[column]We’re all familiar with fear—fear of failure; fear of the unknown; fear of disappointing; for some, even fear of succeeding. Fear and being wrong are things we all understand, but seldom discuss.

But to become great leaders—to learn from our mistakes, take risks, and make great discoveries—we must learn to overcome fear and embrace the possibility of being wrong. That’s how leaders and organizations become creative and powerful.

Fear and Fearlessness

For leaders of organizations, the stakes are high. In Lucia Tarbajovska’s Berlin School of Creative Leadership thesis Fear Factor, she found that nearly 90 percent of the creative leaders she surveyed acknowledged that fear is a critical factor influencing the ways they make decisions, which ultimately influences creativity.

Inasmuch as these experiences and emotions of fear live deep inside of us, they also live deep inside organizations. Left ignored, they will ultimately drive an organization or brand toward mediocrity. As Tarbajovska says, “Most leaders are under a constant pressure of fear of failure that ultimately locks them in a routine and pushes them to comfort zones, to consensus, to mediocre decisions.” [/column] [column]

Differentiation

It’s not just general fear that drives us—it’s the fear to differentiate. According to Tarbajovska, we are much more comfortable staying within the norms of society and the norms of the competition because we’re constantly surrounded by signals that this is the right and appropriate thing to do. In many cases, it is also the easiest and most straightforward approach. As one creative leader Tarbajovska interviewed put it, “We can observe a total lack of guts to stand out and be unique. [Advertising’s] culture today is the result of massive leveling processes that brand and marketing [executives] started in the ’80s and ’90s… I guess the fear to differentiate is as old as humankind itself.”

A Culture of Courage

For leaders, the challenge is not just overcoming their own fear, but also creating a culture of courage in the organizations they lead. It’s about leading a team or an organization in which all members of that system live the values of fighting fear. That is an ongoing challenge that leaders at every level of an organization need to address. Embracing the values of fighting fear means consistently being courageous, avoiding complacency, and taking risks that can lead [/column]

[column] to mistakes and failure—but also longer-term success.

At the Japanese ad agency Dentsu, in the years before the company went public, executives often would purposely put junior employees on projects in which they were bound to fail. Then, they closely monitored how the young employee handled the challenge and the failure. At Dentsu, how employees stretched themselves and handled failure was seen as crucial to the company culture—a culture that was not afraid of taking risks or making mistakes.

Being Wrong

In her forthcoming book, Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error, Kathryn Schulz writes about the issues of being wrong: At first you think, “Sure, I know all about being wrong. … I make mistakes all the time.” But then you realize that the issue is not about being wrong, but rather about admitting to being wrong and acknowledging mistakes. And then you start to think, “How many times have I had trouble with admitting I was wrong? How many times did I fail to see that I was wrong because I was uncomfortable admitting it to myself or to my colleagues or the public?”

This is an issue that extends well beyond individual psyches. It is a [/column] [column]much more far-reaching issue, at least in American society, as Schulz notes: “As a culture, we haven’t mastered the basic skill of saying ‘I was wrong.’ This is a startling deficiency, given the simplicity of the phrase, the ubiquity of error, and the tremendous public service that acknowledging it could provide.”

Why is it so difficult to admit being wrong? What is it about the experience that makes it feel so uncomfortable? And how does being right and wrong relate to leadership? Besides immediate issues of ego, part of what is at stake is a willingness to take credit or accept blame. In interpersonal and organizational contexts where the responsibility for good or bad performance can translate into millions or even billions of dollars and often make or break careers, such openness becomes heavily freighted.

Some of the examples are obvious: Watching Hank Greenberg preen in the media (and blame his successors), it seems inconceivable that he would ever admit that anything that went wrong at AIG had anything to do with him. And following the travails of The New York Times, it seems more likely that Arthur Sulzberger would rather go down with the ship than admit to having steered it in a mistaken direction.

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[column]The inability or unwillingness of people in leadership positions to admit they are wrong is not that surprising from an individual perspective. The ego structure of people who rise to the top of organizations is such that, the more confident you are, the surer of yourself you are, the more successful you are likely to be. People who have a high level of intelligence, a high self-opinion, and success in convincing people of their vision are not predisposed to admit mistakes or failure. Conversely, if one is in constant doubt, he or she is probably less likely to aim high and thus less likely achieve at the highest levels.

Historically, we were taught, as leaders or aspiring leaders, to hide weaknesses and mistakes—lest we look weak or inadequate in front of minions. This view is problematic because it actually undercuts legitimacy in general and fails to capitalize on the power that can come from being wrong. It is not only good to admit being wrong when you are, it can also be a powerful tool for leaders. As James O’Toole and Warren Bennis wrote in their Harvard Business Review article “Spotlight on Trust–What’s Needed Next: A Culture of Candor,” admitting when you’re wrong actually increases legitimacy and, when practiced regularly, helps build “a culture of candor” that [/column] [column]increases solidarity, innovation, openness to change and other positive features of organizational life.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “As a leader, you should always let your subordinates know that honor will be theirs if they succeed, and the blame will be yours if they fail.” Although leaders often think admitting error is a sign of weakness and an open door for allegations of illegitimacy, so often the opposite is true. What is more powerful than an individual who can stand in front of his or her minions and admit that the failure was his or hers? What better way to gain the respect and admiration of your team than to take the blame and responsibility on yourself rather than calling out someone on your team?

Keith Reinhard, CEO Emeritus of DDB Worldwide, was this type of leader when he was at the helm of DDB. In an interview on the topic of creative leadership at the Berlin School, Reinhard described his goals as a leader as empowering his people as much as possible; truly “disappearing” as a leader; and giving credit for success while taking responsibility for failures.

Ultimately, as Schulz argues, error is tied to individual identity: The [/column]

[column]important issue isn’t that “we must be wrong from time to time; it’s that we can be wrong. Alone among the creatures of the world, we can hatch crazy ideas, pursue pipe dreams, speculate wildly, keep faith with even the most far- fetched fantasies. Sometimes thesenotions flourish and bear fruit, sometimes they collapse. But unlike androids, we humans do not normally self-destruct in the face of our mistakes. On the contrary: we self-create and self-recreate.”

Wrongness, then, is tied to risk taking and innovation; it is tied to exploration; it is tied to belief and self-belief; and the courage to pursue all of these opportunities in the face of making mistakes. It is about learning to not fear mistakes.

One of the greatest lessons leaders and aspiring leaders of organizations can learn is the beauty of being wrong. Without this willingness and this courage, risks are averted and opportunities foreclosed. As importantly, a crucial means for establishing trust and deepening relationships with colleagues is neglected. The very fabric and culture of organizations can be strengthened by leaders able to admit being wrong.[/column]