take. The ultimate leadership responsibility is modeling the behaviors you expect from others. To a large degree, leaders operate in a fishbowl. Employees are constantly watching the leader–and learning from him or her.

Throughout his long and storied career, Colin Powell has resisted chasing the latest management trend or fad. To anyone who would listen, Powell has always advocated the benefits of adopting a ’situational approach’ to leadership instead of the ‘one size fits all’ approach that is favored by so many management consultants these days.

In Powell’s experience, flitting furiously from fad to fad only serves to create confusion within your team and diminishes your credibility as a leader. Worse still, blindly following a particular management theory can also generate unnecessary rigidity in your thoughts and actions. This, argues Powell, can be disastrous. To quote Powell, “Some situations require the leader to hover closely; others require long, loose leashes. Leaders must understand that management techniques are not silver bullets or magic mantras, but simply tools that can be reached for at the right times, as circumstances dictate.”

Managers often fail to appreciate how profoundly the organizational culture can influence financial results. Organizational culture is influenced by leadership style—by the way that managers motivate direct reports, gather and use information, make decisions, manage change initiatives and handle crises. Changing the organizational culture happens by one enlighten manager at a time improving his or her department’s unique culture.

I too was fortunate to know Colin and work with him but more importantly, to connect heart to heart with Colin. His was yes, real and transparent as I and no b.s.! Colin was not about power as so many leaders are and just selfishly feeding their own egos. Colin was about connecting with those that crossed his path in real ways, in loving ways, in understanding ways, in helping ways and you could always feel Colin’s love and respect. Colin could always make you laugh and he was willing to share his personal experiences to help you have better insights to whatever you may be struggling with or facing. Colin was a real true leader who operated with integrity in our crazy city and for Colin, I thank him and will miss him and send my love to him and his family; for our city just got emptier without Colin’s high energy spirit and just do it attitude with love that we will always remember! Peace out Colin, Love Deb

Your writing about Colin reminded me of the last lines of Mary Oliver’s poem, The Summer Day:

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?”

http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2007/09/11

I’m not Wendell Berry, Colin Hubbell, or the guy on the treadmill next to me. Temptations to try to be can get in the way of living MY “one wild and precious life”. Thanks Dan, especially for the last paragraph. As admirable and heroic as another person’s life may be, I have the truly unique opportunity to live my life in this world as me. I certainly will use my admiration of others to challenge myself where I tend to be lazy, but as Mary Oliver reminds me, it’s the choices of what I DO that determine how and who I will be and in what directions I will grow. One big goal I have is to be able to say with Mary Oliver, from the same poem, “I do know how to pay attention”.

I was one of those who met Colin Hubbell, though only through his participation as a presenter at Leadership Detroit. His passion for the city was inspiring and that will be missed.

Thank you Dan for celebrating the leadership of Colin Hubbel in your column. Michigan is a better place because of Colin, who built beautiful bridges that connected so many of us. I am one of those fortunate 10% who knew Colin, having served with him on the Governor’s Land Use Leadership Council in 2003. We became good friends and we shared the land we love with our families… a magical August picnic with Trish and the four kids at the top of the Clipper chairlift watching a splendid Northern Michigan sunset, and a night in Detroit, touring his developments and experiencing his enthusiasm and commitment to rebuilding the great city of Detroit. Though we will miss Colin, we have a job to do. We must continue to engage in rebuilding the Michigan Colin so loved and find joy in the process.

That was great - thank you for sharing that Dan. It was better than great. It was spiritually moving and revitalizing. Serendipidously, it was just what I needed today.

Horace Mann, an education reformer, scholar, and first president of Antioch College in Ohio, once said, “Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.” I’ve always associated that sentiment with people like Lincoln and Dr. King, who gave their lives to benefit their brothers and sisters. I never met Colin Hubbell, but from the comments of many people on this website, he accomplished much before leaving us. One can think about this sentiment in regard to his or her own life. Despite living a wonderful life, have you won that victory for humanity?

Dan,
Thanks for the reminder to treasure the “Colin” in our life if we are fortunate enough to have one. I am one of the fortunates. I have not seen mine in more than six years, though we exchange emails regularly. He will be here to see us in ten days. I will remember to let him know that he is and has been my “true North” before it is too late.

Mike

Dan,
Your words describe someone I have never met but wish that I could have known. What a wonderful tribute to a good man who was taken from us in the prime of his life. Judging from your description, this was a man of integrity who was down to earth, found great joy in life and wasn’t afraid of a challenge.
Your’re right about people’s reactions to the loss. Our own age and life experience gives us a variety of perspectives. As someone once told me when reflecting on their role in their family after the passing of their father and, two years later, their mother, “I’m a grown man but I feel a bit like an orphan. I’m not ready to move up to the front row”.
May Colin Hubbell’s family and friends find peace, joy and comfort in their all their loving memories.
Donna

Thank you Dan, for bringing the heart of this wonderful man to those of us who did not have the good fortune of knowing him. I was reminded of a great “Dennis the Menace” cartoon I’ve saved for years. Hal Ketcham has Dennis sharing his insight with his friend Joey by saying, “The best thing you can do is to get very good at being you.” Such a simple life lesson in one sentence, but oh, so hard for us to learn. Your friend Colin seems to have truly been the exception, learning, and applying it, well. Thank you for sharing his story.