The Edge In Your V.O.I.C.E.

As we have indicated previously, finding your V.O.I.C.E. requires that you develop your E-cubed. We have already talked about the emotional component of E-cubed and have explained why emotional intelligence plays such an important role in finding your V.O.I.C.E. Today I want to talk about “Edge”.

As we have pointed out earlier the term “Edge” in the context we use it here was developed by Jack Welch formerly of GE. Welch believed that leaders had to have the ability to take action and to make decisions when others would not. Edge requires that you move from a victim mentality and accept that action, your action, will be the greatest way to assure positive results. Edge does not require brilliance, although brilliance combined with edge is an excellent quality. However, edge does require that you bring to bear the other qualities of V.O.I.C.E. To have edge you must have the ability to take actions based on your Values and your clear Objectives. Your decisions when made with edge will be based on your Integrity, and your available Choices for those decisions will be values based coming from your positive point of view. Having edge will not lead to increased popularity, and in fact people with edge have often given up their very lives or less dramatically their positions because they pursued a course that reflected their perception of reality that was out of step with the conventional point of view. Some examples of leaders with edge are: Martin Luther King, Jr., Gandhi, and Jesus Christ. More recently in my own city a leader that lost his job because of edge is Dr. John Thompson the Superintendent of the Pittsburgh Public Schools. Dr. Thompson has found his V.O.I.C.E. and he without question has edge. His principle based decisions to close schools and be fiscally responsible have cost him his job, but have not caused him to lose his V.O.I.C.E.

There is a barometer that I like to use to determine whether or not a person, a leader, or an organization does or does not have edge. This is a simple test that you can safely try out for your self. You only need to look for seven little words in the vocabulary of that person, leader, or organization. Those words are: We Have Always Done It This Way. These are the words that I have found are the greatest indicator that there is no edge. Having edge requires you to break from the traditional when your convictions require action.

Edge is the critical difference between winners and losers. Deciding with edge will not always produce success. Rather, edge produces speed and action that will ultimately lead to success more often than failure. The story of Joshua Chamberlain, Commander of the 20th Maine Company of volunteers in the Civil War is an example of a leader with edge. Chamberlain’s unit had a critical mission to hold an area called Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg. Chamberlain’s unit fought to carry out their mission until they were left without ammunition. Conventional wisdom suggests that an army without ammunition should either retreat or surrender. I would bet that you could find that in one of Sun Tzu’s strategies on War. However, Chamberlain, a man of deep character and humility, ordered his troops to “fix bayonets” and he personally led the charge down the hill towards the enemy in a long parallel line. This charge so surprised the Confederate Army that many of their soldiers threw down their weapons and ran allowing Chamberlains troops to accomplish their mission. The military maneuver executed by Chamberlain’s men was called a “right wheel”. The men had never executed this maneuver and it was untested. Also, keep in mind that these men had no bullets. What they did have was a leader who understood the need for sacrifice in the service of others (the rest of the Union Army) that depended on them carrying out their mission. Chamberlain was prepared to sacrifice his own life (something good) for the success of the overall mission in this very critical battle (something better). Chamberlain had edge. He made the yes/no decision that needed to be made without a committee meeting, or checking with his boss. His decision, some say, marked the turning point in the battle of Gettysburg.

We see edge in our every day life when we see a parent that runs into traffic to save a child from an oncoming vehicle. Or when we read about the Firemen on 9/11 that ran into burning buildings to save lives, decisions that ultimately cost them their own life. We see edge when a young girl in a school in Colorado confesses her faith to a gunman who then executes her because of her beliefs. We see edge with our soldiers in Iraq, who may not believe in the war, but believe in duty, honor and service to their fellow soldiers and their country. And in contrast, we saw where edge was missing in the abuse of the prisoners at Abu Grahib prison. When your teen says NO to peer pressure, they are displaying edge. When you do what you know you must do, then you know you have edge. When you have edge, you are finding your V.O.I.C.E.

I know this now. Every man gives his life to what he believes. Every woman gives her life for what she believes. Sometimes people believe in little or nothing, and so they give their lives to little or nothing... – Joan of Arc