A Guide to the Scientific Career. Группа авторов
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2.4.1 Be an Entrepreneur
Scientists should develop entrepreneurial skills through exposure to industry and collaborating with business sector. Although the potential conflicts of interests should always be fully disclosed in any research output and presentation, the entrepreneur‐scientists tend to have a greater immediate impact on the community. This is achieved by scientific discoveries and new ideas being transformed into available products as quickly as possible. Not only the financial gain and resulting fame can be substantial, but entrepreneurship will also create an atmosphere of enthusiasm and motivation among the new generation of young scientists.
2.4.2 Work Hard and Work Smart
As Cardinal James Gibbons (1834–1921) righteously indicated, “There are no office hours for leaders.” The hard rule of leadership proposed by Molinaro (2016) states that if one avoids the hard work of leadership, he will become a weak leader; but if he embraces the hard work, he will become a strong leader. Leadership requires hard work and also smart working to ensure the available resources are not being wasted but instead are being utilized in a meaningful manner that brings efficiency and sustainability to the management system (McCauley‐Bush 2013). The sense of purpose and urgency motivates a leader to do his best and to maintain his determination and commitment, and the resultant hard work creates opportunity by itself (Junarso 2008). Carol Dweck, an American psychologist, has distinguished two leadership mindsets, namely, fixed vs. growth mindset (Dweck 2006). Those with a fixed mindset see talent or genius as an inborn quality (i.e. one either has it or not), while people with a growth mindset see talent as a quality that can be achieved by active learning, perseverance, and purposefulness. The growth mindset is the definite precursor for leadership success as it fosters smart, hard work. This concept is consistent with how Vince Lombardi, an American football player (1913−1970), characterized the constitution of leaders: “Leaders are not born; they are made. And they are made just like anything else, through hard work. And that is the price we will have to pay to achieve that goal, or any goal.”
2.4.3 Listen, Observe, and Learn on a Daily Basis
Active listening is one of the most important skills of interpersonal communication that requires lifelong training (West and Turner 2009). Five levels of listening have been identified, namely, passive, marginal, projective, sensitive, and active listening (Bhardwaj 2008; Verma 2015). In passive listening, the listener is rather indifferent to the content of discussion, making a change in his thought trends and ongoing ideas improbable. In marginal listening, the listener only engages in superficial understanding of the discussion without allowing a significant change in his thought trends. In projective listening, the listener absorbs the information in accordance with his own frame of reference. The opposite of projective listening is sensitive (or empathetic) listening, in which the listener understands the viewpoint of the speaker without distorting it with his own perspectives. In active listening, the listener demonstrates a genuine interest in speaker's viewpoint, pays full attention to the speaker's words, speech tone, and body language, and accurately analyzes, interprets, and remembers the provided information (Bhardwaj 2008). The most‐effective form of listening is active listening, which, when combined with sensitive listening, can bring to fruition a charismatic leadership. Active listening is a dynamic endeavor that requires attributes that include, but are not limited to, serious concentration, empathy, nonjudgmental attitude, interest in the speaker, patience, and willingness to take responsibility to fully comprehend the information, and to interpret the meanings and provide feedback (Bhardwaj 2008; Hoppe 2011). As for active listening, we should refer to a statement by Peter Drucker, an Austrian American management consultant: “The most important thing in communication is to hear what is not being said.” In a cross‐cultural leadership setting – commonly seen in academic institutions – active listening is a key to closing the cultural gaps (Whitfield 2014), which can ultimately lead to workplace security and more productivity.
Observation goes the same way as with active listening. Observation is operationally defined as looking with a prepared mind for the meanings, patterns and trends of the data one receives – essentially by means of seeing, but through all other senses as well – from the environment (Welter and Egmon 2006). Seeing by itself brings about a mix of relevant and irrelevant information; it is through observation with an analytical and prepared mind that information directly linked to a particular situation is separated from a wealth of irrelevant information, leading to a phenomenon known as pattern recognition. Pattern recognition is the cognitive process of internalizing raw data or intangible information, and organizing and translating them into a blueprint that explains a situation (McKee et al. 2013). In lay terms, it entails observing what does and what does not work in different situations (Owen 2013). Pattern recognition is the prerequisite for situational awareness and strategic planning (McKee et al. 2013). Equipped with the art of observation and pattern recognition, a leader is therefore capable of identifying new opportunities and anticipating the course of action that is most likely to succeed in a given circumstance (Owen 2013). There is a positive relationship between empathy and transformational behavior that inspires followers to achieve more than expected (Skinner and Spurgeon 2005). It has been shown that empathy and emotional intelligence strengthen a leader's pattern recognition skills as the emotional information coming through empathy empowers the leader to understand the range of issues his team faces and to take the actions necessary to coordinate the team (Wolff et al. 2002).
The 70 : 20 : 10 model for competency building and leadership development –suggested by McCall and colleagues at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) – states that successful leaders learn about 70% of their lessons from challenging assignments and job‐related experiences, 20% from their relationships and feedbacks they receive, and 10% from formal training.
2.4.4 Think, Plan, and Take Action
Leaders are both dreamers and doers. The ability to identify problems and think of solutions is a key performance attribute. Although traditional views tend to distinguish between dreamers who “have their heads in the cloud,” and doers who “have their feet on the ground,” a visionary leader is dreamer and doer at the same time (Williams and Denney 2015). The message here is clear: A great leader thinks, thinks, thinks, plans, and takes action.
2.4.5 Translate Vision into Reality
Warren Bennis (1925−2014) defined leadership as “the capacity to translate vision into reality.” This requires establishing priorities, strategic planning, identifying risks, and developing action plans and contingency plans. Start with low‐risk actions and gradually increase the magnitude of risk you are taking. Setting two or three attainable, short‐term goals that are congruent with your vision will make a perfect starting point.
2.4.6 Empower Your Followers
A great leader empowers his followers and also turns them into leaders. Jack Welch, a retired American business executive, stated, “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others.” It is an inherent characteristic of great leaders to promote self‐development among their followers and to motivate them into achieving excellence.
In his 1978 book Leadership, James MacGregor Burns proposed the concept of transactional vs. transformational leadership. In transactional leadership, “one person takes the initiative in making contact with the others for the purpose of an exchange of valued things,” while in transformational leadership, “one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and morality” (Burns 1987). The transactional leaders function within a framework of self‐interest, while the transformational leaders go beyond such a framework to induce positive changes among the followers (Martin et al. 2006). It has been suggested that transactional and transformational leadership styles are, in fact, complementary, that transformational leaders also exercise transactional behaviors at some levels, and that transactional behaviors are also required for a transformational leader to be efficient (Peters