LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM THE HERD
Individuality is a myth. Humans rarely think for themselves. Rather we think in groups. .Just as it takes a tribe to raise a child, it also takes a tribe to invent a tool, solve a conflict, or cure a disease
Yoval Noah Harari
Willy’s gaze, with his ears forward, was attentive and steadfast. Shylo, Avalon, Sebastian and Angel, the two miniature horses and all the other members of his “team” were either sleeping or relaxing in the paddock. The team was safe and all was well. Survival was assured.
My wife and I moved to a country property north of Toronto over five years ago for many reasons but mostly so she could have her horses on property and under her direct stewardship in lieu of boarding them off-site. We have strived to create an environment on our farm that enables the horses to operate naturally. While not a horse “whispering” aficionado myself, I have respectfully been learning the “language of horse” through my wife’s interpretation of observed herd behavior. There are a host of team leadership lessons worth noting as you navigate the current Covid-19 with your teams
- Actively collaborate within your team to share the work/stress load and plan for collective security and safety
Horse herds are highly social and continually in a dynamic balancing process to ensure their survival. This is most evident in how our horses (and donkey) band together as a high performing team, quite naturally. At no time is the herd left vulnerable without warning. There is always at least one horse alert as the vigilant sentry for any potential danger while the others can sleep and relax ensuring each one gets the rest they need. Each horse will take their turn at one point to share that responsibility, including even our smallest and youngest mini-horse Sebastian courageously standing watch while the other full-size horses sleep – quite a heart-warming site.
- Get your ego out of the way and enable others to take charge to play important roles
Herd hierarchy is important to increase cohesion, however, leadership roles are fluid and all horses are free to take charge in their own way without a prescribed ‘pecking’ order. Such roles happen easily and gracefully. For example, Shylo, one of our mares (female), is very nurturing and has taken a ‘motherly’ role to make sure Star (our young female donkey who recently lost her mother) and the two minis, Sebastian and Angel, are never left on their own. Willy generally takes the lead role most of the time but then readily follows and supports another horse like Cash or Shekinah who may direct the herd to another food source or into the forest when a storm is approaching. Leadership can emerge in the member that has clarity in the moment….and EGO does not get in the way!
- Take care of and watch out for one another
Frequently we see pairs of horses in our herd standing beside each other head to butt in the act of grooming their partner. Our horses always make room for everyone to access the available food. Horses are prey animals who will flee danger but will stand their ground against an aggressive predator in defense of themselves or their vulnerable members when flight is untenable.
The Covid-19 pandemic is a threat to the lives and livelihood of you and your team. Ken Blanchard, a thought leader and author in team leadership practices, once said “no one is as smart as all of us”. Heeding these lessons of high performance teamwork from the herd will ensure that you will not only ‘survive’ but thrive….just as horses have done for centuries.
Heeding these lessons from the herd will ensure that you will not only ‘survive’ but thrive….just as horses have done for centuries.