Great leaders serve , that ' s what they do !
18 MOMENTUM / May 2016
The Business of Leadership
Great Leaders
SERVE
By : Bonnie Benkula , BSHCA , MBA Certified Coach , Speaker , Trainer
The John Maxwell TEAM The Leaven Exchange Bonnie @ Benkula . com
Ask yourself , what is leadership ? Ask someone else . You may get a wide variety of answers . Leadership is subjective .
People have different experiences with leadership in their life . I am always amazed at the stories I hear when I teach leadership . I hear stores of great leadership from the most unexpected areas of ones life . Some have experienced good leadership and some have experienced bad leadership . But one thing is consistent , a leaders is not a leader , without followers .
The book , 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership , states , “ When people respect you as a person , they admire you . When they respect you as a friend , they love you . When they respect you as a leader , they follow you .”
Lets look at three ways to gain respect :
1 . Leadership Ability – All leaders are not created equal . Some have natural leadership ability and a greater set of skills and the ability to lead others . These leaders are magnetic . The downfall for this charismatic leader is that they rely strictly on this given talent and they forget to continue to train and strengthen their leadership skills regularly . This type of leader has to learn humility and how to empower others . Other leaders , study and learn the skills to become a leader and can lead equally strong if they can keep their confidence high ..
2 . Show Respect-Earn Respect – All leaders need to show respect for others to earn respect back . Leaders who sincerely respect their teams , especially those members in subordinate positions , gain respect from others . When a leader builds a team of experts , he needs to let the experts do their job . The leader needs to keep the team working together towards their goal , but get out of the way of his team at the same time . This empowerment will allow for the greatest accomplishments and the best buy in a leader could ever ask . Sincerely caring about your team is the key .
3 . Be Courageous – Give Hope – When the going gets tough , a leader still leads and a leader keeps hope alive . In difficult times , courage can set leaders apart . Courageous people are willing to stand-alone . Courageous leaders are willing to stick by their values , despite the criticism they may receive . The most skilled will do this with grace and earn the respect of even those who oppose their values .
People follow individuals who they deem are better leaders than themselves . When groups first come together , natural leaders will lead . Eventually , everyone will change direction to follow the strongest leader . It ’ s natural for people to follow leaders that are stronger than them .
Research continues to prove that great leaders add significant value to organizations . Poor leaders crumble even the biggest companies .
Leaders serve those around them . All followers need to sense a benefit for being around their leader .
Evaluate yourself , by first looking at who you are attracting .
Then evaluate how your team reacts when you ask for a commitment or when dealing with change .
Great leaders serve , that ' s what they do !