THERE is an old saying, “You can lead a horse to water but you cannot make him drink it.” Therein lies the problem that all leaders face as their ultimate challenge.
Every leader of a family, company, or government has the power to compel action using only two forces: the force of authority and the force of influence. Both are broadly defined.
Authority is the “legal” right to require an individual or group to do something that the leader wants them to do. However, the actual exercise of this authority can take different forms. A parent can use his or her authority to punish a misbehaving child but can also use authority to reward proper behavior. Every parent and corporate leader understands that a balance must be exercised between those two alternatives. Further, exercise of the reward/punishment choice also entails trying to figure out which side of the equation is going to get the desired results.
Do you punish a child for poor grades or do you reward the good grades, or both? Business leaders face the same dilemma, for example, in managing a sales staff.
In cases where punishment does not seem appropriate, a parent may offer only a future reward for desired behavior. It may be too much to except a young child to be perfectly quiet during a long car trip, but the parent may offer a treat at the end of the journey if the child does not create too much of a fuss.
Government leaders are not as fortunate as parents and those in business, because there are few opportunities to offer rewards. Citizens who pay their taxes late are given a penalty; early taxpayers may be given a discount incentive. However, generally, governments operate only on a punishment system.
What government leaders can do is to use their force of influence or persuasion. We are seeing that happen now in the administration’s push for the passage of the Bangsamoro basic law. Arguments for the law are spelled out with the benefits enumerated, if the law is passed, and the potential harms detailed, if the law fails.
We think that government has an immense amount of power through its authority—and it does—but in a free society, the power of authority is less potent in comparison to the power of influence.
A parent can “ground” a child and a boss can fire an employee. A government leader cannot do that, unless he or she holds dictatorial powers.
No parent or company leader is subject to an “approval” rating as a government leader must be. When the approval rating goes down, the elected official tends to dismiss it. However, once a leader has lost the confidence of the public—or the family and employees—his or her ability to influence the people is diminished. When that influence is reduced, the power to shape the future also goes away.