To start with, it is said that successful leaders are quick and nippy to share their knowledge and do what they can to empower people within their spheres of influence. They want to grow the leadership and professional skills in members of their team. They do not want those following them to remain in their shadow perpetually. Also, a clear tell-tale sign of a good leader is one who steps up and accepts responsibility each and every time. Considering what is said, can you honestly call yourself a leader? Remember, you can occupy a leadership position without being a leader and you can also be a leadership expert without being a leader!
Well, this piece is actually for those who are not in leadership positions in their organizations, but desire to do all they can do to help their organizations succeed. The question is; how can they bring leadership skills to the table—even when they are not occupying leadership positions? I am here to help you today. Are you ready? If yes, now let’s go!
You actually can lead from anywhere in the company; it is probably the most common way organizations are led. With common and control leadership, it is all about giving orders, so you need the title. But in most companies, you can be a powerful leader anywhere in an organization by adapting the “pull leadership” principles of responsibility, stewardship, and values. Pull leaders take responsibility for an organization and the people who make it up.
The key to leadership at any level is writing a new job description. Something like this: my job is making the company, and its people, successful. Taking responsibility for success is first on your agenda. Don’t confuse responsibility with authority. Responsibility is totally different; it’s an attitude. Want proof? Just watch Ken Lay—who had absolute authority at Enron, abused it, and wholly declined to take responsibility. You can do better than that. Mentally, decide to start acting as a leader rather than waiting for permission or direction. Believe it or not, this can be leadership’s greatest challenge. The CEO of a company where someone was a president said that he was acting as a consultant. After two days in denial, he admitted it was true and asked: “what would I do differently if I owned this company?” The answer flashed up in an instant: fire an incompetent staffer and build a “quick and dirty” system to move us forward. The attitude made all the difference and still makes all the difference!
Acquire the attitude of what you’d do if you were in charge. Imagine yourself in the corner office, writing out paychecks and company expenditures from your personal bank account. With an attitude of responsibility, you will be asking if you are getting your money’s worth. Is the company working on the right projects? Is the culture functional? Just taking the attitude of “I can be responsible for the group’s success” will start to pervade your presence.
If you are going to take responsibility for the organization, you must take responsibility for the people as well. This is super important if you are leading from below. A CEO can grind people down and no one calls her/him on it. He/she cannot be fired. You can. But you won’t, if you are taking responsibility for the success of the people, as well as the organization. Decide you will start looking out for your co-workers, your boss, and yourself.
Pull leaders are stewards for their organizations and people. Here is where responsibility becomes action. Take care of your organization. Unlike a CEO or president, you cannot set company direction, but you can take the direction top management sets and make it your job to turn that direction into reality. Start figuring out how your business works. Read business books. Talk to people from other functions in your spare time. Learn what they do and why. You’d get a sense for how it needs to be nudged going forward. As the low person on the pole, start by making suggestions here and there and offering to help. Do a small project on your own time that benefits the company in a visible way. If people know you are genuinely curious and concerned about helping things get better, they will be inclined to work with you. More importantly, they will start looking to you as someone who drives success. Become steward of your group. Every team you are on is a chance to be a steward. The teams have a charter or a goal they are supposed to reach. You cannot set the goal, but you can make sure you understand it and then become the “go-to guy” for keeping things moving. If the team stalls, figure out why and offer to help the team leader restart it. Some people just attend to their own work, and they are viewed (rightly) as good technical contributors who must be managed to be valuable.
A sales team was not making sales. The more time went by, the more sales were not happening. One member of the team finally interviewed everyone on the team and realized that half the team was stalled waiting for input from the other half, while the other half was stalled waiting for input from the first half! He got everyone in a room, had them exchange information, and three weeks later, calls were again being made and the pipeline was starting to fill. If you attend to everyone’s work and help the entire team be successful, you are acting as a leader in a tangible way.
Also, become steward of your co-workers. It is not enough to care about the group. Your co-workers’ success is important, even if you do not like them. What are their hot buttons? What are their strengths? When do they best shine in their jobs? Once you know, start watching out for them. Once you know, start watching out for them. Do you hear of a project perfectly suited for a teammate’s career aspirations? Help them apply and become a champion for them. If they are running into problems, do show concern. Share ideas for how they can overcome their obstacles.
(To be continued.)
and then