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When leaders step into a new role, especially in an environment that may differ vastly from their own background, challenges around trust, understanding, and compliance can araise. Employees and peers may struggle to decipher the new leader’s intentions, style, and expectations: Who is this person really? they might wonder. Sometimes they get their new leader wrong.
This article explores how such leaders can use Jung’s archetypes to craft an authentic and effective leadership presence by choosing to emphasise on archetypical leadership styles in their behavior. So, our advice is that you pick some that seam authentic to your true self in the list below.
If you prefer reading in Danish, then you can read that version right here.
Understanding Jung’s Archetypes
Carl Jung’s archetypes are universal, recurring symbols or patterns of behavior that emerge across cultures and time. In leadership, these archetypes can serve as frameworks to help leaders align their authentic selves with the expectations of their environment. Here’s an overview of the most relevant archetypes for leadership:
1. The Sage
- Key Traits: Wisdom, knowledge, objectivity.
- Strengths: Sages inspire trust through their deep understanding and rational decision-making. They guide others by providing insights and clarifying complex issues.
- Leadership Style: Advisory and mentoring, emphasizing logic and informed decision-making.
- When to Use: Best suited for environments valuing thoughtful leadership and expertise, such as academia, research, or industries with a strong analytical focus.
2. The ruler
- Key Traits: Authority, control, responsibility.
- Strengths: Rulers excel at establishing order, creating systems, and maintaining accountability. They command respect and provide structure during uncertain times.
- Leadership Style: Decisive, directive, and organized.
- When to Use: Ideal in hierarchical or crisis situations where clear authority and stability are needed.
3. The Caregiver
- Key Traits: Nurturance, compassion, service.
- Strengths: Caregivers create a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment, building strong emotional connections with their teams.
- Leadership Style: Empathetic, relationship-driven, and focused on well-being.
- When to Use: Works well in collaborative, people-centered industries, or in teams requiring high morale and trust.
4. The Explorer
- Key Traits: Curiosity, independence, innovation.
- Strengths: Explorers inspire change, encourage out-of-the-box thinking, and lead with an adventurous spirit. They push boundaries and foster creativity.
- Leadership Style: Visionary, innovative, and forward-thinking.
- When to Use: Ideal for startups, innovation-driven organizations, or teams navigating change and transformation.
5. The Hero
- Key Traits: Courage, determination, resilience.
- Strengths: Heroes lead by example, demonstrating persistence and inspiring others to overcome obstacles. They thrive on challenges and drive results.
- Leadership Style: Bold, action-oriented, and motivational.
- When to Use: Best applied in high-stakes environments requiring immediate action and results.
6. The Creator
- Key Traits: Imagination, originality, vision.
- Strengths: Creators build and innovate, delivering unique solutions and long-term strategies. They emphasize beauty, meaning, and ingenuity.
- Leadership Style: Visionary, artistic, and focused on crafting a legacy.
- When to Use: Ideal in roles or industries where creativity and innovation are key, such as design, marketing, or technology.
7. The Innocent
- Key Traits: Optimism, simplicity, trust.
- Strengths: Innocents build trust through transparency and sincerity. They help others see the bigger picture by emphasizing hope and unity.
- Leadership Style: Honest, positive, and values-driven.
- When to Use: Works well in environments needing reassurance, optimism, and ethical grounding.
8. The Rebel
- Key Traits: Nonconformity, innovation, disruption.
- Strengths: Rebels challenge norms, inspire change, and create breakthroughs in stagnant systems.
- Leadership Style: Bold, provocative, and unorthodox.
- When to Use: Most effective in industries requiring disruption or during times of cultural or organizational transformation.
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How to Use Archetypes in Leading Across Cultures
- Self-Assessment: Reflect on your natural tendencies, values, and leadership style to determine which archetype resonates most authentically with you.
- Situational Alignment: Adapt your archetype to the cultural, organizational, and team context to ensure alignment with environmental expectations.
- Archetype Blending: Leaders often embody more than one archetype. For example, a Ruler can also draw on the Sage’s wisdom to guide their authoritative actions.
By aligning their authentic leadership style with Jung’s archetypes, leaders can not only amplify their strengths but also adapt their presence to diverse contexts, building stronger connections and driving greater influence – and find the most effective way to communicate to their organization.
1. Identifying the Leader’s Archettypical Role
To gain traction in a new role, a leader must first clarify their mission, priorities, and value to the organization. A three-pronged approach works effectively:
- Understand the Context: Analyze the cultural, organizational, and historical dynamics of the team. What do employees value? What are their common frustrations or fears?
- Relate to the Strategy: Anchor communication in key organizational objectives, emphasizing benefits. For example, “My focus is to ensure our department becomes the benchmark for innovation in the company.
2. Choosing the Right Archetype
Carl Jung’s archetypes provide a powerful framework for a leader to embody an authentic yet strategic leadership persona. Selecting the right archetype involves understanding one’s personality and aligning it with the environment and goals.
Personalize the Role: Share elements of the leader’s story to make them relatable. Highlight parallels between past successes and future objectives within this new context.
Consider Jane, a leader who moved from South Africa to lead a team in a Scandinavian country. Initially, her dynamic style was perceived as overbearing, and her requests met resistance. Jane chose the archetype of the Explorer to inspire curiosity and openness in her team. She reframed her objectives through storytelling: “When I started in Cape Town, I faced challenges similar to what we’re working through here. Together, we turned it into a space for innovation.” By pairing these stories with Sage-like mentoring and active listening, she balanced her authentic energy with respect for her new cultural environment. Her team began to see her as relatable and wise, improving collaboration and trust
For a culturally homogenous workplace, consider the following archetypes:
- The Sage: This archetype conveys wisdom, calm authority, and guidance. If the environment prizes expertise and thoughtfulness, adopting the Sage archetype might help the leader earn respect.
- The Ruler: When authority and structure are paramount, the Ruler archetype helps establish clear leadership and decisive action.
- The Caregiver: If employees value trust and relationships, the Caregiver archetype fosters a sense of safety and approachability.
- The Explorer: In an organization seeking innovation, curiosity, and change, the Explorer archetype can inspire openness and adaptability.
For example, imagine a leader from an innovative startup in the United States taking over a traditional, hierarchical team in Scandinavia. The Sage archetype may help balance their dynamic energy with a grounded approach that respects local cultural norms around deliberation and consensus.
3. Communicating and Delivering the Message
Even the clearest messages can falter without a curated delivery. To resonate in a homogenous environment, leaders should focus on:
- Cultural Sensitivity: Avoid overly complex jargon or approaches that may feel unfamiliar. Use metaphors, examples, or storytelling techniques that resonate with the cultural values of the team.
- Active Listening: Pay close attention to feedback loops, both verbal and non-verbal. This builds rapport and ensures adjustments to approach where needed.
- Consistent Presence: Regularly reinforce key messages through actions and words. Authenticity emerges when a leader’s daily behaviors align with their communicated values.
- Engage in Dialogue: Create opportunities for employees to voice concerns or seek clarity. A structured Q&A or informal check-ins can demystify the leader’s approach.
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Reflection and Growth
Jung’s archetypes provide leaders with a structured yet adaptable approach to authenticity and impact. When stepping into a culturally unfamiliar context, anchoring oneself in an archetype and delivering aligned messages fosters a presence that both resonates and inspires. Leadership is not about imposing one’s style but about bridging the gap between authenticity and adaptability.
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References
Kratzenback, Jon K. & Douglas Smith (1993), The descipline of teams.
https://hbr.org/1993/03/the-discipline-of-teams-2
Kratzenback, Jon K. & Douglas Smith (2015), The Wisdom of Teams: Creating the High-Performance Organization, Harvard Business Review Press. ISBN: 9781633691070
HBR (2013/2022): HBR’s must reads on Teams, Harvard Business Review Press. ISBN13: 9781422189870
