Power_ Why Some People Have Itand Others Don't - Jeffrey Pfeffer [75]
The ability to not take opposition or slights personally, think about whose support you need and go after it, regardless of their behavior toward you or your own feelings, and remain focused on the data and impartial analysis requires a high level of self-discipline and emotional maturity. It is a rare skill. But it is crucial in surmounting and disarming opponents.
BE PERSISTENT
I met Richard Blum at a meeting launching the Athena project, the multicampus, information technology–intensive effort to gather clinical data about the effectiveness of breast cancer treatments. Blum, an investment banker and investment manager with vast personal wealth, is chair of the UC Board of Regents and also the husband of California senator Dianne Feinstein. When I asked Blum, who serves on numerous corporate boards and nonprofit foundations as well as running his own vast enterprises, what caused him to turn up for this meeting, he replied, “I have learned that when either my wife or Laura [Esserman] asks you to do something, the best answer is, ‘Yes, dear.’ Because even if you say no, sooner or later you are going to do it anyway. You might as well save yourself the time and aggravation and agree at the beginning.” Laura Esserman describes her success as coming from her dogged persistence and likes to talk about other examples of successful scientists who emphasized the importance of not giving up in the face of setbacks. People who have observed her in action describe her as a force of nature.
Persistence works because it wears down the opposition. Much like water eroding a rock, over time keeping at something creates results. In addition, staying in the game maintains the possibility that the situation will shift to your advantage. Opponents retire or leave or make mistakes. The environment changes. When Esserman entered medicine, breast cancer was, believe it or not, a relatively unsexy medical backwater. Women’s advocacy and scientific progress that has enhanced diagnosis and treatment have given the disease and its treatment much more visibility. In a tenured academic position (Esserman) and a safe legislative seat (Brown in San Francisco), being patient and persistent is easier to implement than might be the case in other, less secure situations. Nevertheless, not giving up is a precursor to winning.
ADVANCE ON MULTIPLE FRONTS
When Esserman was thwarted at UCSF, she built a scientific and clinical reputation at the national level with, for instance, the head of informatics at the National Cancer Institute. National visibility and ties could be deployed to build her power locally. She also continued to practice medicine, building a loyal cadre of former patients, some of whom had incredible wealth, talent, and connections. As she put it, when she was thwarted making systemic change, she could work on helping people one at a time. When she was discouraged by what she could do for individual patients—breast cancer remains a deadly disease—she could focus on making systemic changes that would improve care and enhance knowledge. By building her power base nationally and locally, both inside UCSF and with others in the community, Esserman could leverage power from one setting to get influence in another.
It’s a long way from breast cancer in San Francisco to cricket in India, but the story of how Lalit Modi gained control of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the most powerful and wealthy body in world cricket, and launched the new Indian Premier League (IPL) also illustrates the importance of moving ahead on many fronts. The son of a wealthy family, Modi attended Duke University, where he learned about sports marketing. Back in India, he signed a deal with Disney to sell licensed merchandise. His first attempt—to set up an Indian cricket league with foreign players that was going to get air time