Is Leadership An Art Or Science?
Many business executives view leadership as a scientific pursuit: a repeatable, proven process that can be learned through literature and practice. Taking a systematic, well-established approach to leadership drives results, ensures the safe stewardship of a company, and enables leaders to rally employees around a common cause. Or does it?
Not according to Chris Duffin, serial entrepreneur, bestselling author and chief visionary officer of international fitness brand Kabuki Strength. For Duffin, leadership is one of the most profound art forms that exist in the world today, and he argues that a scientific approach holds leaders back from realizing their true potential.
As a six-year-old child, Duffin roamed the Pacific Northwest, living in tree forts, catching fish by hand, and skinning rattlesnakes for sustenance. Since then, he’s founded multiple successful companies, led organizational transformations across the aerospace, high-tech and heavy manufacturing industries, and emerged as one of the leading voices in the worlds of strength training and biomechanics.
Duffin also holds the Guinness World Record for the heaviest one repetition sumo deadlift, is the first person to ever squat and deadlift 1,000 lbs for multiple repetitions, and recently became a best-selling author with the release of his first book, The Eagle and the Dragon. He’s known as the ‘Mad Scientist of Strength.’ While he holds science dear, Duffin steadfastly views leadership as an art form.
Through his extraordinary journey, Duffin’s philosophy on leadership has evolved, and he now views himself as an artist, his business his brush, and the world his canvas. In his view, the role of a leader is to be a visionary: an artist who brings their values to life through their actions, words, and impact on the world around them. But is he right?
The Making of a Great Leader
Great art stirs something deep within us all; powerful emotions we didn’t know we had. It provokes thought, imbues inspiration, and creates soaring joy. For Duffin, there are direct parallels between great leadership and great art.
Leadership and art are fundamentally driven by bringing a new vision to life. For artists, it might be a beautiful painting or an enchanting instrumental, and for business leaders, it’s an organizational strategy or culture, he suggests. Transforming these visions from the spark of an idea to reality is no mean feat and demands dedication, authenticity, and unbridled creativity.
Truly great leaders have the capacity to reach into the future and mold their visions into a reality. They deeply understand their internal values. They possess the drive and entrepreneurial vision to impart their philosophies to the wider world through their actions, and they have the capacity to bring an entire organization of people along with them, according to Duffin.
Therefore, he suggests, treating leadership as an art form rather than a science opens up tantalizing possibilities for all kinds of leaders. It’s common to see these leadership philosophies exhibited in innovative startups that set out to change the world. But as organizations grow, this flair and spark are often dampened, leading to stagnation and an absence of innovation.
According to Duffin, leaders must resist and continue to cast themselves in this visionary role. Among the leading proponents of this idea is Simon Sinek, who argues that CEOs should recast themselves as chief visionary officers, with the primary responsibility of setting and delivering the company’s ultimate vision.
Duffin fundamentally disagrees with this view, calling for a more balanced approach. His philosophy towards effective leadership is characterized by a fine balance between artistry and science.
Striking The Balance: Yin and Yang
Many of the most significant transformations in history have been ushered in by organizations led jointly by two distinct types of leaders: a relentless visionary and a laser-focused operator.
Take Orville and Wilbur Wright, the fathers of modern aviation. Orville was the innovator, a blue-flame thinking inventor who envisioned and brought to life something nobody else could. Meanwhile, Wilbur ran the business, negotiating contracts and securing orders.
The early leadership of Apple –– now the world’s most valuable company –– followed a similar pattern. Steve Jobs, the iconic visionary who pioneered countless new technologies, was complemented perfectly by Steve Wozniak, a hardcore engineer who built the infrastructure required for success.
History, according to Duffin, shows us that unleashing the true potential of visionary leadership requires a two-pronged approach, where businesses are jointly led by a chief visionary officer and a CEO. The visionary must be freed to bring the future to life, unencumbered by the CEO's day-to-day administrative and operational requirements. Together, the CVO and the CEO are Yin and Yang: two opposite but complementary forces that act in harmony, driving the perfect balance.
While this approach is paramount at the upper echelons of an organization, the principle of leadership as an art form holds true at every level, says Duffin. It’s critical that leaders free their employees to think creatively, bring their values to life, and create powerful movements that garner widespread support.