#3- Over time, like fine wine...

The bottle has been uncorked... You've made it to #3 of this multi part series and blog with my take and my perspective on leadership. This week we're going to talk about. Behavior Theory. As we learned about this theory, my brain kept going to the parallel of leadership and the life of a bottle of wine. Not just for the fun effects it may bring, but appreciating the time and effort that it took to get to the store shelf. 

You see, wine isn't just produced overnight and bottled the next day, then sold to the consumer (unless you're drinking the boxed stuff, I don't know what happens then). I've been working at a winery for the last 4 years and have learned to appreciate the game of patience. Winemaking takes time... and often, it takes years before the art of a winemaker and the labor of their crop really start to show up... What you are about to learn is a metaphor for life, and I hope you take it and run with it. 

To keep it simple, a bottle of wine is a culmination of lot of things. To start, you need a good climate to grow grapes... Many of which in Southern California are not ideal. So, you already have your first barrier to success. Then, you need a good winemaker and agriculture specialist. Without these, you are doomed from the beginning. Then one of the most important factors in the wine business- you need time! Time to grow, time to harvest, time to ferment, and time to age... Without time, good wine would not be the byproduct. According to behavior theory, leadership works in many of the same parallels. 

Behavior theory pushes back against the idea that leadership is something you are and instead frames it as something you do. This week’s research emphasized that effective leadership is not rooted in title or intention, but in observable behaviors. These are things like clarifying expectations, supporting people, developing others, and adapting to change over time... Much like wine, leadership is developed through the process, and not just by proclamation of it happening. 

In winemaking, fermentation is where things start to transform (but it’s also where things can go wrong). Temperature matters. Timing matters. Overcorrecting can ruin the batch, just like neglect in leadership can. Behavior theory reminds us that leadership behaviors function the same way. If there’s too much structure with no relationship, this is a breeding ground for disengagement... If there is too much warmth without direction, it leads to drift from the employees. We see that effective leaders learn to balance task-based and relationship-based behaviors depending on the moment. They must be flexible! 

This is where the metaphor deepens for me. Wine doesn’t become great because someone read about winemaking. It becomes great because someone showed up consistently. They constantly checked the barrels, tasted along the way, adjusted when needed, and trusted the process. In the same way, leadership doesn’t emerge from saying “I’m a leader”. It emerges from things like showing support when it’s inconvenient, setting direction when the vineyard road gets bumpy, and staying present when results aren’t immediate. 

What I take from behavior theory is this that leadership is not a finished product. It’s a slow process and mentality that isn't acquired in a day. It’s choosing actions that compound quietly over time, long before anyone notices. 

You don’t open a barrel after a week and expect greatness.

You don’t perform one good action and call yourself a leader.

Part Two:

Watch one or more episodes of your favorite TV show with leaders. Identify ways the characters demonstrate behavior-based theories.

Suits Season 1: Pilot episode- Reflection

If you have ever seen Suits, it’s a TV show that speaks volumes. I love this show not only becuase it shows the leadership a lawyer must have, but how it also creates a parallel between self development and how a new leader is molded over time. The pilot episode illustrates that leadership is not declared, it is developed through behavior over time. When the right people are on the bus, it has the power to change an entire organization.

Through Harvey Specter, I saw clear examples of task-oriented leadership behaviors. We see Harvey set expectations, evaluate his performance multiple times, and he prioritizes the outcomes for the firm and keeps that idea at the core of his philosophy. Even being led to the subconscious question of “will this impromptu hire cause him or the firm hurt?”. His decision to hire Mike ( someone with no law degree, just in case you havent seen the show) is not based on traits or credentials, but on demonstrated ability and situational judgment. He was willing to give it a shot because he heard the magic words... "I will do everything I can to be my best" said Mike. To close, I felt that Harvey also reflects elements of Level 5 leadership through his quiet focus on firm success over personal recognition. This is evident in his style.

Jessica Pearson also represents a clear example of Level 5 leadership in the pilot episode. I saw that her leadership is not loud or performative, rather it is rooted in discipline, some restraint, and a long-term focus on the firm’s success. Jessica consistently puts the organization above her personal ego, only intervening when necessary. Her balance of professional will and personal humility reflects Level 5 leadership, where results matter more than recognition. She didn’t need the charisma to keep winning, as she was already winning through her dedication to the impact she was leaving.

Closing with the wine metaphor here: if you end up watching Suits you will see that Mike ages like fine wine throughout the series... He starts as someone with no knowledge or leadership qualities, and with consistency and dedication to do good- he ends up somewhat making it in his "career"... (of course before he was on trial for committing fraud...) Just like a winemaker and the process of making a great bottle, it takes time and experience to get there.

Cheers,

SGH