Last, fall I wrote a post titled Speaking Truth to Power, that offered ten keys to speaking truth to power effectively.  I was asked recently to explain number 7 on the list: Persuade – Don’t Take Ceremonial Positions!  Here’s a story that will help illustrate the point:

In the 2006 feature film, The Last King of Scotland, Forest Whitaker portrayed Ugandan President Idi Amin in a story about a young Dr. Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy), who was bored with the family practice at home so he travels to Uganda, and as fate would have it, meets Amin. Impressed by the young doctor, Amin asks him to be his personal physician. Nicholas welcomes his new position.

As their relationship grew over time, Amin would consult with Nicholas on a broad range of matters. (Here’s where it gets interesting). There is a terrific moment in the film when Nicholas is consulted about whether to expel the Asians from Uganda, and he strongly urges against it. Amin dismisses his advice, moves forward despite Nicholas’ counsel, and the results are as disastrous as Nicholas had predicted.

Following the debacle, Amin was enraged at Nicholas, blaming him for the failure. A flabbergasted Nicholas replied, “I told you NOT to do it.” To which Amin responded, “Yes, but you failed to convince me.” It was a scene that left Nicholas and the audience in stunned silence.

This may sound a bit twisted, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that Amin had a point. There’s a lesson here. Could Nicholas have really stopped Amin from doing what he wanted to do? In that situation, probably not. In Nicholas’ defense I thought he made a pretty strong case. However, under many circumstances, which are all too familiar to us in the workplace, people CAN effect change in high stakes situations, but they fail to do so because they don’t step up in a manner that’s very persuasive.   It’s what I call taking a ceremonial stance.

Taking the ceremonial stance isn’t about really making a difference, it’s just an exercise in self indulgence, regardless of the motivation.  It makes you feel good and provides you cover down the road so you can tell your colleagues, “I told my boss that was going to happen!”  Of course, remember, it also underscores the apparent lack of influence and confidence your boss has in your professional judgment – consider that the next time you think about trumpeting your earlier prognostications.

Make a difference in your organization by sharing your best professional judgment with your leaders.   Do so persuasively and in concert with the other 9 considerations I offered in my earlier post.  Otherwise, keep quiet.  If it’s just about making yourself feel better, I recommend going back to crushing your paper coffee cups!