When Great Leaders Are In The Valley of Despair …

Do great leaders ever face challenges that seem overwhelming; setbacks that appear to be too great to overcome; failures that feel insurmountable? You bet they do! So, how do they overcome them and retake control?

The first step is to know which voices to listen to. No, I’m not talking about friends, advisors, coaches. Granted, all of those people can help the Great Leader in his or her quest. But, what I’m talking about here are the voices in our heads. The ones that tell us what we are capable of accomplishing and encourage us; and, the ones that try to convince us that we can’t attain our goals.

Mental attitude is so important when facing challenges. I once heard a speaker say “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right!” Great Leaders know the voices of negativity are not friends. They are insidious creators of doubts who will point out every obstacle they can find and create barriers where none exist. The positive voices see the impediments, recognize them as challenges, and whisper, “we can do this … we just need to find the way … there is a way.”

The second step is to take action; massive action. Great Leaders have a vision of the future and they recognize that the way to turn that vision into a reality is to take action proactively. They have neither the time nor the patience to be reactive. Nor do they have the willingness to dabble in baby steps. They know that the harder they work, the more actions they take, the sooner they will know if they are on the right track. If they are on the right track, they’ll attain their goals and turn dreams into realities sooner. If they are on the wrong track, they’ll find out quickly and be able to change course sooner.

Renowned sales trainer Ray Leone once asked the late, great, Zig Ziglar what he would say to people who were currently facing challenges, setbacks, or failures. Zig’s answer was that he would tell them that the food that would help them climb the mountains is grown down in the valleys.

Great Leaders recognize that the valley is where the source of their power originates. It is the wellspring of their inspiration; and, it is where they will find the tools that will enable them to achieve the pinnacles of success.

Tom Hoisington is a speaker, trainer, and author whose goal is to provide leaders and potential leaders with tools that empower them to build teams that are creative and cost effective along with a clearer understanding of how personality types interact within those teams. He can be contacted at tom.hoisington@eagleoneresources.com

Are You Building a Legacy?

Greek history tells us that when Odysseus went to fight the Trojan War, he asked his friend Mentor to take charge of his palace and his son, charging Mentor with the responsibility of guiding his son, Telemachus, as he grows into manhood. Over time, the word “mentor” has come to mean one who gives of his or her time, experience, and wisdom in order to help another grow personally and/or professionally. It is through mentoring that Great Leaders build a legacy. But, why do they do this?

District Manager Ray was, undoubtedly, one of the finest mentors I ever met. He measured his success not by the number of dollars on his paycheck, but by the number of people that he was able to help grow and develop into successful agents and managers for the company he worked for. He took great pride whenever he heard about the success of someone who had passed through his tutelage. His pride was not based on “Look what I did!” but rather on “Look how this individual fulfilled his/her potential!” He worked hard every day to build a legacy of people who, through their own efforts, attained the levels of success to which others would only look with longing.

Scoutmaster Duane mentors young men to become the leaders upon whom local businesses, his community, the state, and the nation will depend to help us, as a people, realize the dreams of the founding fathers. He does not do this because he wants to point to a plaque on the wall and say “See what I produced!” He does it because he wishes to repay all those who have helped him become the man he is today; and, to prepare those he has the privilege of mentoring with the tools that will enable them to assist future generations.

Great Leaders subscribe to the “ripples on the pond” theory of life. Just like a pebble tossed into a pond creates ripples that travel out to the shore rebounding to come together again in the center of the pond, mentors build a legacy that travels out from their points of contact with their mentees into a world where those ripples will touch countless lives for generations to come. Great Leaders are great mentors who touch and change lives for the better far beyond their own lifetimes.

Know a great mentor who impacted and changed your life? Share that experience by commenting here.

Tom Hoisington is a speaker, trainer, and author whose goal is to provide leaders and potential leaders with tools that empower them to build teams that are creative and cost effective along with a clearer understanding of how personality types interact within those teams. He can be contacted at tom.hoisington@eagleoneresources.com