One of the readings for the “Leadership Paradoxes and Possibilities Project” I am participating in next month is Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince, published in 1532. I listened to BBC Historian’s Melvyn Bragg’s In Our Time podcast on the subject. Bragg introduces Machiavelli’s famous work with the following quote.
One must be a fox in order to recognise traps, and a lion to frighten off wolves. Those who simply act like lions are stupid. So it follows that a prudent ruler cannot, and must not, honour his word when it places him at a disadvantage.
Machiavelli wrote The Prince while he was exiled to his farm after being released from a brief imprisonment. He was a diplomat and senior official in the Florentine Republic government that governed the city from 1498 to 1512. The Medici family with the help of Pope Julius and the Spanish military, usurped power of the city in 1512. He was caught up in the aftermath and was tortured and imprisoned for 3 weeks until released to his farm. His goal in writing The Prince was to use it as a portfolio showing his expertise in politics. He loved working in government and wanted to get back into it with the new regime. Little did he know that this work would become an all-time classic and that an American school leader would be assigned it for a class on leadership. I am always amazed when reading works of the ancient Greeks, Romans, and authors from the Italian Renaissance how much human nature hasn’t changed over the centuries.
International School leaders do not need to be concerned about having their schools taken over in a palace coup d’état, but in my 14 years of being a Head of School, I’ve run into several “Machiavellian” figures intent on ruining my leadership. The vast, vast majority of international school employees, board trustees, and parents do not fit into this category. In reading The Prince again while flying to the USA, my guiding question is What leadership advice can I take from this ruthless political treatise? Below are my major takeaways from Machiavelli’s work and I am applying these to a modern, international school context.
- It is easy to become isolated as the Head of School. A leader needs to know what faculty, students, and parents are thinking. This is so that when “disorders spring up, one can quickly remedy them” and not be surprised when a major problem blows up and it is too late to remedy. Machiavelli recommends also looking ahead for “troubles” because they are easier to remedy before they approach a leader.
- When taking over a new school, either crush your enemies or treat them well. Do not allow them to be lightly injured because they seek revenge and cause problems for you. This is always a concern when there are internal candidates who didn’t get the position still working at a school when a new Head begins.
- Only avoid a fight if you do not have the advantage.
- It is hard to install new orders (systems) because there are always people who benefited under the old system and will resist change.
- “All armed prophets have conquered, unarmed prophets have been destroyed.”
- Keep your focus on the core business of the school, when “princes think more of ease” they lose their states. The core business of schools is teaching and learning and student enrollment. For Princes in the Italian Renaissance, the core business of leadership was keeping a strong military.
Probably the most famous idea of the book is that it is better to be feared than loved as a leader. Machiavelli wrote that the goal of any leader is to keep everyone united and loyal. Macchiavelli warns leaders that showing “too much mercy invite disorders to arise”. I think sometimes you need to be tough on people who are sewing division or not doing their jobs. Leaders should proceed with “prudence and humanity” not hubris. Macchiavelli actually advises leaders to be both feared and loved, but this is a difficult path to walk, so he suggests it is easier for a leader to be feared. The fear of employees preserves your leadership because they fear punishment. However, Machiavelli goes on to say to be feared, but NOT to be hated, especially with powerful people in the school. This is a fine line between fear and hate. He says princes get in trouble when they take women and property and become hated. What are “women and property” in an international school context?
- A prince is respected when he is a true friend or downright enemy. Better to choose a course than remain neutral. A prince who avoids present dangers and follows a neutral path is generally ruined.
- A prince should show himself as a “patron of ability”. Which I take is to support good teachers and good leaders in your school. Don’t be afraid to surround yourself with strong people, they enhance your leadership and are not rivals to it. A leader is judged by the people he hires.
- Let your colleagues understand that to tell you the truth does not offend me. “A prince ought to always take counsel, but only when he wishes and not when others wish.” Wise princes take good advice.
- A leader should be a constant inquirer, afterward, a patient listener.
- Machiavelli quotes Frederick the Great, “The older one gets the more convinced one becomes that his majesty ‘King Chance’ does 3/4 of the business of this miserable universe” The quote is about luck or fortune, which always plays a role in any leader’s success. My takeaway from this quote is to prepare for the unexpected and to be adaptable.
That concludes my review of the book. I am looking forward to having discussions about the book and enhancing my learning.
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