Go Directly to Jail

Written By Jeff Thoren

“Go directly to jail. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200.” is a well-known instruction from the board game Monopoly. It’s printed on several game cards which tell a player to go directly and immediately to the “jail” space on the game board.

So what does this have to do with being an Enlightened Rebel? Well, you may have noticed that the first guiding principle we mention on our Roadmap for Enlightened Rebels is all about practicing facilitative leadership.

Without facilitative leadership you effectively lock yourself (and the rest of your team) up with no chance of passing "Go" on your journey from parentling to partnership and toward becoming a workplace characterized by innovation, engagement, self-managed networks of teams, and collective leadership.

Why is facilitative leadership so important? According to the Interaction Institute for Social Change (IISC), facilitative leaders create and inspire the conditions for self-empowerment so that people work together to achieve a common goal. They make it easier for people to…

  • Contribute their ideas and expertise

  • Speak up when they have problems

  • Take initiative

  • Work with others

  • Make decisions

  • Share responsibility for success

They regularly ask the question, “How can I shift from exercising power over to building power with others?” and they strive to honor the things they value. Things like…

  • Authentic leadership

  • Unique and diverse perspectives

  • Love and compassion as forces for social change

  • Equity and fairness

  • Legitimizing others

  • Collaboration

Facilitative leaders practice shared leadership. They understand that every role in the organization and network is valuable and valued and is an important connector to all other roles. They believe that all the roles lead together in dedicated collaboration.

To learn more, check out our previous post: 10 Qualities of Facilitative Leaders. How would you rate yourself related to each of the ten qualities? What opportunities do you have to increase the capacity for facilitative leadership in yourself and your team?

Jeff Thoren

Jeff is the founder of Gifted Leaders, LLC, an established leadership and team coaching company based in Phoenix, AZ. He’s also the Clinical Assistant Professor of Veterinary Communication at Midwestern University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. Jeff is committed to building engaging and innovative workplace cultures. He understands the mindset required to effectively lead and influence others in a business environment that is increasingly uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. His goal is to accelerate the shift from traditional hierarchical leadership (where a few leaders at the top exert control) to collective leadership (where leadership emerges as a collective capacity from everyone).

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