College Union

Leadership Secrets From the Wizard of Oz

By Dr. Tim Elmore

One of my favorite memories growing up as a kid was watching the movie, “The Wizard of Oz” on TV. It came on every year. We would pop popcorn and sit around as a family watching Dorothy, the scarecrow, the tin man and the cowardly lion leave the munchkins in the Land of Oz and make their way to the Emerald City. I still enjoy the movie. It’s a classic.

Today, however, I watch it through a different lens. I sat with my own kids a few years ago and learned all kinds of new things from Dorothy—as I watched the film from a leadership perspective. (I know it sounds crazy, but I seem to find leadership principles in almost every movie I see, including Dumb and Dumber and Napoleon Dynamite!) This time, my leadership discovery came from a very ordinary girl from Kansas who would not claim to be a leader at all.

As I observe trends in our culture, it seems to me that there is a cry for a new kind of leader today. We have moved through various leadership styles over the last fifty years—and many of them can be seen in this classic movie. Reflect on the characters in the movie for a moment and note the three kinds of leaders in it:

1. The Wicked Witch of the West – She has her cronies, but they follow because she forces them to do so. She leads from manipulation or coercion. In fact, when she melts, her followers celebrate.
2. The Wizard of Oz – He is the all powerful leader, who leads through intimidation and superiority. He is all-wise and all powerful—the kind of leader we all tend to imagine is the best one for the job.
3. Dorothy – She is an unlikely leader who doesn’t have all the answers, but invites her friends on a journey, helps them discover their gifts, and walks with them rather than insisting on being up front.

At first glance, Dorothy appears all wrong as a model of leadership. I am certain she never felt like she was a leader. She is the wrong gender (female) and the wrong age (young). Instead of being a person who has all the solutions, and knows exactly what to do next—she is herself on a journey, a seeker, often bewildered and vulnerable. Yet she is determined to get her team, made up of a scarecrow, and tin man and a cowardly lion to the wizard, where they can find what they’re looking for. Armed with this resolve, she walks down the yellow brick road on a journey of discovery, with her new-found friends. No one expects her to have all the answers. They don’t want a “sage on the stage,” but a “guide on the side” to help them reach their goal.

Let’s contrast Dorothy with the Great Wizard himself. Frequently, many of us avoid leadership positions because we hold an image of a leader in our heads that looks much like the Wizard of Oz. Remember how he introduces himself? He says, “I am Oz, the great and powerful!” In other words—just look to me for any answers you need. I am in charge. Because few of us believe we’re really this good, we conclude we must not be a leader. But, do you remember what happens in the end? Little Toto (Dorothy’s dog) pulls back the curtain to reveal that the great Wizard is a rather normal guy hiding behind an imposing image. This all powerful leader was, in a sense, exposed as a fraud. He wasn’t a Superman, or a Lone Ranger after all. It’s all a front.

When you think of Dorothy, the picture is so different. She introduces herself to the Wizard as “Dorothy—the small and the meek.” Instead of sitting confident in a control booth, she’s stuck in a predicament—still a little frazzled from the tornado, far from home, needing to find the way. As she begins her journey to the Emerald City, she finds other needy characters (the scarecrow, the tin man and the lion) and her earnestness, her compassion, and her spark of determination galvanize them into a team. She ends up revealing that they each had the brains, the heart and the courage they were seeking, already inside of them. Dorothy doesn’t have the knowledge to help them avoid all the pitfalls or dangers; she doesn’t protect them from all the threats—but she encourages them and she doesn’t give up. Her passion holds strong and fosters the same resolve in each of her team members. Dorothy has so invested in them, that the lion, the scarecrow and the tin man all decide they are going to get to that Wizard to help Dorothy—even if they didn’t get what they wanted! Now that’s loyalty.

This is a picture of a new kind of leader for our culture today. It was a team effort and no one person was the only star. Each one stood up for the others before it was over. Each one had gifts and abilities. Dorothy simply ran point. Management guru Peter Drucker notes that these “next generation leaders” must be OK with not having all the answers. They must be humble enough to seek wisdom from others, yet courageous enough to act when it’s time. Drucker suggests that “the leader of the past was a person who knew how to tell. The leader of the future will be a person who knows how to ask.” They are marked by these qualities:

1. Highly relational 6. Comfortable with uncertainty

2. Interpret culture well 7. Listen and foster self-discovery

3. Emotionally secure 8. Embrace the role of a mentor

4. Share ownership freely 9. Less formal in structure

5. Empower others 10. Driven by service more than ego

I believe I see these “Dorothy” type of leaders in more and more places. Truett Cathy and his executive team at Chick Fil A restaurants demonstrate this humble, learning, serving style. They’re closed on Sundays, so their employees can spend time with their families in worship. They serve in teams and seek wisdom from those they serve in order to continue to be a learning organization. They are all about adding value to their communities, not just selling chicken. David Salyers, their Vice President of Marketing, told me he went on a trip with Dan Cathy, who leads Chick Fil A. When they arrived at their hotel, he realized his shirts had gotten wrinkled in his luggage. He told Dan he wished someone would invent luggage that wouldn’t wrinkle shirts! When he awoke in the morning, he saw that Dan Cathy had gotten up early and had ironed all of his shirts.

Captain Michael Abrashoff led the worst performing ship in the Pacific Ocean, the USS Benfold. In six months he transformed it into the best performing ship in the Pacific. How’d he do it? Dorothy’s Way. He interviewed all his sailors and got to know their strengths. He formed teams that became task forces to solve problems in the area of their strengths. When they did—the entire crew got to celebrate. Within months, sailors requested to stay under his leadership. He shared ownership of that ships problems and solutions, and found he had capable men and women who could lead. Once, he walked the deck of the ship, observing his sailors painting the ship. (They did this numerous times each year because the bolts would rust.) He asked one of the sailors how he was doing? The sailor responded, “Permission to be honest, sir?” The captain motioned for the sailor to come talk to him. In that conversation the sailor simply asked: “Sir, has the Navy ever heard of stainless steel?” The rest is history. Abrashoff commissioned that sailor to head up a task team to find a way to replace the old bolts with stainless steel bolts. (Now, they don’t have to pain the ship nearly as often.) Aferward, the entire crew got to celebrate with a steak dinner.

Andy Stanley is another leader who uses “Dorothy’s Way.” He is lead pastor at North Point Community Church in the Atlanta area. He has creative teams that lead various areas of the church and he serves on some of those teams, listening, encouraging, interpreting what he hears, and only then, pointing the way and displaying courage to step into the future. In less than ten years, they have grown to 18,000 people in attendance each Sunday. He doesn’t claim to be a Wizard. Just an ordinary person, like Dorothy, who won’t let those gifted people fall short of what they have inside of them.

Maybe some of us are trying hard to be something we’re not. Maybe we’re imitating styles of leadership that are becoming outdated. Maybe those around us aren’t looking for a Wizard after all. And maybe the best thing that could happen to us would be to have someone pull back the curtain and reveal we aren’t superheroes, but regular men and women who want to take a journey and reach a destination with a team. I believe we’ll find we can do it if we lead Dorothy’s Way.

Dorothy’s Way

In the classic story of the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy illustrates a new kind of leader. She invites her friends on a journey, helps them discover their gifts, encourages them and walks with them rather than insisting on being up front. She doesn’t have all the answers but she gets them to their goal.

A Look at the Book

I find it intriguing that this new way of leading isn’t new at all. Jesus didn’t come as some Wizard, to intimidate us. He came as a servant, feeding, listening, healing, forming a team of twelve, mentoring them and washing their feet. And they turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6). Check out the book of Luke, and note the times you see Jesus’ leading in “Dorothy’s Way” in this book.

How did He model listening?

How did He model encouraging?

How did He model serving?

How did He model empowerment and identifying gifts in others?

How did He model resolve or courage?

Getting Personal

In reality, Frank Baum’s story “The Wizard of Oz” was a commentary on the economic and political times at the turn of the 20^th century. The scarecrow represented the farmers who were perceived as folks without a brain; the tin man represented industry, who didn’t seem to have any heart; the cowardly lion symbolized William Jennings Bryan who Baum felt lacked the courage to stand up to the wrongs in Washington D.C. The wizard was the federal government—who didn’t really have the answers everyone sought. And, Dorothy represented the average citizen who showed her friends they actually had what it took to reach their dreams. They just needed to work as a team. Leadership resides in each of us.

Take a moment and evaluate how you model “Dorothy’s Way” with your team.

1. How do you spot the gifts inside your team, like courage, intellect and heart?
2. How do you listen and seek wisdom from your team and from outsiders?
3. How do you coach and empower your team members?
4. How do you display courage and resolve to reach your goals?
5. How do you serve your team members?

Practicing the Truth

Take a look at your answers to the five questions above. This week, practice one item from each of your responses. Practice spotting gifts, listening, coaching and empowering, modeling courage and serving your team—without announcing to them you’re going to do so. Model Dorothy’s Way. At the end of the week, ask if anyone saw any differences in your leadership style. Talk about it.

Categories: Student Leadership
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