Member-only story
Ranks and titles come with the respect of the Office. This respect, especially in the military, is closely intertwined and often indistinguishable between the individual and the office holder.
In the Singapore Armed Forces, a Colonel is a Colonel and high up in the hierarchy. When a Colonel enters a meeting, regardless of whether the Colonel is an expert on the issue at hand, they are granted deference and their words carry weight. And, regardless of whether the meeting agrees with the Colonel’s decision, they will carry it out or face the consequences of military law.
In the civilian world, while there is a hierarchy, there is no “force of law” to enforce compliance. Leadership is therefore based on referent power — the ability to influence through respect, admiration, and identification with the leader — and this depends on the leaders’ demonstrated competencies, and interpersonal and relationship skills. Ex-military officers who try to lead through positional power in the civilian world will fail.
When I was in a previous job, I constantly told myself that I am a nobody. People found this strange as everywhere I went, people were nice to me. I was invited to dinners, met at the door of events, had parking allocated for me, attended to, and everyone wanted to hear my views on things. I had attention and…
