In government, family and business there are those people who perceive that they are in charge and then there are those who are really in charge. The United States government consists of the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branch with the President believed to be the person in charge of the country, however, the Legislative and at times the Judicial Branch make it much less clear who is actually running the country. There always seems to be a struggle for power within the three branches of government which has been made more transparent as the political system has become more polarized. I’ve begun to realize that when a person has to continually tell you they are in charge they are only trying to convince themselves that they are still in charge.
Family dynamics might be a better example and certainly much less volatile than the federal government to discuss. The traditional family unit consists of parents and children with the parent/parents being the ones in charge and the children dutifully following the directives of the adults. With today’s economic environment require, in most cases, both parents to work outside the home children have found themselves alone after school allowing them the freedom to make some choices on their own. Over time this independence has spilled over into the family decision making process whereby the children actually feel entitled to have a say in family matters. If you have some doubt that this is true, I’ll invite you to have a conversation with my seventeen year old daughter who will most definitely set you straight.
And then, there is business … those dutiful employees who hang on every word that the business owner speaks. What, did I hear chuckling from my blog readers? Yes, you have a right to chuckle, if you did, since it would be hard to conceive any work environment where there wasn’t at least one individual who thought they knew more than the boss. Additionally, there are those employees who’ve worked for the organization so long that they feel entitled to make decisions on behalf of the boss in the boss’s absence.
All three, government, family and business, demonstrate they are vulnerable to power grabs. The question for anyone in a true position of power in one of these three entities is how does one prevent a power grab from occurring? I’ve thought about it quite a bit and the best answer I’ve come up with is to become and stay engaged in the process of managing. I believe it requires the individuals with the true authority to demonstrate the ability to lead and genteelly redirect the efforts of those who would rebuke their efforts to manage.
Edward Boyle
CEO, Employing Broker
Katchen Company
Katchen Company, founded in 1962, is an integrated real estate company with its corporate headquarters inLakewood,Colorado. The company offers real estate development, redevelopment, property management, brokerage, consulting services, construction oversight and maintenance services to individual and institutional real estate investors throughout the greater Denver metropolitan area in Denver with satellite offices in Chicago, Las Vegas and Miami market areas.
