Leadership lessons to learn from 12 Angry Men — the movie

The first time I got to know about “12 Angry Men” was a few years back when I was reading one of the best books on management. The book mentioned an activity where readers were requested to watch this 1957 black and white classic on group dynamics. So, I did! I have to say, the 96 intense and claustrophobic minutes of this classic hit tell a lot about leadership, decision-making, team-building, and behavioural analysis.

For those of you who have watched it would be able to relate to the blog. For those who haven’t — do put it on your watch-list. 12 Angry Men chronicles the murder trial of an 18-year old boy from a slum, charged with stabbing his father to death. It is about a jury of 12 different individuals from distinct backgrounds; given the task of deciding unanimous whether the boy is guilty or not.

It is a perfect portrayal of how people act in groups and what all phases teams go through before reaching to a unanimous decision. Viewers can learn a lot about how people working within communities and organizations can influence others for the better.

You can take-away a lot of lessons on leadership and management, but below is a non-exhaustive list of what I took from it -

• Empathizing

Right from the beginning — Henry Fonda’s character tries to walk into the boy’s shoes; what it must have been like to live in a slum and grow up in a violent environment. Instead of rushing to judgement, potentially a prejudiced one; he tries to see things from the boy’s perspective. This is a great example of empathizing with others. The same holds true during meets and discussions.

Try to find the reason behind why people are saying what they are saying. Walking into others’ shoes will allow you to feel how a decision is likely to affect others and how it may impact things in the long-run. Empathizing makes you see the bigger picture more clearly!

• Choosing right over easy!

The character of Henry Fonda could have easily voted ‘guilty’ when the rest 11 jurors did the same. But he saw what was at stake — the life of a potentially innocent boy. So, he decided to go with the difficult path which meant not only standing against the rest 11 jurors, but also changing their behaviour without disrespecting their opinions. The easy path would have been avoiding hours of difficult and long conversations by voting ‘guilty’. So, during discussions, try to come out of the shell, break free of our comfort zone, and take a stand!

• Tone matters

After watching 12 Angry Men, I realized that the most influential jurors who were able to make a point were the ones who maintained a steady and calm disposition throughout the discussion. Those who kept yelling, lost their temper, shouted, and attempted to impose their views and arguments were the ones to soon lose their persuasive ability. Short-tempered and aggressive folks did make an impact — just not the one they really wanted to.

In order to be heard, you don’t need to be aggressive. Assertiveness, right tone of voice, and putting your arguments with conviction is the way to make a point.

• Having a different perspective

People vs. sheeple. Where do you belong? I know the latter is not a standard dictionary word, but you get the point, right! Fonda delivered an outstanding performance depicting how he chose to have a different opinion when the odds were 11:1. Don’t be a sheep, blindly following others’ opinions without putting your analytical abilities to use. Most people fail to put forward their views out of fear of ridicule or rejection. Try to avoid herd behaviour. Gather the courage to get your message through, even if it means standing against the ridicule of others.

• Giving time to important decisions

When the jurors gathered, eleven of them just wanted to get it over with. So they chose to do the easy thing of voting the boy guilty without offering any insight into the matter. They didn’t want to invest any time and intellectual efforts. If a decision is important, devote plenty of time. In the movie, the life of a boy was at stake. Find out what the stakes are and accordingly plan discussions and move ahead with conversations!

• Nudging others

You cannot impose your views. That’s taken! Fonda realized this, which is why at no point he tried to force anyone into voting ‘not guilty’. He used subtle techniques to nudge others. Trying to get your views accepted by others involves dealing with a complex network of countless emotions and social interactions; not to mention the ever-persistent desire of people to resist change. The sign of good leadership is finding ways to nudge others using subtle techniques instead of pushing them. Having an emotional insight combined with the ability to reason is what makes a good leader!

Last, but not the least thing I learned from this movie is to always follow your gut instincts. Your gut usually tells right! Henry Fonda went with his instincts, which allowed him to put forth his views with conviction. Do the same in a way that would influence everyone else’s perspective on the matter as well.

So, what do you think of it? Have anything more to add here? Share in the comments section below.

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