8
Getting People
on Your Side
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more...
Follow your spirit, and upon this charge
Cry “God for Harry, England, and Saint George!”
—William Shakespeare
The Life of King Henry VWhat is it that makes us go riding unto the breach—following
even those leaders who don’t have Will Shakespeare writing
their speeches? Some would argue that the answer is charisma,
and either you have it or you don’t. I don’t think it’s that sim-
ple. In the course of my study, I met many leaders who couldn’t
be described as charismatic by any sort of rhetorical stretch,
but they nevertheless managed to inspire an enviable trust and
loyalty in their co-workers. And through their abilities to get
people on their side, they were able to effect necessary changes
in the culture of their organizations and make real their guid-
ing visions.
Ed, the fellow who surrendered to the context early in this
book, was not one of this group. When I first met him, the