How Leaders Motivate Themselves and others

Case: Resilience in the Desert

Bartone (2006) reviewed several empirical studies involving hundreds of cadets which demonstrated that leaders high on hardiness influenced their "subordinates to think and behave in more hardy and resilient ways".

Bartone then provided a case study of a peace-time (1995) military leader who improved his subordinates' hardiness and resilience while they were on a 6 month tour of duty at a base in Saudi Arabia. During his visit to the base, Bartone conducted interviews and administered surveys which demonstrated that morale was poor in several of the companies in the battalion. The soldiers were stationed overseas far from home in a desert, and they found their work dull and predictable. However, one unit had high morale and cohesion. The company commander attributed his soldiers' high morale to the fact that they had a common goal and mission that produced tangible results. When the commander took charge of the company, he realized that there was a nearby military dump. The equipment in the dump was being buried by the sand-rusting out, going to waste, nothing but an eyesore. The commander took the following steps:

Create meaning out of an ambiguous situation: He found a mission that could give the company soldiers a purpose to their time in the field. They were able to salvage over one million dollars' worth of equipment by excavating and repairing the materials in the dump. In addition, they built a multipurpose athletic field on the spot of the former dump; this field provided much needed recreational opportunities for the base.

Participation and empowerment- He involved his subordinates in planning a way to excavate and restore the equipment. This created a shared sense of commitment.

A controllable task: The scope of the task was one that was under the control of the company and fit their collective abilities. Moreover, it could be accomplished within the 6 month time frame that the soldiers would be there.

Recognition: Before and after pictures of the excavation site were displayed in their work areas and meeting rooms, providing visible reminders of the accomplishments. The commander also arranged for the company to receive recognition from senior leaders and even from the national news media. This recognition increased the soldiers' pride in their accomplishments.

Application:Relate the steps taken by the company commander to the suggestions made by GARDNER and schermerhorn(2004) about how to increase psychological capital.