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| Leading is serving? |
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| Written by Ryan |
| Saturday, 04 July 2009 07:35 |
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IF YOU LIKE THIS TYPE OF INSPIRING CONTENT JOIN RYAN'S NEWEST MEMBERSHIP SITE www.inspiringyourbestgame.com A rider on horseback, many years ago, came upon a squad of soldiers who were trying to move a heavy piece of timber. A corporal stood by, giving lordly orders to "heave." But the piece of timber was a trifle too heavy for the squad. "Why don't you help them?" asked the quiet man on the horse, addressing the important corporal. "Me? Why, I'm a corporal sir!" Dismounting, the stranger carefully took his place with the soldiers. "Now, all together boys - heave!" he said. And the big piece of timber slid into place. The stranger mounted his horse and addressed the corporal. "The next time you have a piece of timber for your men to handle, corporal, send for the commander-in-chief." The horseman was George Washington, the first American president. Leadership is often thought of as more of a position (Corporal or CEO or President) and there is some truth to this. The leader of a team or corporation is identified as the person in-charge. But leadership is much more than a position or a name tag identifying where in the food-chain the person belongs. Leadership is influence and that is why "Leadership" must have a certain element of servant hood. The above story is a simple practical example of the difference between what i call position and possession leadership. People with a positional attitude see their position in life as above others and develop a them-and-us mentality. The possession side of this equation is about leaderships inside development as a leader (have you grown yourself in the leadership skill-set.) Do we possess the characteristics of leadership? If we do, then this inside work spills over through our attitudes and actions. In a future session we will get into the "Hard" side and the "Soft" side of leadership. What we called in school the "Transactional" and "Transformational" sides of leadership... and yes, we use both all the time. At the end of the day John Maxwell suggests that if you turn around and no-one is following then you aren’t leading. In today’s multicultural and multigenerational work place leaders must find ways to influence their people and I will suggest that "serving" them (having their best interests in mind) is a good place to start! IF YOU LIKE THIS TYPE OF INSPIRING CONTENT JOIN RYAN'S NEWEST MEMBERSHIP SITE www.inspiringyourbestgame.com |