I saw a post on LinkedIn recently about the rapid pace of change and the shifts we “all” need to make in response.

The author insisted, “you need to be bold, spontaneous, and confident.”  They continued…”you need to be willing to take risks.”

Many of my leadership coaching clients would cringe if they read this.  Some would have the self-awareness and confidence to dismiss the suggestion that they need to be spontaneous.

Others would feel judged for not meeting this cultural rallying cry.

All of them know they can’t expect all of the people they lead to be spontaneous and confident.

The Continuum of Spontaneity
The dictionary.com app defines spontaneous as “coming or resulting from a natural impulse or tendency; without effort or premeditation; natural and unconstrained; unplanned.”

Our natural impulses in response to risk and uncertainty vary widely.  Some of us lean into risk, insisting on improvising our way forward.

Others lean out…instinctively minimizing or mitigating risk, resisting it.

The people in the middle are more flexible in their response, easily able to assist those people leaning into or leaning out of risk…building a bridge between those more extreme impulses of insistence and resistance.

Too Much Of A Good Thing
Spontaneity can be highly effective…in the right proportions.

Startups and teams with too much spontaneity often spin without traction, exploring options but not executing. This can create a culture of chaos within teams and across organizations.

Yet without enough spontaneity, leadership teams often get stuck over-analyzing, over-planning, not allowing for greater possibilities, riskier ideas. I’ve seen this over the past ten years with teams of engineers and attorneys…and even tech companies.

Context Matters
Ideal combinations of spontaneity, and resistance to it, depend on the organization’s and team’s goals, their reason for being.

What works for insurance companies and law firms differs from what’s needed for startups and industries in which innovation is critical to their survival and success.

First, Do No Harm
Leaders who care about leading well, growing…themselves, their business, and their people…invest in building self-awareness.

When people aren’t a good fit for their roles, for what’s expected of them, it’s uncomfortable.  They have to work harder, not seeing the success of when they’re working in their strengths.

Leaders who understand what’s going on beneath the surface with their teams can help their people navigate the potential feelings of friction and frustration with other team members.

Playing To Your Players’ Strengths
These leaders know who to give different parts of the ‘work to be done’ to, so that everyone can contribute in a way that’s natural for them.

They understand that people need to have freedom to be themselves while also being responsible for productivity and collaboration.

They appreciate the diversity of strengths across their leadership team and functional teams.

Is “Be Spontaneous & Confident” Good Advice For Everyone?
It’s not a natural combination for many leaders or their people.

Learning to become more…or less…spontaneous can build greater leadership capability and confidence.

It begins with awareness of yourself and your people.