Tag Leadership Position

Why Do You Want to Lead?

Steve Keating 3 Comments

I was approached recently by someone asking if I would be their mentor. I already mentor a small handful of people and I take that responsibility very seriously. So I am selective about who I can invest my time with. 

First we need to “click.” If we can’t get along then neither of us will accomplish much. I also always approach mentoring with the knowledge that if the mentee isn’t willing to make changes in their life then I won’t be able to do anything to help them. Improvement and growth require a willingness to change. No one changes anything about themselves until they see a need. That’s one of the best things a mentor can do for someone, help them see a need to change something. 

So I asked the person who was looking for a mentor a few questions. I’d bet they are in their early 30’s. They have had a few jobs since college and each new job has come with the opportunity for advancement and increased pay. But in each case the opportunities have not been realized and the person thought a mentor could “give them an edge” when it comes to receiving a promotion. 

They said what they wanted was to earn a leadership position. I liked hearing the word “earn” because it told me they knew they would have to work for their new position. Then I asked why they wanted a leadership position and that’s when we went entirely off the rails. 

They said they had been taking orders for their entire career and they just figured it was about time they should be giving the orders. 

Where do I begin? Well, first off, “their entire career” was around 10 years. I’m not overly impressed with that. But I suppose when that’s a third of your life it seems like a long time. The bigger problem was of course the “giving orders” part. 

I asked several more questions. I determined that this person had worked for several bosses but had likely never actually worked with a leader. Their impression of leadership was someone in a position above them telling them what to do and when to do it. 

That’s a big problem. Most people in leadership positions lack any type of formal leadership training. So they “lead” the way they have been led. 

I asked one final question. I asked, “what are you willing to change about yourself in order to authentically lead the people you are responsible for?” Their answer is what ended our discussion. They said, “as a leader it’s not my job to change, my people need to change to suit me. That’s the kind of leader I want to be.”

I won’t be working with that person. I determined that they didn’t really want to learn. They had an rigid understanding of what leadership meant to them and they didn’t display much interest in Authentic Leadership. 

So for anyone interested in moving into a leadership position let me suggest that you first ask yourself “why do I want to lead.” There can be several good answers to that question but one of them must be “so I can help others learn, grow and succeed.” 

Authentic Leaders don’t aspire to a leadership position. They aspire to become a person worthy of leading others to their full potential. They don’t hope to hold a position that people will want to follow. They work to become someone that others will want to follow, whether they have a leadership position or not. 

If you’re interested in helping others grow then leading people will be very rewarding for you. If you’re only interested in giving orders then I would suggest a career as a short order cook. Then you can yell “order up” all day long and not offend a single person. 

Want more of LeadToday? I’m changing things up on my Twitter feed for subscribers. Beginning March 2nd I’ll be publishing two videos each week focusing on an element of Authentic Leadership. I’ll post these videos each Tuesday and Thursday morning. They will be about 10 minutes long so we can get into the topic in a more meaningful way. The investment for subscribers in still only $5 a month. That’s for at least 80 MINUTES of quality video content on leadership a month. 

If you’re interested in taking a look then head on over to my Twitter profile page. If you’re not a follower yet hit the follow button. It will change to a subscribe button and once you hit that you’re on your way. You can cancel at any time you’ve decided you have nothing left to learn about leading the people who you count on for your success. 🙂

Here’s the link to my Twitter… https://twitter.com/leadtoday 

A Position of Leadership

Steve Keating 1 Comment

I frequently hear from people who want to move up in their organization. Most of them are looking for a leadership position. Many of them are most interested in the “perks” of leadership. More money, more flexibility, more control, over themselves and the people they work with. Some say they want the authority and power that they think come with a leadership position. 

Some say they want to “leave a mark” on their organization and be remembered after they are gone. A few, very few, say they want to help people develop and grow. 

And that perhaps is why we see fewer and fewer Authentic Leaders in the world today. 

Too many people today are interested in a leadership position and too few are interested in actually leading. People assume, and I think this is the biggest fallacy of leadership, they assume that once they are promoted to a leadership position they are a leader.

Nothing could be further from the truth. All that position does is give someone the illusion of leadership. It fools many of them into thinking that they have somehow gotten smarter overnight. It bewilders them into believing that because they hold a position of leadership that other people will see them as someone they want to follow. 

You can’t blame them for buying into those myths. It’s likely the people who promoted them have bought into them for years. It is a self-perpetuating cycle. It’s one of the most common reasons that businesses fail. 

Here are the myth busting facts. Holding a leadership position does not make you a leader. You do not even need to be in a so called position of leadership to actually lead. Leadership is not a position, it is a disposition. It is a mindset. It is a personal culture that says I care enough to make a difference in the lives of other people, even if that comes with a personal expense to me. 

Being promoted to a leadership position puts you at the appropriately named “position” level of leadership. At this level of leadership you likely have few true leadership skills. You very likely have no formal leadership training. Because of this you’re probably going to lead the same way you’ve been led. Which is to say you won’t be doing much leading. 

You’ll attempt to force the compliance of the people you’re supposed to be leading. About the only way you know how to do that is to provide a set of consequences if your people don’t do what they are told. If the consequences are severe enough, and the people need the job, they will comply. You’ll fool yourself again into thinking you’re doing a swell job. 

But almost every single personnel issue a company has is caused by leaders occupying this level of leadership. People will not follow a position level leader past their stated job description. If you’ve ever heard from one of your people that “you can’t make me do that, it’s not in my job description” then you know for a fact that they see you as a position level leader. Even if they don’t know it’s called that. Even if you didn’t know it was called that. 

At this level of leadership continuous attitude issues arise. This level of leadership is the primary driver of disengaged people, those people that lately have been described as “quiet quitters.” Your people will not openly disobey you, they will slow walk everything you ask them to do. Position level leaders have no way of motivating their people and often don’t even know that’s one of their prime responsibilities as a leader. 

Everyone starts at the position level of leadership but the longer you stay there the more likely you are to be stuck there forever. At this level you have a lot to learn but if you’re willing to learn it the rewards are significant. 

Once you move past this level your personnel issues begin to melt away. The same people who had attitude issues become much better team members. Your people look for ways to solve problems rather then  pointing out everything that’s wrong. You’ll wonder what caused them to change but the truth will be they didn’t change, YOU did. You learned to lead people instead of trying to manage them. 

Once you’re past the position level of leadership you won’t need the compliance of your people because you’ll have their commitment. They will be committed to you because you have the courage to show you care more for them as people than you care about them as employees.

Being an Authentic Leader means investing a part of yourself in the people you lead. It’s hard work but perhaps the most rewarding work you’ll ever do. Make the effort to move past the position level of leadership and see the difference it makes in your life and the lives of everyone you lead. I guarantee you’ll be glad you did. 

A Leadership Disposition

Steve Keating 5 Comments

I have known many people over the years who aspired to hold a leadership position. Many of them were even willing to put in the work they believed would earn them that position. Most of them did in fact manage to get promoted to a leadership position. 

But many of them never realized that while they were promoted to a position of leadership they were not promoted to leader. They didn’t know that no one could promote them to the position of leader. They also didn’t realize that having a leadership position or the title of a leader doesn’t make you one. 

They simply bought into the greatest of all leaderships myths. The myth that where someone is on an organizational chart determines their level of leadership. The reality is, all that position does is provide them with an little easier opportunity to earn the privilege of leading someone. 

Many “position leaders” assume that upon being promoted to a position of leadership that they have arrived. Upon “arriving” at this position their learning about leadership too often stops, assuming it ever started. It’s almost like learning to drive a car. Has anyone ever took more driver education classes right after getting their driver’s license? Many people in leadership positions don’t need any leadership development because they already “lead” every day. 

Except they don’t. They most likely attempt to manage people. I say “attempt” because it is if fact impossible to manage another human being. 

By far, the most effective leaders were leaders long before they ever held a position of leadership. They knew early on that leadership was way more about their disposition than it was about their position. Leaders who understand that fact are Authentic Leaders. They don’t need a title or position in order to lead. What they need is a decision that says “I choose to make a positive difference in the lives of others.” I choose NOT to wait for a position or title to make that difference. I choose to Lead Today. 

They do not wait for a position that people will “have to” follow. They work to become the type of person that people will want to follow. 

Authentic Leaders invest their experience, time, energy, and resources to help other people grow. Potentially, they help those people grow into leaders themselves. They know that to help other people grow they need to constantly be growing themselves as well. When they do find themselves in a position of leadership they don’t see it as “arriving,” they see it as part of their never ending journey of self-development. 

If you want to one day hold a position of leadership then don’t work to impress people who can promote you to a leadership position. Instead, work to earn the followership of people you help succeed while on your own journey to success. The people who can promote you to a position of leadership will notice. 

You won’t just have earned a leadership position, you’ll have earned the opportunity to authentically lead. 

On a another note… Everyone can use a “nudge” towards success. I’m trying something new on Twitter. It’s called “Super Followers.” For $5 a month, that’s 17 cents a day, people can follow a part of my Twitter stream that is for subscribers only. It features short videos of me discussing leadership topics, sales tips and ideas for better overall relationships. I’m assuming there will be far fewer Super Followers than the million or so people who regularly follow me on Twitter. That will give me the opportunity to answer questions more throughly than I can on regular Twitter. Most of the answers will come in the evening cause we all have day jobs, right? Think of it as ”mentoring on demand!”

My goal with SuperFollowers is to build a better connection, one where I can help more and have a greater impact. I’m hoping it gives me a chance to mentor to a wider audience. It’s still new, we’ll see how it works. It’s a $5 dollar investment that may be the extra “push” you need to get to where you want to be. I’d be honored to be able to help get you there. 

You can find more information by clicking the Super Follow button on my Twitter profile page IN THE TWITTER APP. http://twitter.com/leadtoday Give it a try if you’re so inclined, and if you are, be sure to let me know how I’m doing and how I can be of even more help.

The Trail of an Authentic Leader

Steve Keating 3 Comments

I’m sometimes asked how I can tell when someone is an Authentic Leader. People want to know what to look for, what to listen for and what “signs” signify that someone is an Authentic Leader. 

While there are certainly identifiable character traits of Authentic Leadership there is one surefire way to know without a doubt that someone is an Authentic Leader. They leave a trail behind them. The trail is littered with leaders. 

Authentic Leaders invest the time required to develop their people. They begin the process of developing their people with the understanding that people need to be reminded more than they need to be taught. That is particularly true when it comes to leadership. 

Leadership is “modeled” much more than it is taught. That’s why it is so important that leaders always keep in mind that they are the models for successful leadership behaviors. They don’t tell people what to do, they show them. They know that people will do what their leader does 1000 times faster than they will do what their leader says. 

Authentic Leaders grow new leaders through consistency and persistence. They don’t offer drive by coaching. They know that elevating others requires work, patience and a willingness to suffer the occasional setback. Maybe even more than occasional. They don’t coach in their free time, instead they set aside time, often daily, to invest in their people. They don’t provide all the answers for their people, they help their people develop answers on their own. 

One of the reasons Authentic Leaders don’t give all the answers is that they admit they don’t have all the answers to begin with. They are willing to learn from anyone, anytime. They know the best leaders are constant learners. They also are not afraid to admit when they are wrong or have made a mistake. They take ownership of and responsibility for, their actions. 

They also give ownership away to help their people grow. They delegate tasks and the responsibility for getting them done. They allow their people to take ownership of the task. The allow them to make decisions and determine the steps to make to ensure successful completion of the task. 

Authentic Leaders know that the best way to help people learn to make decisions is to let them make decisions. That also means allowing them to clean up the messes they make from a poor decision. 

Authentic Leaders make most every decision with an eye towards the future. The full future. That includes who they will leave behind as leaders when their own time in the top spot comes to a close. 

I ask people in leadership positions who they are currently developing to fill future leadership positions. Many of them tell me they are too busy leading to “spend” time on developing people. That tells me without a doubt that while they may hold a leadership position they most certainly are not an Authentic Leader. 

Authentic Leaders consistently “invest” the time to develop the next generation of leaders and they leave a substantial trail of leaders behind them as a result. 

So…who are you developing today for the leadership roles of tomorrow?

I Dare You to Lead

Steve Keating 9 Comments

 

I dare you to lead…from right where you are. I dare you to lead…with just the skills you have available to you today. I dare you to lead…with the title and position you have today…even if you have no title and no position. I dare you to lead…this very minute! 

 

We don’t need more leaders in the world. What we need is for more leaders to lead. Most leaders today are leaders in waiting. They are waiting for the title that will make them a leader. They are waiting for “leadership skills” to somehow magically appear. They are waiting for the right “opportunity” to come along and then they will spring into leadership action. 

 

For some of the leaders the waiting may seem necessary. Others know that they are simply procrastinating. Still others are hiding from their fear of failing as a leader behind the safety net of waiting. 

 

Whatever their reasons the waiting is usually an excuse. No one who possesses the ability to influence another person need wait one more second. They can chose to lead right now, today.

 

Nothing makes you a leader but leading. Don’t buy into the myth that you need a lofty position or a fancy sounding title to lead. No title, no position, no timing and no opportunity can make you a leader. 

 

You must decide to lead. When you suddenly start leading there may be people in your sphere of influence who are offended. Lead anyway.

 

People like me can’t really “teach” leadership. We can only talk about how to lead. We can only explain the common characteristics of authentic leaders.  We can only describe the frequently repeated mistakes of poor leaders. 

 

But the only way to truly learn how to lead is to lead. Deal with your mistakes along the way, learn from them and lead better the next day. If you’re waiting until you are comfortable with your leadership skills and completely confident in your leadership abilities, then you may never lead at all. 

 

Authentic Leaders are often less than comfortable and completely confident with all the decisions they make and all the actions they take. They lead anyway! 

 

There has never been a great leader who was great on their first day of leading. Everyone learns along the way. Don’t wait until you think you’re good enough. Begin leading today and dedicate yourself to working hard to become the leader you’ve been waiting to become. 


I dare you!


Leading Doesn’t Make You a Better Person

Steve Keating 8 Comments

When most people think of leading they tend to think of leading people “below” themselves in a business or organization. That is a very dangerous way to think because it’s hard to think of people “below” you without also thinking you’re somehow “above” the people you lead.

You also might begin to delude yourself into thinking you are somehow a “better” person than the people you lead. If you’re truly going to lead then you had best understand from your very first day as a leader that no title or position makes you a better person than anyone else. 

It’s not even your title or position that makes you a leader. Your thinking and your actions make you a leader. Even more than that, it’s your people that make you a leader because no matter what you think or do, if no one is following then you’re not leading. 

I am a strong believer in the concept of 360 degree leadership and I understand the reality of different “levels” within any organization. Unless you’re actually at the top of your organizational chart there will likely always be people above and below you on that chart. 

The secret to being an Authentic Servant Leader is to never think for a moment that because someone is below you on an organizational chart that they are somehow below you in life.

People are where they are in their lives for a lot of reasons. Some had more luck than others, some made more luck than others. Some maybe were born with more advantages, some perhaps married into additional advantages. Some people may have earned a higher station in life and then somehow lost it. Our lot in life changes, sometimes because of what we did, sometimes because of what we didn’t do and sometimes it changes for no apparent reason.

The point is we are really pretty much all the same and the moment you start thinking you’re hot stuff is the very moment you begin the lose the empathy and compassion required to actually be an Authentic Servant Leader.

If you’ve been blessed with a leadership title or position, or if you’ve truly been blessed and have been given the ability to lead others without needing a title or position, then accept that blessing with humility. 

No one is better than you and you’re no better than anyone else. It’s life’s perfect balance! 

When we start thinking we’re better, or worse than someone else, then that balance is thrown off. Pretty much every problem, issue and challenge we will ever have is in some way caused by that “off-balance” thinking. 

Every person is in some way special. When you understand that simple fact then and only then do you have the opportunity to be a truly special leader.

Titles Can’t Lead

Steve Keating 9 Comments

You’ve worked hard to earn your title and position of leadership. You’ve done more than required of you and now you have the opportunity to truly make a difference.

Maybe you’ve just lucked into the title. Maybe you were born into the position, or married into it. Maybe you’ve benefited from the Peter Principle and got the position because “they” tried you in other roles and you did okay.

Either way, whether you lucked into a position or you’ve really earned it, your title and position of leadership does not make you a leader.

Being a leader requires that you actually lead somebody.

If you manage people you’re likely a boss, not a leader.

If you lead people to act as you act and you can influence them to behave in a certain way you’re probably an effective leader. The challenge with being an effective leader is that despite some success you’re likely still not helping your people reach their full potential.

If you lead people to act as you act and you care as much about your followers as you care about yourself, and if you influence your people in a way that helps them become a leader and you celebrate their success as much as or more than your own then you’re almost certainly an Authentic Servant Leader.

When you help people accomplish more than they ever believed possible, because you believed in them even more than they believed in themselves, then you are a leader of leaders.

No one leads merely by sitting in a leader’s chair. If you’re really going to lead you have to do something.

You see, accepting an important sounding title or position does not make you a leader. It may however make it possible to force the compliance of your people. You may be able to “scare” them into doing what you want but fear is a very poor long-term motivator.

If you settle for the compliance of your people you will always have “personnel issues” to deal with. Your people will simply do the bare minimum required to maintain their job. They will always be restless and not in a constructive way. They will underperform and they will frustrate you. And it will all be because of you; you may have filled the office of the leader but you’ve left a leadership void.

A title or position does not make you a leader, nor does it lead for you. It merely gives you a bit of time to earn the opportunity to truly lead. The extent of your leadership will be determined by you and those who you would lead. If you can show that you care enough about your followers as people then they will allow you to lead them. Yes, I said allow.

If you think you can make people follow you then you had better think again. You may be able to make them comply but leading people requires their permission and commitment. If your people are not committed to you then they will not follow you. There is no way to force someone to commit to you. Their commitment must be earned.

Compliance causes people issues, commitment solves them.

People commit to a leader when they discover that the leader cares about them as people. When a leader proactively, intentionally and consistently shows that they care then their followers will know without a doubt that the leader has their best interests in mind.

When they know the leader has their best interests in mind they will go above and beyond to help the leader. You’ll never hear a committed follower say “that’s not in my job description.”

Leadership requires more than a title; it requires action on the part of the leader. If you are counting on your position or title to gain the commitment of your people then you are missing the leadership boat.

Take action to show you care. Invest yourself in the success of your people. Freely give your time and expertise to those you would lead. Make a difference for other people.

That is how Authentic Servant Leadership works!