"Therefore, desiring to rule over the people,

One must in one's words humble oneself before them

And, desiring to lead the people,

One must, in one's person, follow behind them." - Tao Te Ching

Today, I am inspired by a nightly occurrence in our household to write about herding cats. For many people this is simply a humorous, and helpful, metaphor for a situation where we try to bring disparate independent, and often unruly, elements into alignment to achieve some goal. The Wikipedia entry describes herding cats as "An idiom that refers to a frustrating attempt to control or organize a class of entities which are uncontrollable or chaotic."

I particularly like the way the Urban Dictionary defines this - "The phrase herding cats comes from the common saying that something involving coordination of many different groups or people is as difficult as herding cats. One of the commonly encountered uses of the term in technical fields is the phrase "Managing programmers is like herding cats" or "Managing engineers is like herding cats". In education it would be "Managing students is like herding cats". In reality, it would be "Managing cats is like herding cats." It refers to the individualism common in the stereotypical examples of programmers and domesticated cats. A similar phrase, allegedly of Irish origins, is 'Minding mice at a crossroads'". http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=herding+cats

I hadn’t heard “Minding mice at a crossroads” before and I like it! One of the things I particularly appreciate about their definition is that it honors the individualism of programmers. I’d extend this to IT professionals in general and I’m sure it applies to many other groups. I think that one of the keys to successfully herding cats, literally or metaphorically, is to respect their individualism and the way they value their independence. It can be important to consider the perspectives of different members of the team, to think about what will motivate different people to move in the direction you want, and to remember who they are ready to follow.

Herding is generally a management function. A manager can act by exerting authority to direct the actions of others. The cowboys herding cattle whistle and shout, use their horses and ropes to channel them in the right direction, and generally outsmart them all the way to the destination. Thank goodness, the people we manage and lead have very little in common with cattle! It is their intelligence, independence, and creativity that we value and that we rely on to help us define innovative solutions to users’ requirements.

While management techniques can have some value in herding these cats, more often it takes real leadership. In contrast to a manager, a leader effectively communicates a vision and, to the extent that the vision is compelling, followers will choose to help achieve it. You may be able to get some distance toward your goals by simply directing your team to please do what you are asking. To reach the final objective, you’ll likely need to appeal to their individual strengths by defining your vision in a way that makes them want to use their skill and knowledge to reach the goal.

Most of us have to play the roles of both manager and leader and I’ve learned a lot about both from my wife. In addition to being a skilled and passionate educator, she is the best mother I’ve ever seen. I’m proud of our sons and I know that she, and they, deserve most of the credit for what wonderful men they are. Once, when I asked her about her outstanding ability as a mother, she said it was important to have a clear idea what you are hoping for, and what behaviors you will, and will not accept, and to be clear about that.

She said she began thinking about this well before the boys were born. I know that she has always communicated clearly, and consistently, with them about what was expected and that she insisted on correct behavior when that was necessary. She managed them fairly, but firmly, and got great results. She also had a clear vision from the beginning and she lead them to realize those goals.

She treats them, always, with real respect and love. She offered them options that spoke to their individual strengths and preferences. She talked with them about what she wanted and why it mattered. She listened to what they wanted and adapted her vision to better align with their interests. As they grew, she gave their perspectives and independence greater and greater weight and helped them grow strong as individuals. She is an amazing leader, in her work and at home, and I watched the boys choose to follow her with love.

While the role of mother is so much more than manager and leader, the lessons of leadership I’ve learned from my wife, and others, can help you herd your cats. If you clearly define your expectations and communicate your vision, and honor their individuality and ability, they may impress you with their results.

I can remember a time when I managed the creation of a new group of systems staff from three, very different, groups. We were combining our Windows sysadmins, Unix sysadmins and mainframe systems programmers into one team. On the surface, the cultures of these three groups were significantly different and I remember thinking at the time that it was like putting cats in bag! Ultimately, I told them so. At a meeting with the combined team, I shared that thought and told them how much I like cats. I acknowledge that we had some different cats in the room. Maybe some were more like Persian cats, some more like Siamese cats, and others more like the tabby cats we see in such variety. Maybe there were even some alley cats ready for a fight.

I asked them to think about what made them different, and also about how they were the same. I started outlining my vision for the new group in ways that I hoped would help them adopt it as a shared vision. I talked about the special strengths that people in each of the former groups brought to the table and also about the things they all shared; like their commitment to delivering reliable systems that performed well and their desire to do things right. I asked them to think about what it would mean to be one group of cats more than three groups of different kinds of cats.

Ultimately, I left a lot of how the new group would form up to them and they found their own best ways to build trust and create a new culture around their shared values. As a manager, I laid out what we needed to accomplish. As a leader, I invited them to participate in defining how we’d achieve those results. In the process, I saw the power of the first follower in action. Once a respected member of this community chose to get on board, the others found it easier to join in.

The picture at the start of my post today must be ten years old. It is of our cat Olema with two kittens who are grown cats today. We weren’t sure how he’d accept these two; orphaned so young my wife had to hand feed them every four hours at first. He chose to be father and mother to them! He cleaned them up after feeding time and looked after them throughout the day. He’s been gone for some time now, but I still think of him at the end of the day.

You see, we have four cats in our house now. The two kitties above, a middle cat we found in a log in the forest, and a new kitten whose current nickname is “The Terrorist”. She’s actually a sweetie and when it’s bedtime, she’s often the first follower who helps with herding cats at our house. Sometimes, she will follow me down the stairs to the cat room where they sleep and the others will follow along. They do need more or less encouragement depending on the night! Often one will insist on being carried down and sometimes we all laugh about this process.

Of course, even with all the best intentions, sometimes its just like… well, herding cats!