I’ve served under good leaders and bad leaders. Reflecting
on my career thus far, I can say with certainty that I have managed to learn
something regardless of the leadership capabilities I served under. My life
experiences have helped shape my own definition of leadership. While serving
under leadership I perceived as poor, I learned what not to do. Good leadership
has taught me positive ways to work, interact and be effective.
You are like me in at least one way…your life
experience has influenced how you define good leadership. While defining leadership
can be difficult, it’s not difficult to recognize when you see it. Finding a
few definitive words that describe everything leadership includes is
challenging.
I am not afraid to admit that I have not always given
good leadership. I’ve seen my mistakes and would like to think I have learned from
them. Seeing and understanding the errors of my way, it has become a passion of
mine to learn all I can about becoming a good leader. I have taught on the
matter, read exhaustively on the matter and plan to continue to be a student of
the matter for the rest of my life. Through all I have read and learned, I have
managed to come up with a few single words that seem to do the term leadership
justice. Here is my take on a few words I consider critical if you want to be a
good leader.
The first is Influence. There’s a saying I like, but
I can’t remember who to attribute it to. It says; if you think you are leading
but no one is following you, you’re just going for a walk. That says a lot. If you
can’t influence those around you, even if you have the positional title of a
leader you may lack the moral authority that comes with influence. Moral authority
is based more on your character and behavior than an organizational chart. I’ve
lead teams, groups and individuals for years without a title. How? In order to
earn the right to influence someone start with building trust, investing time
and being genuinely concerned about them as a person. Be authentic and as
personable as you are comfortable. This takes time and energy, but I can assure
you it will be time well spent. Influence is often either out of your reach or control.
When you lack opportunity to build relational trust and spend time with those
you need to influence, it’s time to look for creative ways to make the most whatever
opportunities you do get.
Second is servant hood. Leading may seem polar opposite
to serving, but it is not. Sitting in your office, too bothered to be involved
in the day to day working or life of those you lead is a sure-fire way to
create an atmosphere that lacks cohesiveness, trust and vision. This type of
atmosphere is never the intention of a leader. If you find yourself too busy
with meetings or other priorities to spend time with your people, it’s only
natural for them to feel ignored at best or unappreciated at worst. You cannot be
slave to your calendar or even your customers to the extent that they will not
allow you time to interact with those you lead. Getting your hands dirty,
rolling up your sleeves…these are ways we describe someone that is willing to
do what is necessary to help others, regardless of title or position. Do what
you can to serve people well and they will serve you well in return.
Last is humility. I have been in many situations
where the person with the highest position in the room also feels the need to
be the smartest person in the room. It’s almost like no one else can have any
good ideas – or at least ideas better than theirs. When you constantly pass down
decisions without seeking input from those that are involved or impacted, you
let everyone know that you are smarter than they are. While I understand that
this may have to be the case at times, when it happens over and over and over
again, the pattern speaks on your behalf and likely communicates a message you
really don’t intend to convey. I consider myself to be fairly intelligent, but
I am rarely the smartest guy in the room and that is OK with me!
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