#WORLDCLASS Evolution MD Dr. Mahlon A. Kerr | Page 8

from the editor

Customers Must See You As a Leader, Not a Salesperson
Positioning yourself as your customers' leader
(and speaking with the voice of authority that
comes with it) creates one of the biggest
opportunities for business growth I can think of.
According to John Maxwell, "A leader is one
who knows the way, goes the way, and
shows the way." If that quote describes you,
this message is for you.
If you have clients and customers that you take
good care of, you're already leader. Now you have
to work on positioning yourself as their leader.
That doesn't always come naturally.
Here are a few quick thoughts on business
growth through customer leadership.

Ask Not What Your Customers Can
Do for You…

Donnie Bryant
Editor-In- Chief
8 Evolution Magazine | #WorldClass Special Edition

Last January, Simon Sinek published a book
called Leaders Eat Last. I haven't read the book
yet (shame on me), but I remember how the title
instantly caught my attention when I first saw it.
Those 3 words flesh out the idea that leadership
is all about serving others, not about getting
other people to follow your commands. (The
term servant leadership is somewhat redundant
for that reason.)

This is part of the burden of
leadership — putting others
before yourself is the right thing
to do. This means:
• offering products and services
that your customers want and
need, not necessarily what
you think is cool right now
• a strong commitment to
quality and
• gutsy guarantees and service
after the sale
These will make you a better
leader and they will ultimately
make your business more
profitable.

Leaders Are Architects
To a certain extent, leaders
define reality for their followers.
• They create a vision of what’s
possible, painting a mental
picture of all that life can be,
all that it should be (at least
in a given area).
• They empower their followers
to take action.
• the give them the education
and/or tools to make it
happen.

Leaders Lead
Education and inspiration are
important, but a leader has to
go beyond that stage. He should
lead by example. He does
everything in his power to get his
followers to do what he knows
is best for them. He holds them
accountable to what they’ve
committed to do.
It’s one thing to teach your
followers about eating healthy
food. Educating them is definitely
a good thing. But what do they
gain if they keep eating junk? It’s
a leader’s job to do everything
he can to help them make the
difficult decision to change.

Action Steps

1. Decide to adopt a leadership
mindset in your industry,
your office, your city. Make
a commitment to pursue
excellence and use whatever
influence you have to help
your pack move toward a
better result in some area.
2. Remember — it’s not about
you! Putting the best interest
of your followers ahead of
your own interests is the right
thing to do.
Leaders may choose to eat last,
but good leaders will still have
plenty on their plates.

Leaders can’t cower back. They
have to keep pressing forward.
Even when it’s dark. Even when
they’re unsure of their own
qualifications. Their followers
depend on them!

www.evomag.co

9