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When It Comes to People, Perhaps You Can Judge the Book by its Cover

March 9, 2013 By

In a touch of irony, I read two quotations this week that lead me to believe that some books can be judged by their covers … if the “books” are the people we meet.  I’m not talking about the clothes they wear, the cars they drive, or the titles on their doors.  Rather, I’m talking about the way they treat others.  Consider this …

The Greek Orator, Demosthenes, wrote that a person “cannot have a proud and chivalrous spirit if (his) conduct is mean and paltry; for whatever a man’s actions are, such must be his spirit.”

Think for a moment about the leaders you have known.  How did they treat others.  In all probability, those that you consider to be great leaders are most likely those that you believe treated others fairly.  They played no favorites.  Every person received the same consideration and attention.  The ones for whom you have little regard for their leadership skills are very probably the ones who you believe treated some of their followers unfairly.  They could not be counted on to be impartial.  They only gave favorable treatment to those that they perceived to be in a position to provide some benefit to them.

Great leaders have the unique ability to set aside personal feelings and consider the well-being of ALL those that they lead, not just the favored few.  While we may not always like the decisions that these leaders make, we respect them and are confident that their verdicts are rendered with an eye toward the impact of their decisions on everyone.  Great leaders do not make decisions based on the preferences of “yes men”; the whims of those whose support they seek; the desires of those from whom they wish to curry favor.  Great leaders do what is best for all concerned; what is right.

This leads to the second quotation, attributed to Malcolm S. Forbes, that I read.  “You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him.”

Every action each of us takes is viewed by someone and we are judged by it.  Will you be seen as a person of great character or as weak and self-important?

Filed Under: Building a Legacy, Dynamic Leadership, Lead from strength, Leadership, What characterizes good leaders Tagged With: , , , ,

Can You Respect the Person in the Mirror?

February 24, 2013 By

I recently read a quote from Abraham Lincoln in which he stated his intention to conduct his administration in a manner such that, when it ended, he could like and respect the man he saw in the mirror.  This determination to do what is right is one of the hallmarks of a great leader.

Weak leaders and weaker followers do what is easy, what is expedient, that which is popular.  They are willing to compromise their ethics, their values, and their own sense of right and wrong simply to maintain their position.  They will go along to get along with no thought as to whether their actions will benefit or harm others.  In the end, they lose the respect of those who follow them and have no respect for themselves.

Strong leaders, on the other hand, know what they stand for and recognize an inviolate code of conduct that governs all that they do.  While they acknowledge the value of compromise when working for the common good, they also adhere to moral precepts that cannot be sacrificed without harming the world around them.  For these leaders, there is the proverbial “line in the sand” which cannot be crossed; principles that cannot be violated.

These leaders uphold their personal integrity so that, on any given day, they can look in the mirror and like the person that they see and respect the person that they are.

Filed Under: Building a Legacy, Dynamic Leadership, Lead from strength, Leadership, What characterizes good leaders Tagged With: , , ,

“People who know you love you as you are. Mentors love you too much to leave you where you are.”

February 19, 2013 By

This past Saturday, I had the privilege of hearing my good friend, Delatorro McNeal II, CSP,  speak to the National Speakers Association of Central Florida Speakers Academy class where he made this profound statement, “People who know you love you as you are.  Mentors love you too much to leave you where you are.”

Great leaders/mentors recognize that one of the greatest measures of their effectiveness will be the legacy that they create and how they pass the baton to their successors. Thus, they are always looking for opportunities to share what they know and help their followers grow and prepare for their own leadership opportunities. Rather than always telling their followers what to do, they ask the subordinate “what do you think you should do?”. Rather than mandating every step to be followed, the great leader/mentor provides the opportunity for their followers to chart their own course and, at times, to fail so that they can learn from their mistakes.

Making mistakes, stumbling, and failing are painful. However, the great leader/mentor knows that those who will become the great leaders of the future must, occasionally, suffer these setbacks in order to reach their full potential. When they occur, the great leader/mentor is there to help the person regain their footing and asks, “OK…what can be learned from this experience and what can be done differently next time?”

Great leaders/mentors love their student/followers too much to protect them from every bump and boo-boo that provide the opportunities to learn and grow. As another great leader/mentor once said, “No man who gets knocked down by life and gets back up has failed. He only fails when he fails to get back up or insists that someone or something won’t let him get back up.” Great leaders and mentors build their legacy one person at a time and measure their success by the success of those that they have nurtured.

Filed Under: Building a Legacy, Dynamic Leadership, Lead from strength, Leadership, What characterizes good leaders Tagged With: , ,

Do You See a Threat or an Opportunity to Build a Legacy?

August 10, 2012 By

Imagine you’ve recently hired a new employee who is smart, has talent, is driven to succeed and wants to grow professionally.  In fact, when asked where this person sees himself or herself in five years, the answer is “doing your job”.  How do you react?  Is this an opportunity or a threat?  Truly great leaders see opportunity!

One of the greatest leaders I ever had the privilege of following had a phrase … “first rate people hire first rate people … second rate people hire third rate people.”  He knew that great leaders look for the very best people, seeing them not as a threat to their own security, but rather as an opportunity to build a legacy.  To build this legacy, he followed these steps …

•    Look for talent – each person has a variety of talents, tools that they can use to attain a desired outcome.  This great leader looked at the tools that the person had.  These needed to be tools the person actually had, not the ones that the leader wished the person had.

•    Assess drive and determination – talent without the drive and determination to put those talents to work is useless.  Desire makes all the difference in the world when the going gets tough.  This great leader looked for individuals who had reasons for pursuing a goal; reasons that drove them to put forth the effort needed to overcome whatever obstacle might stand in their way.

•    Determine willingness to work – when a person has enough reasons for wanting to attain the goal, they will have the willingness to work.  This great leader recognized that the reasons must be important to the follower, not important to the leader.  For this reason, he asked about the person’s motivators and then listened to the answers and listened for the passion that would help the person summon the willingness to work for the goal.  When the going got tough, because he had truly listened, this leader was able to help the follower remember the reasons why reaching the goal was important enough to keep working for.

•    Identify strengths – just as everyone brings talents to the table, they have things that they are really good at.  These strengths form the foundation upon which all endeavors should be built.  This great leader knew that people will happily do what they do well.  So, he never attempted to force the “square peg into the round hole”.  He encouraged his followers to do what they were good at … early and often!

•    Find areas for growth – while every individual has strengths, things that they are good at, each person also has areas in which they can grow and improve.  This great leader was able and willing to help people recognize skills that needed cultivation and did so in ways that never made the individual feel inadequate.  Rather, he helped them recognize how good they were and how much better they could be by taking the time to cultivate a skill and master it.

•    Build on strengths and provide tools for growth – this was the final phase.  Having identified both the strengths and the opportunities for professional growth, he made certain that the person had the necessary tools; training, education, mentoring, or any other tool needed to facilitate that person’s growth and success.

As you look back, can you identify the people you helped along the way?  As you look forward, can you foresee the number of people who will attribute their success to the help they received from you?  While only you know the answer to the first question, you hold in your hands the opportunity to answer the second by the actions you take today and in the days, months, and years to come.  If you wish to be known today and remembered in the future as a truly great leader, you must measure your personal success against a very special standard; the people that you help to grow and achieve their goals.

Filed Under: Building a Legacy, Dynamic Leadership, Lead from strength, Leadership, What characterizes good leaders
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