Introduction
“People do not write so that someone can learn something from it; Oh! Dear me, how impolite, the reading world knows everything. It isn’t the reader that is in need of the author (as the sick of the doctor), no, it is the author who is in need of the reader.”1
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
I write about what intrigues me, what amazes me, and what baffles me. However, the qualitative weight of my ideas—as well as the effectiveness of my communication—are not things of which I am the best judge. As Kierkegaard knowingly explained, “the author is…taking an examination in which the reading world, which knows everything, is the examiner.”2
My humble request is that you will read critically, carefully, and passionately—for that is how I have written. The value of the ideas, and the importance of their discussion, will only be proven and heightened by your perspective and feedback.
About
My name is Andrew Caucutt. I write about leadership, business operations, and workplace culture. I help leaders shift their businesses from conventional hierarchies to proactive, self-directed organizations. You can experience operational success when you move away from an authority- and performance-based business model to a function- and outcome-based workplace culture.
As I have sought my own definition of leadership, I have learned from studying Robert Greenleaf, Marcus Aurelius, Miyamoto Musashi, Henri Nouwen, and Carl Jung, among many others. Through my research and work experience, I have developed my own model for exceptional leadership: Telodynamic Leadership. This model is the theoretical response to authoritarian or centralized leadership systems, which inevitably result in human suffering.
Through my research and work experience, I have developed my own model for exceptional leadership: Telodynamic Leadership.
Telodynamic transmission systems are ways of transmitting power in an efficient and cost-effective manner using wire ropes and mechanical pulleys. Telodynamic leadership is a transmission of power from centralized and strategic roles to operational and functional roles. Theoretically, this sounds nice—but the question is whether it can be practically applied to a real business. Within organizations, telodynamic leadership is exercised through the intentional and systematic transmission of power, or, as I like to call it, “Organizational Downshifting.”
Organizational Downshifting happens when leaders transmit decision-making power to the people closest to the function associated with that decision.
Just like downshifting a manual transmission in a vehicle, Organizational Downshifting changes the pace of the business, but moves it forward with much more torque, allowing it to more easily handle a steep incline or decline.
The torque of Organizational Downshifting eliminates delays, administrative overhead, and limits typical employee resistance to change. Employees are empowered to use their functional expertise to improve business operations within their role and responsibilities. This results in more frontline employees taking ownership for the state of the company, which, in turn, increases cross-functional alignment while allowing strategic leaders to focus their effort on strategic decisions.
What to Expect
My goals for this Substack are to:
Establish the philosophical foundation of Telodynamic Leadership and gain the insight of other thought-leaders on the conceptual and practical aspects of my idea.3
Bring my concept of Organizational Downshifting into the public discourse, and, through the feedback and criticism of other Operators, refine it.4
Develop these concepts and document the process, in the hope to eventually publish a book to support a social movement towards exceptional, ethical business operations.
Why subscribe to the Telodynamic Leader?
Subscribe to get full access to the Telodynamic Leader and publication archives. You will receive two separate posts a week, across a variety of subjects. I plan to expand the conversation about Organizational Downshifting to include more targeted responses to situations or scenarios raised by subscribers—which may take the form of a brief podcast or open discussion.5
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Kierkegaard, S. A. (1846). Journal JJ : 459. From Cappelørn, N. J., Hannay, A., Kangas, D., Kirmmse, B. H., Rumble, V., Söderquist, K. B., & Pattison, G. (Eds.). (2001). Kierkegaard’s Journals and Notebooks, Volume 2: Journals EE-KK. pp. 270-271. Princeton University Press.
Ibid.
I am well aware that there are myriad leadership philosophies and methodologies. My goal here is less about attempting to establish a “correct” leadership approach, and more about exploring the practical outcomes of telodynamic leadership.
Besides considering these ideas for the last decade, I have personally used this approach successfully in several organizations. There are notable exceptions to this approach, including situations where the intellectual floor for an informed decision is beyond any frontline employee’s capacity (i.e., medical or legal practice). However, my purpose here is to gain the insight of others, whose experience is more varied or advanced than my own.
The world is flooded with podcasts, and I am extremely wary of instinctively jumping into that. I do not feel strongly that a podcast or question/answer audio-commentary would add much to this discussion. However, my experience in that realm is also limited, so my hinting at a podcast is an invitation to be persuaded by those who believe some audio augmentation of this newsletter might be valuable.
