I have always been interested in leadership. I have always thought about men like Gandhi, Martin Luther King, or Thomas Jefferson. As long as I can remember I have always looked for the secrets that made these leaders so great. That made it so that we still remember their names today. What makes a person a great leader? The thing about being interested in something is you can’t help but learn an incredible amount about it. This is everything I’ve learned so far.
Great leaders have a story.
Humans think in stories, its actually the number one way we learn. A great leader takes a simple story, a simple needed message, and doesn’t just tell it, they embody it. For Gandhi the story was that India needed its independence, and that the only people who could be governed were a people who chose to obey. Every leader has a story, its what makes us respect them in the first place.
Great leaders are servants.
The role of a leader is not to be over people, but to become a servant to a message and to every person who may benefit from this message. They know that if example is the highest form of leadership and it is service that is needed than an example of service must be set.
Great leaders don’t care who gets the credit.
They just want their message spread in the best possible way. Whether that means them leading the crowd or not.
Great leaders take time for themselves.
Every major leader in history made a regular habit of getting away from the influence and demands of every one else for a little while to spend some time working on there own beliefs. If you are always around the same crowd you will all start to think alike, and than who will come up with new ideas?
Great leaders offer something of value.
If nobody needs something than there is no story tell, there is no service to be given, and thus there is no opportunity for leadership. Leadership is about offering value to your supporters and your team.
Great leaders call out the best in people.
The do not accept the idea that other men should be less than them. Instead they call out the best in each man, and show us what we can really be.
Great leaders are more concerned with their message than with what others might think.
Every major leader in history has had some voice condemn them. Gandhi broke the law and went to prison, Buddha challenged the major religion of his country, Jesus was crucified, and Martin Luther King was shot. These men all knew the risks that they were taking on. Their message was just more important to them, than whether anyone would agree, or even if it would of put their lives in danger.
Great leaders are passionate.
You can only promote something you don’t care about for so long before it gets to you. Every human is like this and great leaders are no exceptions. These people are just so passionate about what they are doing and what they are fighting for that it becomes infectious. We get excited about things when they are presented by someone who is excited about what they are doing and talking about.
Great leaders are down to earth.
Jefferson ironed his own socks. Gandhi did all of the servants work in the house. Jesus said “turn the other cheek”. They weren’t super humans, they were human, and that is what made them great.
They didn’t start off great. In fact, they didn’t even start as leaders. Whether anyone would have listened to them or not, they started, and through every struggle they kept going until they got good at it.
They did not give up. If you think its bad having your mom or dad tell you that your idea is bad imagine an entire culture tell you that you are wrong. This is the inevitable result of doing or saying something different from the norm. Even more impressive is that they didn’t give up before becoming accomplished at their goals.
“A professional is an amateur who did not give up”
So leadership takes a message that serves, puts passionate service to that message over ego, starts off small, and doesn’t give up. What leaders have you known with these traits? What other traits have you noticed in great leaders? What are you going to do about it?
James Boehm
Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leadership. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Monday, November 16, 2009
Writing Your Personal Vision/Mission Statement
I recently spent some time revising my personal vision/mission statement. While doing this, it occurred to me that the vision I have for my work is closely related to my personal vision. Having a job that reflects my personal vision is powerful because it has allowed me to create a business life for myself that truly reflects who I am. Companies know all about vision and mission statements and getting their employees on board. Vision and mission statements propel the company in the direction that they want, and ultimately towards success. Many of us have spent countless hours working on these statements for our employers, and doing our part to contribute to their vision as a part of the team.
Much like a business, we, as human beings have a purpose or mission in life. What if we spent as much time getting to know who we are and what we want for ourselves? A personal vision/mission statement is the framework for creating a powerful life. Unlike a goal, a vision or mission rarely changes. It is a reason for our existence. It guides us in the decisions we make and the directions we take.
Your Personal Vision
Close your eyes and picture yourself in the future. It may be a few months or years from today. See the person you are; what you are doing, who you are with, what you have accomplished, what is important to you, and how people relate to you. How does it feel to be you? Feel the person you are, your true self. Now, open your eyes and see your life and yourself in the present, through those eyes. You will begin to notice the changes you need to make to honour this vision and lead a powerful life.
A Personal Vision is a picture of your True Self in the future. An effective personal vision includes all the important elements of your life and career; it is who you want to be, what you want to do, how you want to feel, what you want to own, and who you want to associate with. Although your personal vision helps you to see into the future, it must be grounded in the present. It is a statement of who you are, and who you are becoming. It is the framework for the process of creating your life.
Your vision is where you are headed, how you get there is your mission statement.
Your Personal Mission Statement
A Personal Mission Statement is how you will manifest your Personal Vision in your daily life. It may be a few words or several pages, but it is not a “to do” list. It reflects your uniqueness and must speak to you powerfully about the person you are and the person you are becoming. Remember, it’s okay to be where you are, while heading somewhere else. In fact, the only place you can start, is where you are right now. Having a personal vision does not mean your life changes overnight. But it will change. Your personal mission statement provides the steps to get you there.
Your Personal Mission Statement should answer three questions:
1. What is my life about (Purpose)?
2. What do I stand for (Values)?
3. What actions do I take to manifest my Purpose and my Values?
Stephen Covey writes that "an empowering Mission Statement…
• Represents the deepest and best within you. It comes out of a solid connection with your deep inner life.
• Is the fulfillment of your own unique gifts. It's the expression of your unique capacity to contribute.
• Addresses and integrates the four fundamental human needs and capacities in the physical, social/emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions.
• Deals with all the significant roles in your life. It represents a lifetime balance of personal, family, work, community-whatever roles you feel are yours to fill.
• Is written to inspire you-not to impress anyone else. It communicates to you and inspires you on the most essential level."
“Creating a Personal Mission Statement will be, without question, one of the most powerful and significant things you will ever do to take leadership of you life. In it you will identify the most important roles, relationships, and things in your life – who you want to be, what you want to do, to whom and what you want of give your life, the principles you want to anchor your life to, the legacy you want to leave. All the goals and decisions you will make in the future will be based upon it. It’s like deciding first which wall you want to lean your ladder of life against, and then beginning to climb. It will compass – a strong source of guidance amid the stormy seas and pressing, pulling currents of you life.”Stephen Covey, author or The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
A Personal Vision/Mission can help propel you into a new job, or make your present job work better for you. The more connected your Personal Vision/Mission is to yourself, the better it can guide your career and your life.
Every Month A Million and the Daily Dose Of Good
Much like a business, we, as human beings have a purpose or mission in life. What if we spent as much time getting to know who we are and what we want for ourselves? A personal vision/mission statement is the framework for creating a powerful life. Unlike a goal, a vision or mission rarely changes. It is a reason for our existence. It guides us in the decisions we make and the directions we take.
Your Personal Vision
Close your eyes and picture yourself in the future. It may be a few months or years from today. See the person you are; what you are doing, who you are with, what you have accomplished, what is important to you, and how people relate to you. How does it feel to be you? Feel the person you are, your true self. Now, open your eyes and see your life and yourself in the present, through those eyes. You will begin to notice the changes you need to make to honour this vision and lead a powerful life.
A Personal Vision is a picture of your True Self in the future. An effective personal vision includes all the important elements of your life and career; it is who you want to be, what you want to do, how you want to feel, what you want to own, and who you want to associate with. Although your personal vision helps you to see into the future, it must be grounded in the present. It is a statement of who you are, and who you are becoming. It is the framework for the process of creating your life.
Your vision is where you are headed, how you get there is your mission statement.
Your Personal Mission Statement
A Personal Mission Statement is how you will manifest your Personal Vision in your daily life. It may be a few words or several pages, but it is not a “to do” list. It reflects your uniqueness and must speak to you powerfully about the person you are and the person you are becoming. Remember, it’s okay to be where you are, while heading somewhere else. In fact, the only place you can start, is where you are right now. Having a personal vision does not mean your life changes overnight. But it will change. Your personal mission statement provides the steps to get you there.
Your Personal Mission Statement should answer three questions:
1. What is my life about (Purpose)?
2. What do I stand for (Values)?
3. What actions do I take to manifest my Purpose and my Values?
Stephen Covey writes that "an empowering Mission Statement…
• Represents the deepest and best within you. It comes out of a solid connection with your deep inner life.
• Is the fulfillment of your own unique gifts. It's the expression of your unique capacity to contribute.
• Addresses and integrates the four fundamental human needs and capacities in the physical, social/emotional, mental and spiritual dimensions.
• Deals with all the significant roles in your life. It represents a lifetime balance of personal, family, work, community-whatever roles you feel are yours to fill.
• Is written to inspire you-not to impress anyone else. It communicates to you and inspires you on the most essential level."
“Creating a Personal Mission Statement will be, without question, one of the most powerful and significant things you will ever do to take leadership of you life. In it you will identify the most important roles, relationships, and things in your life – who you want to be, what you want to do, to whom and what you want of give your life, the principles you want to anchor your life to, the legacy you want to leave. All the goals and decisions you will make in the future will be based upon it. It’s like deciding first which wall you want to lean your ladder of life against, and then beginning to climb. It will compass – a strong source of guidance amid the stormy seas and pressing, pulling currents of you life.”Stephen Covey, author or The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
A Personal Vision/Mission can help propel you into a new job, or make your present job work better for you. The more connected your Personal Vision/Mission is to yourself, the better it can guide your career and your life.
Every Month A Million and the Daily Dose Of Good
Friday, November 6, 2009
The Power of Vision
Throughout time, successful people have always had vision. Vision is one of the most important elements to being successful. The Ancient Writer states it this way, "Where there is no vision, the people perish….” Vision keeps us on track. It even shows us where the track is. So, if vision is so important to success and happiness then where do we get it? That is not an easy question. One way is to ask yourself where you want to be ten years down the road? What will you have accomplished? Where will you live? Who will be with you? Questions like these will help you discover your inner vision for your life.
I believe that there are two elements we have to keep in mind if we are to be successful with our vision. One, the vision needs to be a challenging vision to stretch you and your team (REMEMBER: In order to reach your vision, you are going to need to get people on board with it which means you have to lead them. Every great leader has a vision that is worthy of following and the confidence and integrity to get people to follow them).
When I think about a leader with a challenging vision, I think of President John F. Kennedy. In 1961, he stood before the nation and said, "I believe this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before the decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth." That would be a challenging vision for NASA to repeat today let alone in 1961.
Let me remind you where we were when JFK made that statement. In 1961, we had just successfully launched Alan Shepherd into space as the first American into space. Up until that point we had had failure after failure. It was a miracle we didn't kill Alan Shepherd in the attempt to get him up there. Rocket after rocket had blown up in our faces. The Soviet Union was stomping on us in the space race.
Then, we have one success and President Kennedy said we are going to the moon. Our scientist probably wanted to send him to the moon. What an outrageous statement. Did we know how to accomplish it? Probably not. Was it possible? Some of them probably weren't sure. But what happened at 4:17 P.M. in the afternoon on Sunday July 20, 1969? The spacecraft ever so smoothly landed on the lunar surface. Neil Armstrong called back to earth, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." Later, as he and Buzz Aldrin stepped out of Eagle onto the moon, Neil said, "That is one small step for man one giant leap for mankind." We had done it! We had landed two men on the moon and we did return them safely back home to earth. You see, a challenging vision isn't one you necessarily have all the answers to at the beginning, but one that will stretch you to accomplish something you didn't know you were capable of. It makes you stronger and better.
The second thing we have to keep in mind in order to make our sales vision a reality is the courage to put it into action. Michele Borba tells a story about Rocky Lyons. When Rocky was five years old, he and his mother Kelly were traveling in their pickup truck down a country two lane road. Rocky was asleep with his legs resting on his mother's lap. When they turned onto a narrow bridge, the truck hit a pothole. Trying to get the truck out of a rut, Kelly sped up and turned the steering wheel. Rocky's foot got caught between the steering wheel and Kelly's leg and she lost control of the vehicle. The truck tumbled over a 20-foot ravine.
The crash woke up Rocky. He looked at his mother and said, "What happened, Mama?" Kelly was hurt bad. She was covered with blood. Rocky said, "I'll get you out, Mama." He crawled out the window and tried to pull his mother out of the truck. It didn't work. He climbed back into the truck and somehow used his 40-pound body to push his 104-pound mother out of the wreckage.
Rocky was planning on climbing to the top of the ravine to get help for his mother. Fearing he would get hurt, Kelly refused to let him go by himself. Inch by inch they struggled along. Rocky not only had a vision to save his mother, he also knew how to motivate her to success. He told his mother to remember that little train. He was referring to the train in that children's classic The Little Engine that Could. In Rocky's own version of that famous line, he kept motivating his mother by saying, "I know you can, I know you can."
Well, they made it to the top and Rocky flagged down a vehicle. They got Kelly to the hospital and after 8 hours of surgery and 344 stitches, she was put back together. She looks much different today then she did before the crash. BUT SHE IS ALIVE! She is alive because a five-year-old boy had a vision to save his mother and the courage to put it into action. Rocky just did what he had to do. He wasn't trying to be a hero. He just did what he was called to do. That is what sales vision is all about. A challenging vision which will get you out of your comfort zone and the courage to put it into action.
What is your vision? Is it to change the entire world or just your corner of it? Whatever it is; wherever it is, GET THAT SALES VISION AND MAKE IT HAPPEN! Take some time right this moment to think about and answer the following questions. Then, come up with 3 action steps to start the ball rolling towards your vision.
1. If you knew you could not fail, what would you want to accomplish?
2. Where do you want to be in your sales career in five years?
3. Where do you want to be with your relationships in five years?
4. If you were able to hear the eulogy at your funeral, what would you like to be said about you?
Every Month A Million and the Daily Dose Of Good
I believe that there are two elements we have to keep in mind if we are to be successful with our vision. One, the vision needs to be a challenging vision to stretch you and your team (REMEMBER: In order to reach your vision, you are going to need to get people on board with it which means you have to lead them. Every great leader has a vision that is worthy of following and the confidence and integrity to get people to follow them).
When I think about a leader with a challenging vision, I think of President John F. Kennedy. In 1961, he stood before the nation and said, "I believe this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before the decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth." That would be a challenging vision for NASA to repeat today let alone in 1961.
Let me remind you where we were when JFK made that statement. In 1961, we had just successfully launched Alan Shepherd into space as the first American into space. Up until that point we had had failure after failure. It was a miracle we didn't kill Alan Shepherd in the attempt to get him up there. Rocket after rocket had blown up in our faces. The Soviet Union was stomping on us in the space race.
Then, we have one success and President Kennedy said we are going to the moon. Our scientist probably wanted to send him to the moon. What an outrageous statement. Did we know how to accomplish it? Probably not. Was it possible? Some of them probably weren't sure. But what happened at 4:17 P.M. in the afternoon on Sunday July 20, 1969? The spacecraft ever so smoothly landed on the lunar surface. Neil Armstrong called back to earth, "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed." Later, as he and Buzz Aldrin stepped out of Eagle onto the moon, Neil said, "That is one small step for man one giant leap for mankind." We had done it! We had landed two men on the moon and we did return them safely back home to earth. You see, a challenging vision isn't one you necessarily have all the answers to at the beginning, but one that will stretch you to accomplish something you didn't know you were capable of. It makes you stronger and better.
The second thing we have to keep in mind in order to make our sales vision a reality is the courage to put it into action. Michele Borba tells a story about Rocky Lyons. When Rocky was five years old, he and his mother Kelly were traveling in their pickup truck down a country two lane road. Rocky was asleep with his legs resting on his mother's lap. When they turned onto a narrow bridge, the truck hit a pothole. Trying to get the truck out of a rut, Kelly sped up and turned the steering wheel. Rocky's foot got caught between the steering wheel and Kelly's leg and she lost control of the vehicle. The truck tumbled over a 20-foot ravine.
The crash woke up Rocky. He looked at his mother and said, "What happened, Mama?" Kelly was hurt bad. She was covered with blood. Rocky said, "I'll get you out, Mama." He crawled out the window and tried to pull his mother out of the truck. It didn't work. He climbed back into the truck and somehow used his 40-pound body to push his 104-pound mother out of the wreckage.
Rocky was planning on climbing to the top of the ravine to get help for his mother. Fearing he would get hurt, Kelly refused to let him go by himself. Inch by inch they struggled along. Rocky not only had a vision to save his mother, he also knew how to motivate her to success. He told his mother to remember that little train. He was referring to the train in that children's classic The Little Engine that Could. In Rocky's own version of that famous line, he kept motivating his mother by saying, "I know you can, I know you can."
Well, they made it to the top and Rocky flagged down a vehicle. They got Kelly to the hospital and after 8 hours of surgery and 344 stitches, she was put back together. She looks much different today then she did before the crash. BUT SHE IS ALIVE! She is alive because a five-year-old boy had a vision to save his mother and the courage to put it into action. Rocky just did what he had to do. He wasn't trying to be a hero. He just did what he was called to do. That is what sales vision is all about. A challenging vision which will get you out of your comfort zone and the courage to put it into action.
What is your vision? Is it to change the entire world or just your corner of it? Whatever it is; wherever it is, GET THAT SALES VISION AND MAKE IT HAPPEN! Take some time right this moment to think about and answer the following questions. Then, come up with 3 action steps to start the ball rolling towards your vision.
1. If you knew you could not fail, what would you want to accomplish?
2. Where do you want to be in your sales career in five years?
3. Where do you want to be with your relationships in five years?
4. If you were able to hear the eulogy at your funeral, what would you like to be said about you?
Every Month A Million and the Daily Dose Of Good
Saturday, October 31, 2009
What Makes A Great Leader
Good leaders make people feel that they're at the very heart of things, not at the periphery. Everyone feels that he or she makes a difference to the success of the organization. When that happens people feel centered and that gives their work meaning.- Warren G. Bennis
The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born - that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That's nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born. Failing organizations are usually over-managed and under-led.- Warren G. Bennis
Leadership is an art and a science. It is an art because it continually evolves, changes form, and requires creativity. It is a science because there are certain essential principles and techniques required. A good leader knows when it is time to change shape because they are highly attentive to those around them. Coming from a position of strength, a great leader takes risks by freeing up the creative genius in their followers to build their capability and multiply the talents of the organization. This leads to community and greatness. By powerfully communicating a vision that animates, motivates, and inspires followers, a great leader is able to transform his or her organization. A good leader needs to be able to laugh; a great leader needs to be able to laugh at oneself.
What kind of leader are you being? Where is your organization in relation to your vision?
What do you think makes a great leader? Who do you think was a great leader?
What qualities did or do they routinely exhibit? What do your followers want to know in order to believe in you? What are the words that lead them to believe you?
Consider the following as a beginning list of Qualities:
Cooperation
Collaboration
Consistent
Creative
Conscious
Caring
Capable
Courageous
Innovation
Understanding
Integrity
Sense of humor
Now consider the following Questions that relate to those Qualities:
Do you cooperate with the best in your people or do you demand from them?
Do you routinely work with them to bring innovation and best practices to your organization or do you push your ideas on them?
Are you consistent in demonstrating the principles of leadership you wish others to emulate, or do you vacillate in your own modeling?
Do you encourage creativity with brainstorming or are your ideas the only ones that work?
Are you conscious and present with your employees, or are you in a conversation in your head while with them?
Do you balance caring in the choices you make that effect your organization or are you only interested in the bottom line?
Are you the only one capable in your company, or do you unleash capability by empowerment through equality in responsibility and authority?
How courageous are you? What does risk look like to you? Does your organization go through frequent paradigm shifts continually advancing your corporate vision?
Do you foster a collaborative working environment or does your leadership style reflect mainly "telling?"
Do you balance understanding with expectations on deadlines when the circumstances dictate?
Do you model integrity? What does integrity look like to you?
Are you able to laugh at yourself and laugh freely and openly with your leadership team?
One of the joys of coaching emerging leaders is the well-spring of ideas that surface in the coaching conversation. I find that both new and the existing leaders understand the dynamics of leadership required for today's complex business environment. Many of them emulate the qualities covered above.
Where do you stand?
This is where I stand and following me here at Every Month A Millon with my Daily Dose Of Good you to will become a Great Leader.
The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born - that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That's nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born. Failing organizations are usually over-managed and under-led.- Warren G. Bennis
Leadership is an art and a science. It is an art because it continually evolves, changes form, and requires creativity. It is a science because there are certain essential principles and techniques required. A good leader knows when it is time to change shape because they are highly attentive to those around them. Coming from a position of strength, a great leader takes risks by freeing up the creative genius in their followers to build their capability and multiply the talents of the organization. This leads to community and greatness. By powerfully communicating a vision that animates, motivates, and inspires followers, a great leader is able to transform his or her organization. A good leader needs to be able to laugh; a great leader needs to be able to laugh at oneself.
What kind of leader are you being? Where is your organization in relation to your vision?
What do you think makes a great leader? Who do you think was a great leader?
What qualities did or do they routinely exhibit? What do your followers want to know in order to believe in you? What are the words that lead them to believe you?
Consider the following as a beginning list of Qualities:
Cooperation
Collaboration
Consistent
Creative
Conscious
Caring
Capable
Courageous
Innovation
Understanding
Integrity
Sense of humor
Now consider the following Questions that relate to those Qualities:
Do you cooperate with the best in your people or do you demand from them?
Do you routinely work with them to bring innovation and best practices to your organization or do you push your ideas on them?
Are you consistent in demonstrating the principles of leadership you wish others to emulate, or do you vacillate in your own modeling?
Do you encourage creativity with brainstorming or are your ideas the only ones that work?
Are you conscious and present with your employees, or are you in a conversation in your head while with them?
Do you balance caring in the choices you make that effect your organization or are you only interested in the bottom line?
Are you the only one capable in your company, or do you unleash capability by empowerment through equality in responsibility and authority?
How courageous are you? What does risk look like to you? Does your organization go through frequent paradigm shifts continually advancing your corporate vision?
Do you foster a collaborative working environment or does your leadership style reflect mainly "telling?"
Do you balance understanding with expectations on deadlines when the circumstances dictate?
Do you model integrity? What does integrity look like to you?
Are you able to laugh at yourself and laugh freely and openly with your leadership team?
One of the joys of coaching emerging leaders is the well-spring of ideas that surface in the coaching conversation. I find that both new and the existing leaders understand the dynamics of leadership required for today's complex business environment. Many of them emulate the qualities covered above.
Where do you stand?
This is where I stand and following me here at Every Month A Millon with my Daily Dose Of Good you to will become a Great Leader.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Leadership with Compassion
Leadership in its highest form does not exist without compassion. There are many definitions of leadership. For the most part each of us has our own understanding of leadership. For some leadership is about command and control. For others leadership is about being an example and hoping others follow, and yet for others leadership is about helping a group of people relinquish themselves from the oppression of another group. Leadership can be defined in many vast shades of black and white. Yet the highest and most noble form of leadership is only realized when compassion is the major operating paradigm.
Strictly speaking, compassion is deeply feeling the pains of others to a point of action. Having compassion for others is an essential attribute of leaders. In a social perspective, it is compassion that fuels the fire of great leaders. It is the pain of others that forces a creative mind to envision a future state. It was the oppression of the African American people that led Martin Luther King Jr. to envision a future where “individuals would not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” It was watching the sick and old die on the streets of Calcutta that led Mother Teresa to create the City of Peace; a place where those who were forgotten could be remembered. It is the love that only comes through compassion, that moves great leaders like these to envision the world in a different way.
Leaders know how to mobilize others to envision a common future. Mobilizing others rests on a leader’s ability to understand those he or she is trying to mobilize. It is genuinely understanding and caring by a leader that deems a leader worthy of leading others. As followers we tend to be willing to follow those who we believe understand us.
Some argue that leaders have often led without caring or understanding their people. Perhaps this is true, but I would argue that these people were not leading, they were dictating. There is a fine line between leading others by helping them find voice to a common vision versus manipulating others to follow your vision. The issue is that most leaders and dictators start in a similar place. They begin by developing a personal vision, or an idealized future state. Their visions are based upon their own perceptions of the world. The confusing turning point distinguishing a leader and dictator is found at the point of resonation. The point of resonation is the event or experience when a leader gives voice to his vision. If at the point of resonation, the leader must use coercing and marketing, he is flirting with dictatorship. A leader's vision will resonate with the people, and speak to their needs and desires in such a way that they become mobilized as a group.
By having compassion for others a potential leader will qualify to become a leader. It is the deep caring for others that allows a leader to access the people he or she will someday be honored to lead. And it is this caring attitude coupled with action that makes a leader a leader. Every Month A Million
Strictly speaking, compassion is deeply feeling the pains of others to a point of action. Having compassion for others is an essential attribute of leaders. In a social perspective, it is compassion that fuels the fire of great leaders. It is the pain of others that forces a creative mind to envision a future state. It was the oppression of the African American people that led Martin Luther King Jr. to envision a future where “individuals would not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” It was watching the sick and old die on the streets of Calcutta that led Mother Teresa to create the City of Peace; a place where those who were forgotten could be remembered. It is the love that only comes through compassion, that moves great leaders like these to envision the world in a different way.
Leaders know how to mobilize others to envision a common future. Mobilizing others rests on a leader’s ability to understand those he or she is trying to mobilize. It is genuinely understanding and caring by a leader that deems a leader worthy of leading others. As followers we tend to be willing to follow those who we believe understand us.
Some argue that leaders have often led without caring or understanding their people. Perhaps this is true, but I would argue that these people were not leading, they were dictating. There is a fine line between leading others by helping them find voice to a common vision versus manipulating others to follow your vision. The issue is that most leaders and dictators start in a similar place. They begin by developing a personal vision, or an idealized future state. Their visions are based upon their own perceptions of the world. The confusing turning point distinguishing a leader and dictator is found at the point of resonation. The point of resonation is the event or experience when a leader gives voice to his vision. If at the point of resonation, the leader must use coercing and marketing, he is flirting with dictatorship. A leader's vision will resonate with the people, and speak to their needs and desires in such a way that they become mobilized as a group.
By having compassion for others a potential leader will qualify to become a leader. It is the deep caring for others that allows a leader to access the people he or she will someday be honored to lead. And it is this caring attitude coupled with action that makes a leader a leader. Every Month A Million
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
The Importance of Leadership With a Vision
In today's lesson you will learn the importance of Leadership with a Vision.
This was taught to me by one of my mentors Lori Duff here at
Every Month A Million with our Daily Dose Of Good
I dug a bit deeper and added more that I have been learning here.....
In the Book of Proverbs it is said, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." This is as true in business as it is in life. Organizations whose leaders have no vision are doomed to work under the burden of mere tradition. They cannot prosper and grow because they are reduced to keeping things the way they have always been; they are guided by the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
True leaders see things differently. They are guided by another belief more in keeping with the competitive world in which we live. They believe, "If it ain't broke, you're not looking hard enough." Realizing that there is always room for improvement, they believe that no one has ever done anything so well that it cannot be done better.
For leaders, a vision is not a dream; it is a reality that has yet to come into existence. Vision is palpable to leaders; their confidence in and dedication to vision are so strong they can devote long hours over many years to bring it into being. In this way, a vision acts as a force within, compelling a leader to action. It gives a leader purpose, and the power of the vision and the leader's devotion to it work to inspire others-- who, sensing purpose and commitment, respond.
While leaders come in every size, shape, and disposition--short, tall, neat, sloppy, young, old, male, and female---every leader I talked with shared at least one characteristic: a concern with a guiding purpose, an overarching vision. They were more than goal-directed.
To be a leader you have to lead people to a goal worth having--something that's really good and really there". That essential "something" is the vision.
A Definition
What is vision? Because it operates on many levels, vision is difficult to define simply. When we say that a leader has vision, we refer to the ability to see the present as it is and formulate a future that grows out of and improves upon the present. A leader with vision is able to see into the future without being far-sighted and remain rooted in the present without being near-sighted. We also speak of having a vision for an organization, which looks at it from a slightly different perspective. A vision is an idea of the future; it is an image, a strongly felt wish.
Vision is a tremendously powerful force in any walk of life, but in business it is essential. A vision is a target toward which a leader aims her energy and resources. The constant presence of the vision keeps a leader moving despite various forces of resistance: fear of failure; emotional hardships, such as negative responses from superiors, peers, or employees; or 'real' hardships, such as practical difficulties or problems in the industry.
Equally important, a vision, when shared by employees, can keep an entire company moving forward in the face of difficulties, enabling and inspiring leaders and employees alike. Moving toward the same goal, individuals work together rather than as disconnected people brought together because of having been hired coincidentally by the same organization. It can turn the stereotypical corporate hierarchy into a well-organized and harmonious matrix working together toward a common goal.
Vision refers to the force within a leader that spreads like wildfire when properly communicated to others. Vision refers to an image of the future that can be discussed and perfected by those who have invested in it. Vision is also the glue that binds individuals into a group with a common goal. This multiplicity of meanings does not weaken or obscure the concept; rather, it demonstrates how essential vision is to the success of a leader and to an organization.
Vision Adds Meaning to Corporate Life
When employees understand a leader's vision, they understand what the organization is trying to accomplish and what it stands for. Each employee can see what the future holds as a rational extension of the present. In addition, meaning is conveyed to each department, reaffirming that what individual departments contribute is crucial to organizational success. The vision must be logical, deductive, and plausible; at the same time it must be mind-stretching, creative, and able to capture the imaginations of individual contributors.
The role of a leader is not just to explain and clarify. Leaders "create meaning for people" by amassing large amounts of information, making sense of it, integrating it into a meaningful vision of the future, and communicating that vision so people want to participate in its realization. In this sense, visions have the power to lift employees out of the monotony of the daily work world and put them into a new world full of opportunity and challenge.
Visions excite people by appealing to their emotions. A vision is "something to rally around, a glue pulling the organization together". Because to some employees visions might seem almost impossible to meet, it is the leader's responsibility to bolster their courage with understanding. Experienced leaders do this so naturally that people do not even realize how courageous they are; their only concern is to do whatever is needed in pursuit of the vision. This is why leaders are so critical to the success of an organization. They have the ability to see through all the confusion in the workplace and focus on what matters. A vision helps leaders keep the frustrations of the workplace in perspective, enabling them to live with uncertainty in the short term because they can visualize accomplishment in the long term. They can then extend this ability throughout the organization.
Although vision guides a company in a particular direction, leaders do not typically produce specific "plans" for making a vision reality. They usually leave the more detailed planning to managers. However, "unless the leader has a sense of where the whole enterprise is going and must go, it is not possible to delegate... the other functions". It is as dangerous to leave others adrift by being too general as it is to cage them in by being too precise.
"Typically, a vision is specific enough to provide real guidance to people, yet vague enough to encourage initiative and to remain relevant under a variety of conditions".
Employee Buy-in and Commitment
To be effective, leaders cannot force their vision upon the organization. Imposing it will, in all likelihood, elicit rejection temporarily and, as a result, waste time and money. Additionally, this approach leads to frustration and anger, which can easily result in unnecessary failure. Under an autocratic leader, imposing a vision on the organization results in compliance rather than commitment, which is required for the long-term success of a vision. Ideally, a leader shares that vision with people in the organization. As employees come to comprehend the vision, they offer their commitment.
Having committed to a vision, organizational members begin to participate in shaping it, fashioning it to reflect their own personal visions-- pictures or images they have in their hearts and minds about their futures and their contributions to the organization. At this point, the leader's vision becomes a shared one, after which people in the organization become even more committed. Shared vision creates a commonality of interests that enables people to see meaning and coherence in the diverse activities of the typical workday. Furthermore, a shared vision causes people to focus on the future and what it holds-- not simply because they must, but because they want to.
The realization of a shared vision results in the "alignment of the individual energies" of all who take part. Realizing what an organization can achieve can generate a "unique rash of power," a level of energy high above what is considered normal that can be sustained for a relatively long period.
Possibly the most important variables contributing to a leader's success in implementing a vision is his level of commitment to it and the level of commitment it can inspire in employees. A leader who is wholly committed to a vision will find it much easier to motivate people and direct their energy toward making that vision reality.
Fear of Failure
Fear of failure prevents many otherwise capable people from pursuing their visions. Leaders must overcome their reluctance to risk falling on their face if they hope to succeed. Fear of failure is natural. True leaders, however, do not allow it to paralyze them and prevent them from pursuing their vision.
It does not matter not how many times you try and fail. Everybody fails. What matters is your ability to try again. A leader simply must expect and deal with failure because it is such a fundamental part of the learning process. Everybody fails while learning to master something. It is an unavoidable and essential part of a process that leads to success.
Consider this example: major league baseball. In the major leagues, if a player hits .300 he is a very good hitter. If he hits around .320 or .330, he is among the best in the league. A player who has a. 350 batting average is considered excellent. What this average actually means is that 65 percent of the time he either did not reach base, or he reached base as a result of an error. In major league baseball, a player who fails to get a hit 65 percent of the time is heading for the Hall of Fame. Interestingly, Babe Ruth is known as a great home run hitter. He was also a leader in strikeouts. Leaders must learn to deal with failure; they must master this experience. If they cannot cope with failure, they cannot lead.
Albert Einstein, who had great vision, was a leader in the scientific community. His theories changed the way we see the universe. But when once asked how many ideas he had in his lifetime, his answer was two. (Einstein considered ideas to be only those thoughts nobody had ever thought of before.)
A person can have an abundance of ideas, but success depends on what she does with these ideas, not on merely having them. Chances are that an idea believed to be original has already been conceived by somebody who has failed to do anything with it. It only takes one good idea to be a stunning success. Einstein is proof of this. The secret is to build on that idea. The fear of failure prevents many talented people from mentioning their ideas to others or from following through completely on them. What a shame! Because of the fear of failure, we deprive ourselves and others of so many benefits.
Nevertheless, many people believe that the key to success is to avoid failure. They stay with things they know, seldom trying anything new. These people fail because the surest way to fail in the long term is to continue doing what you did yesterday, to mindlessly follow proven tradition. Things are changing, and times are changing. If we do not change along with them, we will not succeed.
The willingness to confront and deal with failure is an important attribute of a leader. How many times should a leader try and fail before deciding it is time to quit. One? Two? Three? When Thomas Edison was working on the electric light bulb, he had to deal with much failure. He tried thousands of filaments before he found the one that worked. He did not quit after the first, 500th, or 1,000th try. He believed in his vision, and he wanted to succeed more than anything else. He dealt with his own daily failures and kept his eye on the long-term success. Today we all benefit because Thomas Edison did not choose to give up.
Challenging the Status Quo
Leaders must make certain their people do not give up, that they continue to strive for success. It is natural for people to quit; organizational pressures keep many people from trying out new ideas. John D. Rockefeller III wrote in The Second American Revolution, "An organization is a system, with a logic of its own, and all the weight of tradition and inertia. The deck is stacked in favor of the tried and proven way of doing things and against taking risks and striking out in new directions." How true!
The natural state of an organization is conservative, to maintain the status quo. Many people in firms that have been around a long time believe their primary responsibility is to protect the status quo. Leaders must learn to deal with these obstacles in the path of success and to protect those who question the way things are done. I believe that "divine discontent with the status quo" is an essential quality of a leader. People who have leadership talent have "a real fire in their belly... a fire that has to do with having an effect on the world." You can tell when leaders have been in a firm because they leave their mark and, as a result, affect the destinies of many others.
Ridicule: A Technique Used to Make Leaders Quit
When employees in most organizations encounter a person with a vision that is significantly different from the status quo, it is common for them to resist the suggested changes and to put obstacles in the way of success. Their rationale is easily understood. Change means work and exertion for them. By preventing change, they save time and energy in the short term. But in the long run, their strategy is dangerous.
If the leader refuses to quit, employees turn to ridicule in hopes that the pressure will be sufficient to prevent the leader from moving forward. Leaders must learn to deal with this. They must understand that great leaders before them faced ridicule and prevailed over it. Marconi probably encountered a tremendous amount of ridicule as he sought support for the wireless radio. Imagine him trying to sell his idea to a group of would-be investors. Marconi had to convince a room full of bankers that his invention was capable of capturing "little waves" out of the air that could not be seen and converting them to sound that would come from a little box. A fair number of them must have thought he was crazy.
It is natural for some people to exhibit disbelief when unusual ideas are presented to them. It is also natural for them to ridicule the people who present those ideas.
When You Succeed, They Say You Are Lucky
Suppose a leader develops a vision to which she is committed, shares it with people, accepts failure, deals with ridicule, and after working tirelessly for many years actually turns that vision into a reality. It is now time to reap the rewards and hear praise for an amazing accomplishment, right? Wrong. In all likelihood, what she will hear is, "Oh, you were just lucky"--meaning, of course, "If it wasn't just plain dumb luck, I would have done it myself." In this situation, a leader should find comfort in the words of Emerson: "Shallow men believe in luck, wise and strong men in cause and effect."
Luck cannot explain accomplishment. Winning the state lottery may seem like a matter of luck, but you have to buy a lottery ticket to win. Ara Parseghian, football coach at Notre Dame several years ago, led his team to beat the University of Alabama for the national championship two years in a row. Alabama was favored to win both times. Both years, Alabama took an early lead and held it until the end of the game. Both years, Notre Dame came back in the closing seconds of the game and won. When a reporter asked Parseghian after the second victory about "the luck of the Irish," he is reported to have said, "If by luck you mean the place where preparation meets opportunity, then we were lucky."
In this world, there is an abundance of opportunity for everyone. Parseghian knew that the Alabama football team was not infallible and that it would give his team opportunities to win. If his team prepared well and was ready for the game, it could take advantage of those opportunities. It took hard work and practice to be able to see and take advantage of the openings provided.
Preparation met opportunity.
Communicating Vision
A leader must communicate his vision to others for it to become a shared vision. To accomplish this, leaders should act in a manner consistent with the vision in everything they do. They must set a personal example; they cannot afford to send mixed signals by saying one thing and doing another.
The first step in communicating a vision to a group is to stress its importance so that people will take an interest in it. If they believe the vision is important and worthwhile, many of them will want be involved with it, even if they do not understand all the details. Most people will cooperate and follow the leader with only a vague idea of what their participation, contribution, and reward might be, if the leader's vision excites them.
Communication that motivates people to act tends to focus on the core values and beliefs that support the vision. Accurately communicating these values and beliefs simplifies implementation because it conveys simple images or words that make the vision easier to remember. In addition, repeating simple words and symbols communicates the message without clogging already overused communication channels. Written communication can be used in a similar manner to reinforce the vision by reporting progress for everyone to see, and progress toward achieving goals keeps peoples' spirits up and helps convince them they can do it.
Going From Communication to Commitment
After a vision has been explained simply and directly, people must decide whether they want to be a part of it. If they don't, they cannot be forced to produce quality results at competitive prices over the long term. They can be forced to do things in the short term, but they will abandon them as quickly as they figure out how to come out from under the strong arm of a leader who has not earned their commitment.
The day has almost passed when autocratic leaders can succeed over the long term. Strong-armed leaders typically do not last long; the cost of using this approach is too high in terms of the inferior quality output resulting from poor quality effort, lost employee loyalty and support, and money. Moreover, forcing people to do things they do not want to do requires a great deal of energy over the long term--more energy than most people can expend on a sustained basis.
Over the long term, most people are not motivated by being pushed. They are motivated by the desire to satisfy their own very basic human needs: those for achievement, belonging, recognition, self-esteem, control over their lives, and the sense of having lived up to their ideals. To be successful, leaders must connect with these human needs and let their people become excited about a vision. Further, they must involve people in deciding how to achieve the vision, or at least to achieve the part of it that is most relevant to them. Their involvement must be real, and the rewards and recognition they receive must be real as well.
To win continued support from a group, leaders must be willing to share their personal views, and to listen carefully to the group's ideas. Ultimately, leaders must be willing to assume a vulnerable position and ask a difficult question:
"Will you follow me?" In reality, they are asking another question: "Is this vision worthy of your commitment?" Being vulnerable in this manner is difficult for many people who have grown up during a time when employees were expected to comply with the leader's orders and not ask too many questions.
Although a leader is responsible for introducing the vision to the group, people want and need to become personally involved with the vision. As we have said before, they cannot do this unless it reflects, to some extent, their own personal visions. It is critical for leaders to keep their minds open to suggestions and ideas that can improve the vision. Too often leaders present their visions to employees as cast in concrete, sending the subtle (or not so subtle) message that there is no room for compromise. As a result, the employees either reject the vision or simply go through the motions of supporting it. In either case, it is doubtful the vision will ever become reality.
Introducing the word "compromise" may surprise many people because they have been led to believe that once the leader is committed to the vision, she cannot afford to be flexible. Although it is true that the leader's commitment to the vision must be strong and unwavering, it is also true that she is incapable of predicting in advance precisely what the future holds. As the leader and the group move together toward making the vision a reality, they both learn more about their vision, and they have opportunities to improve upon it. Compromise as the vision unfolds should not be interpreted negatively. The leader's willingness to accept suggestions that result in some change in the vision will benefit the leader and improve both the quality of the vision and the intensity of the employees' commitment to it.
Stated another way, the development of a vision is an evolutionary process. At any one point there will be a particular image of the future that is predominant, but that image will evolve. A vision should be constantly examined and modified to reflect important changes in the environment and ensure continued support and enthusiasm from everyone involved.
As people's commitment to the vision grows, it becomes more real to them; they will find it easier to dedicate the time and energy necessary to make the vision a reality. Those who have expertise in a particular field should be encouraged to use their knowledge to improve parts of the vision that are related to their specialty. The details, missing steps, and concerns that confront the leader's visionary goals. When leaders solicit input, they discover the knowledge, interest, and evident parameters of support they can expect from others." A leader should expect that although parts of the vision may undergo alteration, its essence will remain intact.
If a leader cannot see the value in compromises and is too inflexible to accept them, the vision will never achieve its full potential. When more people come to share a vision, the vision becomes more real in the sense of a mental reality that people can truly imagine achieving. They [the leaders] now have partners, co-creators; the vision no longer rests on their shoulders alone."
Empowering People to Do Their Jobs
Communicating the vision accurately and fully has the added advantage of creating the conditions under which employees can be empowered to do their jobs. The term "empowered" is used frequently today; unfortunately, many people using the term do not really understand what it means. Some who are familiar with management literature interpret empowerment to mean delegation of authority. The strict literalists will be quick to point out that a manager can delegate authority, but not responsibility. To them, empowerment is a formal (almost legalistic) passing down of a task from one level in the organization to another. Delegation is not empowerment, but empowerment does require good delegation.
Empowerment means giving employees jobs to do and the freedom they need to be creative while doing them. It means allowing employees to try new ideas, even ones that have never been considered or that have been previously rejected. It means allowing them to experiment and fail on occasion without fear of punishment.
Having said this, we must point out that leaders should avoid taking big risks without carefully considering the consequences. They must exercise judgment; as a general rule, they should establish an understanding with employees about the risks they are willing to take in the experimentation process. As we said earlier, experimentation is essential, so leaders must not be so restrictive that their employees fail to try new ideas. Empowerment means giving employees more than just the authority to do the job.
Leaders are not magicians, and they do not simply predict future events. They are strategic thinkers who are willing to take risks. Their actions, together with the actions of those who follow them, determine what the future will be. The point is, leaders do not create something out of nothing. They look at what they know to exist and search for relationships, the way things are meant to fit together. Once they find the connections, they share them with other people and work with them to bring about desired changes.
Leaders must maintain a balance between a clear understanding of the present and a clear focus on the future. Senge calls this balance "creative tension" and maintains that "an accurate picture of current reality is just as important as a compelling picture of a desired future."
This was taught to me by one of my mentors Lori Duff here at
Every Month A Million with our Daily Dose Of Good
I dug a bit deeper and added more that I have been learning here.....
In the Book of Proverbs it is said, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." This is as true in business as it is in life. Organizations whose leaders have no vision are doomed to work under the burden of mere tradition. They cannot prosper and grow because they are reduced to keeping things the way they have always been; they are guided by the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it."
True leaders see things differently. They are guided by another belief more in keeping with the competitive world in which we live. They believe, "If it ain't broke, you're not looking hard enough." Realizing that there is always room for improvement, they believe that no one has ever done anything so well that it cannot be done better.
For leaders, a vision is not a dream; it is a reality that has yet to come into existence. Vision is palpable to leaders; their confidence in and dedication to vision are so strong they can devote long hours over many years to bring it into being. In this way, a vision acts as a force within, compelling a leader to action. It gives a leader purpose, and the power of the vision and the leader's devotion to it work to inspire others-- who, sensing purpose and commitment, respond.
While leaders come in every size, shape, and disposition--short, tall, neat, sloppy, young, old, male, and female---every leader I talked with shared at least one characteristic: a concern with a guiding purpose, an overarching vision. They were more than goal-directed.
To be a leader you have to lead people to a goal worth having--something that's really good and really there". That essential "something" is the vision.
A Definition
What is vision? Because it operates on many levels, vision is difficult to define simply. When we say that a leader has vision, we refer to the ability to see the present as it is and formulate a future that grows out of and improves upon the present. A leader with vision is able to see into the future without being far-sighted and remain rooted in the present without being near-sighted. We also speak of having a vision for an organization, which looks at it from a slightly different perspective. A vision is an idea of the future; it is an image, a strongly felt wish.
Vision is a tremendously powerful force in any walk of life, but in business it is essential. A vision is a target toward which a leader aims her energy and resources. The constant presence of the vision keeps a leader moving despite various forces of resistance: fear of failure; emotional hardships, such as negative responses from superiors, peers, or employees; or 'real' hardships, such as practical difficulties or problems in the industry.
Equally important, a vision, when shared by employees, can keep an entire company moving forward in the face of difficulties, enabling and inspiring leaders and employees alike. Moving toward the same goal, individuals work together rather than as disconnected people brought together because of having been hired coincidentally by the same organization. It can turn the stereotypical corporate hierarchy into a well-organized and harmonious matrix working together toward a common goal.
Vision refers to the force within a leader that spreads like wildfire when properly communicated to others. Vision refers to an image of the future that can be discussed and perfected by those who have invested in it. Vision is also the glue that binds individuals into a group with a common goal. This multiplicity of meanings does not weaken or obscure the concept; rather, it demonstrates how essential vision is to the success of a leader and to an organization.
Vision Adds Meaning to Corporate Life
When employees understand a leader's vision, they understand what the organization is trying to accomplish and what it stands for. Each employee can see what the future holds as a rational extension of the present. In addition, meaning is conveyed to each department, reaffirming that what individual departments contribute is crucial to organizational success. The vision must be logical, deductive, and plausible; at the same time it must be mind-stretching, creative, and able to capture the imaginations of individual contributors.
The role of a leader is not just to explain and clarify. Leaders "create meaning for people" by amassing large amounts of information, making sense of it, integrating it into a meaningful vision of the future, and communicating that vision so people want to participate in its realization. In this sense, visions have the power to lift employees out of the monotony of the daily work world and put them into a new world full of opportunity and challenge.
Visions excite people by appealing to their emotions. A vision is "something to rally around, a glue pulling the organization together". Because to some employees visions might seem almost impossible to meet, it is the leader's responsibility to bolster their courage with understanding. Experienced leaders do this so naturally that people do not even realize how courageous they are; their only concern is to do whatever is needed in pursuit of the vision. This is why leaders are so critical to the success of an organization. They have the ability to see through all the confusion in the workplace and focus on what matters. A vision helps leaders keep the frustrations of the workplace in perspective, enabling them to live with uncertainty in the short term because they can visualize accomplishment in the long term. They can then extend this ability throughout the organization.
Although vision guides a company in a particular direction, leaders do not typically produce specific "plans" for making a vision reality. They usually leave the more detailed planning to managers. However, "unless the leader has a sense of where the whole enterprise is going and must go, it is not possible to delegate... the other functions". It is as dangerous to leave others adrift by being too general as it is to cage them in by being too precise.
"Typically, a vision is specific enough to provide real guidance to people, yet vague enough to encourage initiative and to remain relevant under a variety of conditions".
Employee Buy-in and Commitment
To be effective, leaders cannot force their vision upon the organization. Imposing it will, in all likelihood, elicit rejection temporarily and, as a result, waste time and money. Additionally, this approach leads to frustration and anger, which can easily result in unnecessary failure. Under an autocratic leader, imposing a vision on the organization results in compliance rather than commitment, which is required for the long-term success of a vision. Ideally, a leader shares that vision with people in the organization. As employees come to comprehend the vision, they offer their commitment.
Having committed to a vision, organizational members begin to participate in shaping it, fashioning it to reflect their own personal visions-- pictures or images they have in their hearts and minds about their futures and their contributions to the organization. At this point, the leader's vision becomes a shared one, after which people in the organization become even more committed. Shared vision creates a commonality of interests that enables people to see meaning and coherence in the diverse activities of the typical workday. Furthermore, a shared vision causes people to focus on the future and what it holds-- not simply because they must, but because they want to.
The realization of a shared vision results in the "alignment of the individual energies" of all who take part. Realizing what an organization can achieve can generate a "unique rash of power," a level of energy high above what is considered normal that can be sustained for a relatively long period.
Possibly the most important variables contributing to a leader's success in implementing a vision is his level of commitment to it and the level of commitment it can inspire in employees. A leader who is wholly committed to a vision will find it much easier to motivate people and direct their energy toward making that vision reality.
Fear of Failure
Fear of failure prevents many otherwise capable people from pursuing their visions. Leaders must overcome their reluctance to risk falling on their face if they hope to succeed. Fear of failure is natural. True leaders, however, do not allow it to paralyze them and prevent them from pursuing their vision.
It does not matter not how many times you try and fail. Everybody fails. What matters is your ability to try again. A leader simply must expect and deal with failure because it is such a fundamental part of the learning process. Everybody fails while learning to master something. It is an unavoidable and essential part of a process that leads to success.
Consider this example: major league baseball. In the major leagues, if a player hits .300 he is a very good hitter. If he hits around .320 or .330, he is among the best in the league. A player who has a. 350 batting average is considered excellent. What this average actually means is that 65 percent of the time he either did not reach base, or he reached base as a result of an error. In major league baseball, a player who fails to get a hit 65 percent of the time is heading for the Hall of Fame. Interestingly, Babe Ruth is known as a great home run hitter. He was also a leader in strikeouts. Leaders must learn to deal with failure; they must master this experience. If they cannot cope with failure, they cannot lead.
Albert Einstein, who had great vision, was a leader in the scientific community. His theories changed the way we see the universe. But when once asked how many ideas he had in his lifetime, his answer was two. (Einstein considered ideas to be only those thoughts nobody had ever thought of before.)
A person can have an abundance of ideas, but success depends on what she does with these ideas, not on merely having them. Chances are that an idea believed to be original has already been conceived by somebody who has failed to do anything with it. It only takes one good idea to be a stunning success. Einstein is proof of this. The secret is to build on that idea. The fear of failure prevents many talented people from mentioning their ideas to others or from following through completely on them. What a shame! Because of the fear of failure, we deprive ourselves and others of so many benefits.
Nevertheless, many people believe that the key to success is to avoid failure. They stay with things they know, seldom trying anything new. These people fail because the surest way to fail in the long term is to continue doing what you did yesterday, to mindlessly follow proven tradition. Things are changing, and times are changing. If we do not change along with them, we will not succeed.
The willingness to confront and deal with failure is an important attribute of a leader. How many times should a leader try and fail before deciding it is time to quit. One? Two? Three? When Thomas Edison was working on the electric light bulb, he had to deal with much failure. He tried thousands of filaments before he found the one that worked. He did not quit after the first, 500th, or 1,000th try. He believed in his vision, and he wanted to succeed more than anything else. He dealt with his own daily failures and kept his eye on the long-term success. Today we all benefit because Thomas Edison did not choose to give up.
Challenging the Status Quo
Leaders must make certain their people do not give up, that they continue to strive for success. It is natural for people to quit; organizational pressures keep many people from trying out new ideas. John D. Rockefeller III wrote in The Second American Revolution, "An organization is a system, with a logic of its own, and all the weight of tradition and inertia. The deck is stacked in favor of the tried and proven way of doing things and against taking risks and striking out in new directions." How true!
The natural state of an organization is conservative, to maintain the status quo. Many people in firms that have been around a long time believe their primary responsibility is to protect the status quo. Leaders must learn to deal with these obstacles in the path of success and to protect those who question the way things are done. I believe that "divine discontent with the status quo" is an essential quality of a leader. People who have leadership talent have "a real fire in their belly... a fire that has to do with having an effect on the world." You can tell when leaders have been in a firm because they leave their mark and, as a result, affect the destinies of many others.
Ridicule: A Technique Used to Make Leaders Quit
When employees in most organizations encounter a person with a vision that is significantly different from the status quo, it is common for them to resist the suggested changes and to put obstacles in the way of success. Their rationale is easily understood. Change means work and exertion for them. By preventing change, they save time and energy in the short term. But in the long run, their strategy is dangerous.
If the leader refuses to quit, employees turn to ridicule in hopes that the pressure will be sufficient to prevent the leader from moving forward. Leaders must learn to deal with this. They must understand that great leaders before them faced ridicule and prevailed over it. Marconi probably encountered a tremendous amount of ridicule as he sought support for the wireless radio. Imagine him trying to sell his idea to a group of would-be investors. Marconi had to convince a room full of bankers that his invention was capable of capturing "little waves" out of the air that could not be seen and converting them to sound that would come from a little box. A fair number of them must have thought he was crazy.
It is natural for some people to exhibit disbelief when unusual ideas are presented to them. It is also natural for them to ridicule the people who present those ideas.
When You Succeed, They Say You Are Lucky
Suppose a leader develops a vision to which she is committed, shares it with people, accepts failure, deals with ridicule, and after working tirelessly for many years actually turns that vision into a reality. It is now time to reap the rewards and hear praise for an amazing accomplishment, right? Wrong. In all likelihood, what she will hear is, "Oh, you were just lucky"--meaning, of course, "If it wasn't just plain dumb luck, I would have done it myself." In this situation, a leader should find comfort in the words of Emerson: "Shallow men believe in luck, wise and strong men in cause and effect."
Luck cannot explain accomplishment. Winning the state lottery may seem like a matter of luck, but you have to buy a lottery ticket to win. Ara Parseghian, football coach at Notre Dame several years ago, led his team to beat the University of Alabama for the national championship two years in a row. Alabama was favored to win both times. Both years, Alabama took an early lead and held it until the end of the game. Both years, Notre Dame came back in the closing seconds of the game and won. When a reporter asked Parseghian after the second victory about "the luck of the Irish," he is reported to have said, "If by luck you mean the place where preparation meets opportunity, then we were lucky."
In this world, there is an abundance of opportunity for everyone. Parseghian knew that the Alabama football team was not infallible and that it would give his team opportunities to win. If his team prepared well and was ready for the game, it could take advantage of those opportunities. It took hard work and practice to be able to see and take advantage of the openings provided.
Preparation met opportunity.
Communicating Vision
A leader must communicate his vision to others for it to become a shared vision. To accomplish this, leaders should act in a manner consistent with the vision in everything they do. They must set a personal example; they cannot afford to send mixed signals by saying one thing and doing another.
The first step in communicating a vision to a group is to stress its importance so that people will take an interest in it. If they believe the vision is important and worthwhile, many of them will want be involved with it, even if they do not understand all the details. Most people will cooperate and follow the leader with only a vague idea of what their participation, contribution, and reward might be, if the leader's vision excites them.
Communication that motivates people to act tends to focus on the core values and beliefs that support the vision. Accurately communicating these values and beliefs simplifies implementation because it conveys simple images or words that make the vision easier to remember. In addition, repeating simple words and symbols communicates the message without clogging already overused communication channels. Written communication can be used in a similar manner to reinforce the vision by reporting progress for everyone to see, and progress toward achieving goals keeps peoples' spirits up and helps convince them they can do it.
Going From Communication to Commitment
After a vision has been explained simply and directly, people must decide whether they want to be a part of it. If they don't, they cannot be forced to produce quality results at competitive prices over the long term. They can be forced to do things in the short term, but they will abandon them as quickly as they figure out how to come out from under the strong arm of a leader who has not earned their commitment.
The day has almost passed when autocratic leaders can succeed over the long term. Strong-armed leaders typically do not last long; the cost of using this approach is too high in terms of the inferior quality output resulting from poor quality effort, lost employee loyalty and support, and money. Moreover, forcing people to do things they do not want to do requires a great deal of energy over the long term--more energy than most people can expend on a sustained basis.
Over the long term, most people are not motivated by being pushed. They are motivated by the desire to satisfy their own very basic human needs: those for achievement, belonging, recognition, self-esteem, control over their lives, and the sense of having lived up to their ideals. To be successful, leaders must connect with these human needs and let their people become excited about a vision. Further, they must involve people in deciding how to achieve the vision, or at least to achieve the part of it that is most relevant to them. Their involvement must be real, and the rewards and recognition they receive must be real as well.
To win continued support from a group, leaders must be willing to share their personal views, and to listen carefully to the group's ideas. Ultimately, leaders must be willing to assume a vulnerable position and ask a difficult question:
"Will you follow me?" In reality, they are asking another question: "Is this vision worthy of your commitment?" Being vulnerable in this manner is difficult for many people who have grown up during a time when employees were expected to comply with the leader's orders and not ask too many questions.
Although a leader is responsible for introducing the vision to the group, people want and need to become personally involved with the vision. As we have said before, they cannot do this unless it reflects, to some extent, their own personal visions. It is critical for leaders to keep their minds open to suggestions and ideas that can improve the vision. Too often leaders present their visions to employees as cast in concrete, sending the subtle (or not so subtle) message that there is no room for compromise. As a result, the employees either reject the vision or simply go through the motions of supporting it. In either case, it is doubtful the vision will ever become reality.
Introducing the word "compromise" may surprise many people because they have been led to believe that once the leader is committed to the vision, she cannot afford to be flexible. Although it is true that the leader's commitment to the vision must be strong and unwavering, it is also true that she is incapable of predicting in advance precisely what the future holds. As the leader and the group move together toward making the vision a reality, they both learn more about their vision, and they have opportunities to improve upon it. Compromise as the vision unfolds should not be interpreted negatively. The leader's willingness to accept suggestions that result in some change in the vision will benefit the leader and improve both the quality of the vision and the intensity of the employees' commitment to it.
Stated another way, the development of a vision is an evolutionary process. At any one point there will be a particular image of the future that is predominant, but that image will evolve. A vision should be constantly examined and modified to reflect important changes in the environment and ensure continued support and enthusiasm from everyone involved.
As people's commitment to the vision grows, it becomes more real to them; they will find it easier to dedicate the time and energy necessary to make the vision a reality. Those who have expertise in a particular field should be encouraged to use their knowledge to improve parts of the vision that are related to their specialty. The details, missing steps, and concerns that confront the leader's visionary goals. When leaders solicit input, they discover the knowledge, interest, and evident parameters of support they can expect from others." A leader should expect that although parts of the vision may undergo alteration, its essence will remain intact.
If a leader cannot see the value in compromises and is too inflexible to accept them, the vision will never achieve its full potential. When more people come to share a vision, the vision becomes more real in the sense of a mental reality that people can truly imagine achieving. They [the leaders] now have partners, co-creators; the vision no longer rests on their shoulders alone."
Empowering People to Do Their Jobs
Communicating the vision accurately and fully has the added advantage of creating the conditions under which employees can be empowered to do their jobs. The term "empowered" is used frequently today; unfortunately, many people using the term do not really understand what it means. Some who are familiar with management literature interpret empowerment to mean delegation of authority. The strict literalists will be quick to point out that a manager can delegate authority, but not responsibility. To them, empowerment is a formal (almost legalistic) passing down of a task from one level in the organization to another. Delegation is not empowerment, but empowerment does require good delegation.
Empowerment means giving employees jobs to do and the freedom they need to be creative while doing them. It means allowing employees to try new ideas, even ones that have never been considered or that have been previously rejected. It means allowing them to experiment and fail on occasion without fear of punishment.
Having said this, we must point out that leaders should avoid taking big risks without carefully considering the consequences. They must exercise judgment; as a general rule, they should establish an understanding with employees about the risks they are willing to take in the experimentation process. As we said earlier, experimentation is essential, so leaders must not be so restrictive that their employees fail to try new ideas. Empowerment means giving employees more than just the authority to do the job.
Leaders are not magicians, and they do not simply predict future events. They are strategic thinkers who are willing to take risks. Their actions, together with the actions of those who follow them, determine what the future will be. The point is, leaders do not create something out of nothing. They look at what they know to exist and search for relationships, the way things are meant to fit together. Once they find the connections, they share them with other people and work with them to bring about desired changes.
Leaders must maintain a balance between a clear understanding of the present and a clear focus on the future. Senge calls this balance "creative tension" and maintains that "an accurate picture of current reality is just as important as a compelling picture of a desired future."
Monday, October 5, 2009
Relationship Building Is the Key to Your Network Marketing Success
Many of us get into the network marketing business because of a dream. The dream is defined a little differently from person to person. But each of us has a dream.
The dream not only draws us in but it is the incentive that helps us through the difficult times. In fact if we get discouraged we are often told that our dream just isn't big enough and we need to spend a night dream building.
My guess is your dream is big enough. The size of your dream is not the problem.
The problem is your dream is...
All about you.
Of course it is. That's how most dreams are. But instead of gritting your teach and holding on to a dream, try taking an about face. Take yourself out of the equation.
Think for a moment about the type of people that attract you. They are usually pleasant - of course. But they are more. They are generous people who are always giving. When you have a problem they are the type of people who help you solve your problems.
Now think of how you normally look for prospects. You think something like...
How can I get my friend to sign up?
Or...
What can I say to that person about my opportunity?
I'll bet you can come up with more. But each of these thoughts has the same annoying factor. It is all about you. But the problem is nobody out there cares.
What do you think your prospect is thinking? She is thinking...
What is in this for me?
It is time to do a 180. Instead of asking your prospects to conform to what you want them to do, think of how you can...
Give Your Prospects Everything They Need. That is exactly what we do at
Every Month a Million.
Contrary to what you may have been told, not everyone is your prospect. But there are many thousands of people who could be your prospects if you would completely change the way you approach business.
How do you do this?
By giving people what they need whether they are your prospects or not.
All of us have needs. We have problems. What we want more than anything is solutions to these problems. Therefore to be successful in network marketing become the leader that helps people solve their problems.
People are looking for leaders who will help them navigate this digital age. They want to have practical solutions to their business problems.
They need YOU.
They need someone who understands marketing and has the leadership they can lean on.
Teach people how they can be successful whether or not they are ever part of your business. Give them your expertise... your solutions to their problems. Be a faithful consultant to them and you will have prospects beating down your door to be a part of what you are doing.
Relationship Building Is the Key to Your Network Marketing Success
Every Month a Million is different
"You Don't have to change. You Don't have to get out there and sell. You Don't have to become this other person that you aren't right now.
"The truth is, YOU are perfect just like you are. Everybody on your team is perfect just like they are. They don't need to change. They don't need to become a pushy, aggressive salesperson.
Ninety-two per-cent of the world's population is sales resistant.
That Is NOT How To Build Your Business!
My belief is, just target the market and find people who already are looking for the business, people who already believe in network marketing. Don't go out and try to build them a dream to get them in the business.
Just go talk to the ones who already believe! Talk to the people who already believe, and are looking. Those people are warriors. Those people are ready to take action. Those people will build an empire. They will build a legacy income for you.
Those are the people you want. Build relationships with those people. Get them into your business, and never, never, never quit building the relationship with them!
The dream not only draws us in but it is the incentive that helps us through the difficult times. In fact if we get discouraged we are often told that our dream just isn't big enough and we need to spend a night dream building.
My guess is your dream is big enough. The size of your dream is not the problem.
The problem is your dream is...
All about you.
Of course it is. That's how most dreams are. But instead of gritting your teach and holding on to a dream, try taking an about face. Take yourself out of the equation.
Think for a moment about the type of people that attract you. They are usually pleasant - of course. But they are more. They are generous people who are always giving. When you have a problem they are the type of people who help you solve your problems.
Now think of how you normally look for prospects. You think something like...
How can I get my friend to sign up?
Or...
What can I say to that person about my opportunity?
I'll bet you can come up with more. But each of these thoughts has the same annoying factor. It is all about you. But the problem is nobody out there cares.
What do you think your prospect is thinking? She is thinking...
What is in this for me?
It is time to do a 180. Instead of asking your prospects to conform to what you want them to do, think of how you can...
Give Your Prospects Everything They Need. That is exactly what we do at
Every Month a Million.
Contrary to what you may have been told, not everyone is your prospect. But there are many thousands of people who could be your prospects if you would completely change the way you approach business.
How do you do this?
By giving people what they need whether they are your prospects or not.
All of us have needs. We have problems. What we want more than anything is solutions to these problems. Therefore to be successful in network marketing become the leader that helps people solve their problems.
People are looking for leaders who will help them navigate this digital age. They want to have practical solutions to their business problems.
They need YOU.
They need someone who understands marketing and has the leadership they can lean on.
Teach people how they can be successful whether or not they are ever part of your business. Give them your expertise... your solutions to their problems. Be a faithful consultant to them and you will have prospects beating down your door to be a part of what you are doing.
Relationship Building Is the Key to Your Network Marketing Success
Every Month a Million is different
"You Don't have to change. You Don't have to get out there and sell. You Don't have to become this other person that you aren't right now.
"The truth is, YOU are perfect just like you are. Everybody on your team is perfect just like they are. They don't need to change. They don't need to become a pushy, aggressive salesperson.
Ninety-two per-cent of the world's population is sales resistant.
That Is NOT How To Build Your Business!
My belief is, just target the market and find people who already are looking for the business, people who already believe in network marketing. Don't go out and try to build them a dream to get them in the business.
Just go talk to the ones who already believe! Talk to the people who already believe, and are looking. Those people are warriors. Those people are ready to take action. Those people will build an empire. They will build a legacy income for you.
Those are the people you want. Build relationships with those people. Get them into your business, and never, never, never quit building the relationship with them!
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