Independence, Dependence, and Interdependence are three important words for leaders to consider. As I was watching the spectacular fireworks over Legislative Mall in Dover, Delaware on the 4th of July, I was thinking about the interplay of these three words and what do they mean in leadership.
Probably because English is not my native tongue, whenever I think about words, I tend to go first to the dictionary to get the “official” meaning of the words. Pulling together what different dictionaries and Wikipedia say, this is my take on the meaning of the words and what they mean for leadership. As with everything else each of these words has an upside and a downside, which we need to consider in leadership.
Independence: Not dependent; free; not subject to control by others; not relying on others; not subordinate; not subject to bias or influence; not obsequious; self-directing; easy; bold; unconstrained; free from external control and constraint.
Most leaders like to think they are independent. The country has just witnessed too much abuse and arrogance by many in business leadership. Too much independence can lead to lack of coordination and to lack of accountability. This is the downside of independence.
In the USA, the original declaration of independence was based on a vision that all men are created equal:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
On the positive side, although rarely men are wholly independent, the astute and effective leader, recognizing that self-evident truth that all men (and women) are created equal, treats those he leads with respect and encourages independence of thought, self-direction, and self-control. By the same token, he voluntarily tempers his own independence with ethical values and concerns.
Dependence: The state of relying on or being controlled by someone or something else; being abnormally tolerant to and dependent on something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming (especially alcohol or narcotic drugs); reliance or trust on something or someone.
Although we hear this word mostly use with negative connotations, as in people who are drug dependent, emotionally dependent on others for their survival, or being dependent on the good graces of a difficult boss, there is also a positive side to dependency: Reliance or trust on something or someone. Leaders do depend on others for the organization to work efficiently. Being trustworthy and encouraging trustworthiness in others is a vital ingredient for successful leadership.
Interdependence: mutually dependent; depending on each other. I like the way Wikipedia talks about interdependence: Interdependence is a dynamic of being mutually and physically responsible to and sharing a common set of principles with others. This concept differs distinctly from "dependence" in that an interdependent relationship implies that all participants are emotionally, economically, ecologically and or morally "interdependent." Some people advocate freedom or independence as a sort of ultimate good; others do the same with devotion to one's family, community, or society. Interdependence recognizes the truth in each position and weaves them together.”
The wise leader creates interconnectedness in his organization, or as I prefer to call it, collaboration. They look at their organization as a “body” in which each part is interdependent, because all parts are needed for survival and optimal health. Therefore, every independent part is important, and the optimal relationship between all the parts makes the whole more efficient, effective, and insightful.
Many great leaders, recognizing the importance of interdependence, have referred to it. Here are a few examples:
Interdependence is and ought to be as much the ideal of man as self-sufficiency. Man is a social being. --Mahatma Gandhi
The basic thought that guides these specific means of national recovery is not narrowly nationalistic. It is the insistence, as a first consideration, upon the interdependence of the various elements in all parts of the United States. --Franklin D. Roosevelt
We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. . . .--Martin Luther King Jr.
Independent thinking alone is not suited to interdependent reality. Independent people who do not have the maturity to think and act interdependently may be good individual producers, but they won't be good leaders or team players. --Stephen Covey
A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labors of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving. --Albert Einstein
Only by restoring the broken connections can we be healed. Connection is health. --Wendell Berry
Just as the wave cannot exist for itself, but is ever a part of the heaving surface of the ocean, so must I never live my life for itself, but always in the experience which is going on around me. --Albert Schweitzer
Collaboration is made possible by dialogue or conversations, where we all learn from each other and enrich our thinking and leadership. We can rediscover and nurture connections with others, addressing some of the fragmentation that we experience in modern life. This brings coherence to our interpersonal relationships and fosters an environment of appreciation, within which we can listen to each other and inquire into new territory.
The magic of dialogue occurs when a group wanders into new territory - discovers new meaning - that we could never have found alone. In sharing our lives, stories, hearts, and thoughts we arrive at meanings that flow from the group as a whole. This powerful experience of the creation of shared meaning is a step toward creating community and working collaboratively. This is our dream for the interconnectedness that wise leadership can accomplish, creating a strong and healthy organization.