Leadership as a Younger Chemist
With little or no experience, how can I be an effective leader? To answer this question you must first understand several issues. First, why do you lack experience of being a leader? If you have never done it before, then go out and get experience. Ask colleagues to help or find a mentor who will help you to become more comfortable in the position as a leader. If you have performed the particular task before, but only in graduate school or at another job, then reflect upon those situations and try to apply them to your current situation. The most important thing to remember is that the most important skill set that will help you succeed, are your people skills. That's because ultimately we have all had to deal with individuals and human conditions. For most situations, you have probably dealt with these issues but in a different context. Second, leadership does not mean management. Management is defined by Webster's as "judicious use of means to accomplish an end”. I don't know about you, but leaders inspire you to become a better person and to be more effective at what you do, not to just get stuff done.
To be an effective leader as a younger or early career chemist you need to inspire others to be better and more efficient in their work. So what can you do to be an effective leader? First, lead by example. This is something that we learn early in life when observing our parents and the rules that they used during our upbringing. If your parents set boundaries and were firm about them, both for themselves and were consistent with you, then you have observed how to lead by example. If you lack such experience, try to think of scenario in which you were inspired by others (e.g., a mentor). Second, listen to others. For most problems, particularly in science, the answer is never so straightforward. To solve these problems, teamwork is very important because it’s the collective intelligence that will solve most technical challenges. A good leader hears what others have to say, considers it, and makes the best decision possible with all the facts available. Third, be decisive. The saying, actions speak louder than words, has validity. People respect action over promises. Think about the politician that elicits the most emotional response for you. Did they keep to their promises or did they do something different? It’s the actions that define us, so be defined by someone who is willing to take a risk on behalf of others and act. Fourth, work hard and play hard. Often times, you will have to pay your dues in your career. That doesn’t mean that you have to drop all of your personal activities and focus solely on work. What that means is that you have to work hard and maybe smarter and be productive so that you can enjoy time with your family. Without time off from work, you are on a path to burnout and bitterness, which are not charcteristics of effective leader. Lastly, have fun. Ask yourself, do I go to work every time dreading it or looking forward to it? Good leaders have a way of inspiring because they are confident in their decisions and make things look easy. That’s not to say that there won’t be hard times and challenges to face, but overall if you love what you do then you have the chance of being an effective leader. If you hate what you do you will never be able to bring the energy to your team, and your leadership will not be effective.
Leadership manifests itself in many ways. It can be a technician that creates a new way to accomplish a task that is embraced by others. It can be a senior researcher that solves a challenging problem by forming a team with diverse experiences and knows how to listen. It can be you, when you love what you do and do your job to the best of your abilities with the benefit of others in mind.
Mick Hurrey is the National YCC Chair and a YCC member since 2004. Please send comments to ycc@acs.org.