TO CULTIVATE leaders in an organisation and lead them to greater achievement, a new psychological form of leadership called “environmental leadership” should be applied.

The environmental leader creates a platform through education and awareness, where individuals fill one another’s emotional needs and become more conscious of when and how they affect the group dynamics in positive or negative ways.

Environmental leadership is not about changing the mindset of the group or individual; it is about cultivating an environment that brings out the best in every individual in a group.

Cultivating a corporate culture where leaders develop leaders and decisions are competently made to achieve organisational objectives is an achievable outcome.

And it starts with understanding the seven key psychological influences an environmental leader manages (two keys of personal awareness and five pillars of transformation) to establish a culture that effectively supports the fulfilment, even passion, of individual employees or a group.

Keys of personal awareness

It is self-awareness that leads the environmental leader to recognise the two keys, which must be accepted in the process of building the final five pillars of a transformational environment.

Key 1: Concentrate on growth and results. Realise that you consciously or subconsciously undermine other people to support your ego, which leads to blame when things go wrong.

Key 2: Create opportunities to make others successful and positively acknowledge their specific actions that lead to that success.

Pillars of transformation

The five pillars are the cornerstone of a leader’s ability to modify group dynamics, to nurture an environment that inspires and brings out the best in others.

And it is the process of constructing the five pillars themselves that helps the leader and his team to embrace the two keys of personal awareness.

This in turn modifies the leader’s own behaviour, turning him into a more powerful, environmental leader. These are the five pillars:

1. A greater purpose

The team must have a purpose that is greater or nobler that the personal goals of each individual. Yet, the realisation of this greater purpose will be equally fulfilling to the individual.

The role of an environmental leader is to inspire this noble idea and make the group or team want and work for a greater working environment.

2. A methodology that can make a change

The team must believe that change can happen and that they, as a group, can make it happen.

They must believe that their own behaviour can be improved. They must believe that through a common wisdom in the group, they can be powerful enough to change organisational culture to become a more fulfilling environment for the betterment of their own lives.

But to believe any of this, the group must have and recognise a psychological methodology that can effectively make change happen.

3. A common language

The methodology carries a specific language. The language reinforces the learning and the higher purpose. It sets a foundation to understand and explain awareness, change and a higher level of living in a concise and effective way.

The role of the environmental leader is to use and reinforce the use of the language in the group. He must set the example of applying communication that supports the greater cause.

4. A unified identity

The label or name given to a cause provides a psychological reference to a common goal and a common identity. The role of the environmental leader is to solidify that identity, to facilitate the group or team to associate themselves with that identity and everything it represents.

5. An internal supportive environment

The role of the environmental leader is to nurture and develop environmental leaders within the teams and the organisation.

At this stage, the environment created will fulfil much of the constantly expanding emotional needs of the employees.

This environment meets the greater expectations of the modern world. Yet it cannot be developed without the right leadership. And an environmental leader must go in to this building process knowing that as the process matures, he will no longer be as essential as when he started.