Last week, I spent my entire work week in Chicago, where I attended the annual Builder 100 Conference. The B100, as we at Hanley Wood often refer to it, is at its core a leadership conference.

It always amazes me to see who shows up to it. Although there are 100 companies who make that elite list, less than 50% of the executives who run those enterprises actually take time out to participate. In 2005, most builder execs were too busy selling and building homes to spend a couple days thinking about leadership. In 2007, many of those execs were too busy right-sizing. And in 2009, they were too busy surviving.

So, my question is when do they dedicate time to actually developing leadership skills?

I get that there's T&E, or at least training expense, associated with going to leadership conferences like the Builder 100; it's definitely an expensive proposition. And in these slim times, every penny saved is a penny earned. But something in my gut tells me it's less about the money; there appears that there's no urgency to learning more about leadership.

I couldn't disagree more.

Some people are born with that wonderful combination of decisiveness, intelligence, charisma, and passion that makes for the kind of natural-born leader than can rally that masses with the sound of his or her voice. But not everyone can have that baked into his or her DNA.

But the good thing about leadership is that even if it's not born and bred, it can be learned. And it should be and can be taught. Most of you who know me know I'm left of middle, but if there's one thing that I find truly amazing about one of the most right-wing organizations around--the U.S. military--is how they teach leadership. It is actually a repeatable process.

I found myself thinking about that a lot during the conference as I listened to some of the speakers. I wondered whether some home building executives were just afraid to try to put some definition to good leadership, afraid that maybe they'd recognize in themselves some shortcomings by giving some shape to what should be. Maybe they thought that they were already living good leadership. I'd like to think that's the case; but if they are too busy in the good times and the bad times to dedicate some time to it, can there not be a leadership principle or two that's been overlooked?

I imagine that many builder execs believe in their heart of hearts that they are good leaders. Chances are they spend nearly every waking moment trying to find ways to keep their companies going. They stress, they push, they haggle--heck, they probably even beg and plead to find ways to keep the doors open and the lights on. That's certainly dedication, and it's certainly admirable, but I don't know that it's true, inspirational leadership. So, let me share with you three tidbits about leadership that have stuck with me since the close of the conference:

1. "Create recipes, not rules." That phrase came from Howard Behar, former president of Starbucks North American and Starbucks International. It's a simple but profound message. It means that the structure of your organization-which is really defined by how information and communication flows--should not impede success. There should no doubt be guidelines to prevent chaos, but they should be flexible enough to allow for creativity and innovation. When people are encouraged to tinker with new ideas that can either increase revenue or decrease costs, the organization will benefit. Behar's case in point? Starbuck's Frappuccino. That high-margin coffee beverage--costs are 13% of retail price--was born out of one manager's experiment.
2. "My houses speak to me." Many of you have probably heard about John Wieland's, of namesake John Wieland Homes and Neighborhoods, 46-day crusade to sell 101 of the company's spec homes. He would go to one of his communities and literally pull out a mattress and sleep in the unsold home until he found a buyer for it. He said that every night he would play a little game with himself, one that was called, "Why is this house unsold?" And the houses would, as he described it, speak to him. They would show him the ugly view of the highway and roadside café out the window, the sad-looking vacant lots next door, the awkward entrances, and much, much more. Only five times could he not find a reason for why his people were having a tough time selling the darn thing. "We're not looking at our homes in context," he said.
3. "Don't be afraid to ask the question, even if it might sound stupid." That's what Gordon Bethune, former chairman and CEO of Continental Airlines, told audience members. He said that when he took over as head of what was then a very unprofitable airline, he started the company's turnaround with a very simple thought: "Why don't we fly to places people want to go?" It's an obvious question, but I think it shows just how far inside politics and outdated decision-making processes can derail a company from its core mission. With that extremely basic question, the company started to make decisions based on customer demand vs. insider wants and needs.

It's definitely hard to define leadership when so much seems to be wrapped up in personality. But I think it can be done. It's about figuring out the right question and then organizing the three main components--people, communication, and ownership--to create answers to that question. Once that code is cracked, information, ideas, and results can be delivered in a consistent, predictable, and repeatable way.

Funny enough, as I grabbed the latest Business Week just before boarding the plane home, I came across an article that pretty much seemed to have been written for me since it was squarely focused on the issue of leadership. The article was an excerpt of Jim Collins' new book, "How the Mighty Fall." (You might remember Collins' other books "Good to Great" and "Built to Last"; click here for a video.) After dissecting the issue of leadership, one of his key takeaways from his research was that there are five stages of decline. These stages uncannily matched up to home building's latest boom-to-bust cycle.

Take a look; it's at once an eye-opener and an inspiration.