What Would You Do if You Hired the Best?

What would you do if you had the very best people on your team? What would you do if you had the most talented people on your team? Would you dictate every action that they were to take; every move that they were to make; every strategy that they must pursue? Or, would you show them your vision for the future; the goals that should be reached; the desired outcomes?

When my first agency manager, Ray, was looking for new agents to bring into the agency, he would remind agents, supervisors, and sales managers that “1st class people hire 1st class people. 2nd class people hire 3rd class people.” This was his way of reminding everyone that we wanted the very best to be part of our team. He believed that the best leaders had no fear of someone surpassing them or being better than them. He lived the belief that the truest measure of a leader’s success was how many new, outstanding, team leaders he developed.

Great Leaders recognize the truth of this belief. Great Leaders know that the only way to build a strong team is to bring the very best people into the team, to show them what the end goal is, and give them the authority and the power to develop winning strategies for the attainment of that goal. As Ray used to tell us, let that talented individual see what can be accomplished and then get out of the way and let them do it.

Great Leaders also know that micro-managing is a sure road to tearing down a strong team; to undermining the confidence of the people who comprise the team and turn them into drones who are fearful of taking any action without direct “say-so” from the boss lest they be criticized or penalized for having the audacity to take the initiative.

Steve Jobs once said, “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do. We hire smart people so they can tell us what to do”. Great Leaders follow this advice!

Have you had the privilege of working with a Great Leader who showed you how much you were capable of accomplishing and then got out of the way and let you do it? Click “Comment” and share that experience.

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

Is a Title Needed to be a Leader?

The July/August Readers’ Digest contained an excerpt from Hector Tobar’s book Deep Down Dark about a mine cave-in which occurred in August 2010 in Chile. The excerpt tells the story of thirty-three miners who spent sixty-nine days trapped in a gold and copper mine nearly a half-mile beneath the surface of the earth. It contains an interesting story that illustrates how a person need not have a title to be a leader.

Shortly after the miners discovered that all routes of escape were sealed and that there was no way out, the shift supervisor told the miners that he was no longer their boss; that, since they are all trapped together, they should make decisions together. While his position that they should make decisions together is admirable, with this decision he removed himself from his leadership position; a position which could have been instrumental in providing guidance in the decision making processes.

Conversely, another miner who has no standing in the mining hierarchy, Mario Sepulveda, decides that he will take control of his own fate and the fate of his fellow miners. He focuses on survival and optimism. When he finds that some of the miners have broken into the emergency food supplies, he stops them from eating those supplies immediately, reminding them that they may be trapped for many days or weeks; that those supplies will be needed. He then tallies the supplies on hand to determine their resources and how to make them last. He creates a plan for a single daily meal and distributes each miner’s portion.

By his actions, Mario Sepulveda showed himself to be a true leader. He held no title, no position of authority. Yet, he directed the activities of his fellow miners, shared his vision of survival, and in the end, made that vision a reality for all of them.

Have you known someone who held no rank, no title, yet stepped into a leadership role and turned a vision into a reality? Click “Comment” and share your experience.

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

Leadership as an Opportunity to Serve

In his book, Servant Leadership”, Robert Greenleaf wrote that “The servant-leader is servant first… It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first.” This is not now, nor was it then, a new concept. References to the leader being a servant can be found in the Bible and the writings of Lao-Tzu. For the Great Leader, service to others is a prime concept and a primary goal.

While the mediocre leader sees his/her position as an affirmation of his/her authority and recognition of his/her own greatness, the Great Leader recognizes that it is an opportunity to serve.

  • Great Leaders look at each individual team member and learn what is important to each; their goals, their aspirations, their motivations. The Great Leader recognizes that an opportunity exists to help each team member reach their goals and serves each by opening doors that will lead to the attainment of those goals. They help their team members grow professionally and as people.
  • Great Leaders offer help when it is needed. They know that there are times when the team member is very capable of performing unassisted and are wise enough to stand back and watch. But, when help is needed, the Great Leader serves the team member by providing guidance and instruction in such a way as to empower the team member to learn by doing. They help the team members gain the knowledge and experience that enables them be more self-sufficient and more autonomous.
  • Great Leaders provide team members with opportunities to serve others and become servant leaders.

The Great Leader does not seek nor take credit for these things, choosing instead to recognize the accomplishments of the team member and giving credit to that individual. Those who would choose to become a Great Leader will see that in serving others, he/she is building a solid foundation upon which the team, the business, and the community can grow and thrive.

Have you had the privilege of serving others; of working with someone who served you? Click “Comment” to share your experience and what you learned from it.

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