Imagine any leadership you’ve ever come across. Now imagine it without people. Do you get the picture?
Leadership is all about people – always has been, and always will be. Missing this essential fact renders leadership void of purpose. This eventuality illegitimizes the leadership.
If you’re like many leaders today, you love to get things done. Maybe you’re task-driven and action-oriented. It’s what is universally expected of leaders. That’s the most logical way to produce results. After all, nothing gets done until something gets done. But that means the most difficult thing about leadership is the one thing we can’t remove from leadership:
People
Here’s the truth: You can’t lead if you can’t deal with people.
Practical results will only get you so far. And that’s true whether you’re leading an organization, a congregation, a team, or a kids’ football team. Building relationships will always be the foundation of effectiveness – in leadership and in life.
When leadership ceases to be about the people, it loses its legitimacy.
In one episode of the Maxwell Leadership podcast, John Maxwell once shared two prevailing thoughts about why the best leaders are the best:
1) They give their best to their people, and
2) they get the best from their people.
Here is a powerful question a leader should ask. Are you getting your best from your people? If not, here’s how you can give your best to them:
- Slow down to connect.
If you don’t slow down long enough to connect with your people, you’ll eventually find yourself alone. And if you’re alone, you’re not leading. Leaders understand that you might be able to go faster alone, but you can go further with others.
Howard Schultz said, “ Victory is much more meaningful when it comes not just from one person, but from the joint achievements of many. The euphoria is lasting when all participants lead with their hearts, winning not just for themselves, but for one another. ”
- Show that you care.
As a leader, you have to take an interest in your people, both professionally and personally. Professional interest shows that you want to help them; personal interest takes it a step deeper and shows your heart.
Remember, a personal touch goes a long way with the people you lead. Try sending a handwritten note to someone’s home address, or prepare a personal gift for the family. Something like a branded (with their name) mug, or token.
Find out who they are individually. What their likes, dislikes, challenges, and family are. Getting personal builds a bridge of trust that says, “I care about you.” This trust will in turn yield multiplied effort towards your vision.
“The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.”
— Harvey S. Firestone
This is a great way to show that you value them as a human being, beyond their function on the team or their rank among the numbers. It will take a little extra time, but it will be worth it in the end.
- Model what you want to see.
It is not enough to tell your people what to do; you must also show them , because people do what people see. Are you willing to do what you’re asking your people to do?
There is an old story about Mahatma Gandhi being approached by a woman and her son. The woman asked, “Please tell my little boy to stop eating sugar.”
Gandhi replied, “Come back in three days.”
So, the woman did as he said and returned three days later with her son. When they arrived, Gandhi said to the boy, “Young boy, stop eating sugar. It’s not good for you.”
The woman was confused and asked, “Why did you ask us to leave and come back in three days?”
Gandhi replied, “Because three days ago, I, too, was eating sugar. I could not ask him to stop eating sugar so long as I had not stopped eating sugar.”
To get the best from your people, make them your top priority by slowing down to connect, proving that you care, and modelling what you want to see.
Let me leave you with another quote from John C. Maxwell:
John Maxwell said it best: “ Leaders who tend only to business often end up losing the people and the business. But leaders who tend to the people usually build up the people and the business. ”
Now we know. This is how we learn. This is how we grow.
It’s all about the people!
Enjoy a transformational day.
