If I had to put it briefly, good leadership is being open while knowing exactly where you want to go.
That’s how I put it when Hardeep Dhanjal was a guest on my Danish-language podcast, Den Nye Standard:
“Leadership is basically about being extremely vulnerable, but at the same time being extremely determined about where you want to go. Because nobody can hide any more.”
I’ve learned that over 11 years as an entrepreneur. Not from books, but from trying it out every single day. And from 41 conversations on my podcast, many of them with some of the most capable leaders I know.
Give people what you missed yourself
I started out on my own because I wasn’t taken seriously as an employee. That has shaped the way I lead.
When Klaus Veile was a guest, I told him about the first time I had to be a leader:
“The first time I had to be a leader, I remember putting a lot of energy into trying to make things easy for everyone else. My old bosses weren’t bad bosses, they were just really bad at, maybe, keeping me in the loop.”
That’s why we have a firm rule. When we go into a busy period, everyone has to know why. Passionate people are happy to go all the way for you. So they also need to know what it’s for.
Be yourself, as a leader too
Mette Østergaard, who was editor-in-chief of Berlingske when she was a guest, talked about what she learned as a young leader:
“I thought being a leader was a bit like putting on a different hat and almost trying to be a slightly different personality. […] So I certainly learned to listen a great deal. […] And I also learned that it’s very important to bring your authenticity with you. I mean, if people don’t believe what you’re saying, if they don’t believe that this is who you are, it’s very hard to get anyone to come with you.”
I completely agree. You can read up on the theory of openness. But if you do it without meaning it, people soon work it out.
Dare to say “I don’t know”
Before Covid, I thought I always had to have the answers. Today I often choose transparency over a ready-made answer.
When I told Mikkel Severin about that shift, he said something I’ve remembered ever since:
“Whenever we see exceptional leaders, they’re people who say ‘I don’t know’ at least 10 times a day.”
It’s liberating. You don’t have to be the smartest person in the room. You have to make sure the smartest answers come out.
The team comes before the individual
Alex Ferguson is one of my great leadership idols. When Hardeep Dhanjal was a guest, I explained why:
“Nothing can ever be bigger than the team. The individual must never, ever be above the team, no matter how good that individual is. And it’s such an easy thing to say, but it’s a really hard thing to do.”
That can mean standing up to a client who treats your team badly. Even if it’s one of your biggest. It’s not a fun position to take, but it’s one you have to take.
Marianne Dahl, who was a partner at Boston Consulting Group when she was a guest, described the other side of it. You have to lead from the front and from the back:
“You also have to lead from behind. That means supporting, coaching, keeping an eye on things, making sure others get room, making sure nobody falls behind.”
Build leaders around you
Some of the things that have meant the most to me are the times when I’ve had incredibly good leaders around me. It freed up an enormous amount of energy and time.
As an entrepreneur, it’s easy to become the person everything goes through. But you have to build a business around more than yourself. The goal is a company that runs well, even when I’m not there.
Hire for drive
When we hire, we look for drive before experience. What drives people? Why are they here? What do they want to achieve? If they’ve got fire in their eyes, a lot can happen in six months.
Because talent is one thing. Attitude and will are something else entirely. And that’s what inspires me most as a leader: getting people to really fight for something together.
If you’d like to hear how I’m leading a company through the AI transformation, I cover it in my talk on AI. And if you’re wondering whether to start something yourself, I’ve written about it in Self-employed or employee?