Who Are You Leading?

There’s an old saying, “leader of one, leader of many if you can’t lead one you can’t lead any.” If you are not leading yourself, someone else is leading you…and it may not be the person or people that you want! Being a good leader in business or in life takes a lot of hard work as well as a conscious effort of self-development.

There are some people that are naturally talented when it comes to leadership. For most of us, however, it's a skill that needs to be developed. The good news is that anyone can develop the skills necessary to become be a leader.

Unfortunately, most people aren't willing to pay the price it takes to get there. People want things quickly and that's not the way it works in leadership. It takes a sense of purpose and patience. Becoming a good leader doesn’t happen in a day.

You don’t read a book on leadership or go to a seminar and all of a sudden become a good leader. It takes effort to learn and to grow. Leadership growth is a process. Quite frankly, it takes a lot of getting out of your comfort zone, checking your ego, admitting you don’t have all the answers, and being humble.

Back to that first quote, "leader of one leader of many, if you can’t lead one you can’t lead any." The first step to being a good leader to others is learning to lead yourself. Sadly, there are so many managers in business today that have it all mixed up. They think that being a manager, or being the boss, is being a leader. This belief couldn’t be further from the truth.

What's the difference between management and leadership? Simply put, management is about doing things right. Leadership is about doing the right things. Measuring productivity, checking what time someone comes to work or how long they take for lunch might be important management activities. But, doing those things is completely different from inspiring a team to accomplish a common goal, or helping an employee to discover their inner potential. That’s leadership.

One of the better leadership definitions comes from John Maxwell who says, “Leadership is not about titles, positions or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another.” Influence as a leader starts with yourself. After all, how can you expect to influence others to “do the right thing” if you don’t possess or display the skills or behavior necessary to demonstrate that you can lead by example?

People aren't going to follow you just because you have a title. Oh…they may pretend to in order to keep their job, but you're getting things done using fear rather than influence. Most likely the people that "pretend" to follow you aren't giving you the best that their skills have to offer.

Learning to influence yourself probably means that you will need to take a close look at who you are. This will involve taking a personal inventory, determining those areas that you wish to develop, constructing a personal development plan, and executing that plan. If you are honest with yourself, you’ll probably find lots of areas to develop!

Don’t worry, everyone has development areas and there is usually no quick fix or fast development program that you can take to address them. Sustainable personal leadership growth is a lifelong pursuit. However, most people overestimate what they could do in a day or week but underestimate what they can do in a year.

To borrow a sports analogy, this is not a sprint race; it’s a marathon. You use different strategies in those races. A sprint involves a high focused expulsion of energy to achieve a goal. You cross the finish line and it's over.

I've done marathon distance running in athletic competitions. This type of race is not my favorite. Sometimes it seems to go on, and on, and on. I succeed in completing that type of race because I realize that sometimes the strategy is to put one foot in front of the other at a measured pace. The key is consistency.

Developing your leadership skills happens in much the same way; taking a measured pace and working at it consistently, every day. If you take this approach, you'll find that your personal leadership growth can make big developmental strides in a year and huge leaps forward as time goes on.

Are you ready to step up your game as a business leader? Learn to be a better self-leader and you’ll be amazed at how great your ability to influence others to greater productivity and success increases. A good way to get started is to pick up leadership or personal growth books that can open up ideas and improve your knowledge and skills. There are literally thousands of choices great choices in this category.

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how you start or where you start your leadership growth program. Just get started!

Rich
"Finishers Are Winners!"
Dr. Richard B. Greene, DBA, SSBB, CMPE
Speaker, Author, Peak Performance Business Coach

© Copyright 2020 Rich Greene
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Dr. Richard B. Greene is an International Speaker, Best-Selling Author, and Executive Business Coach who helps business executives get to the next level in business, their careers, and their personal lives. Through his IronCode (www.IronMindSuccess.com) acceleration program, he offers one-on-one coaching, group coaching, live seminars, and do-it-yourself development products to significantly increase levels of personal and business success. He’s been featured on radio shows and various news sites including KVCG Radio, The Miami-Herald, The Denver Post, Wall Street Select, Financial News Today, Fox, and ABC.