TODAY'S MESSAGE
Influence: The true measure of leadership is influence,
nothing more, nothing less.
by Lynn Giuliani
People often think that leadership is about position, it is not. It is not the position that makes the leader; it is the leader that makes the position!
How are you influencing your team members?
Followers in organizations cannot be forced to get on board. If the leader has no influence with them, they simply will not follow.
“He who thinks he leads but has no followers is only taking a walk!”
Real leadership is being a person others will gladly and confidently follow. Think of a leader you have worked for with influence. What is their style?
1. Rights: People follow because they have to.
2. Relationships: People follow because they want to.
3. Results: People follow because of what you have done for the organization.
4. Reproduction: People follow because of what you have done for them.
5. Respect: People follow because of who you are and what you represent.
Empowering Others to Their Full Potential
You must first start with confidence in yourself before you are able to empower others.
1. Evaluation. Remember that all people have the potential to succeed. Your job is to see their potential, find out what they lack to develop it and equip them with what they need. Observe their knowledge, skills and desire.
2. Determine your expectations. Make it perfectly clear what goal is desired and what steps are needed for success.
3. Model for them. Even people with knowledge skill and desire need to know what’s expected of them and the best way to inform them is to show them. People do what they see. Model the attitude and the work ethic you would like to see them embrace. Any time that you can include them in your work, take them along with you so they can see first hand.
4. Give them the permission to succeed. As a leader and influencer you may believe that everyone wants to be successful, but not everyone you influence will think the same way that you do. Your job is to help them believe that they can succeed and show them you want them to. Expect it and verbalize it. Reinforce with positive affirmations as often as possible. Once people recognize and understand that you genuinely want them to succeed and are committed to helping them, they will begin to believe that they can accomplish what you have set out for them to do.
5. Transfer authority to them. Empowering is not only sharing your workload but sharing your power to get things done. As Peter Drucker says “No executive has ever suffered because his subordinates were strong and effective.”
6. Demonstrate your confidence in them. When you transfer your authority you must tell them that you believe in them and do it publicly. Public recognition lets them know that you believe they will succeed. It also lets the other people that they are working with know that they have your support and back them up. As you are influencing others show your confidence in them at all times.
7. Supply them with feedback. Meet with them privately to coach them, stretch them, review their achievements and applaud their successes.
8. Release them to let them continue on their own. As President Abraham Lincoln said to Ulysses S. Grant in a message “I neither ask nor desire to know anything of your plans. Take the responsibility and act and call me if you need assistance.” This was total empowerment.
When you empower others it will give you more time personally for important things in your life. It will increase the effectiveness in your organization as well as your influence on others. Best of all it will make an incredible impact on the lives of the people you empower.
Remember: Succession is one of the key responsibilities of leadership.
Are you empowering someone to take your place?
Are You Ready to Empower Others?
(Ask Yourself These Questions)
Do I believe in people and feel that they are an asset to my organization appreciable asset?
Do I believe that empowering others can accomplish more then individual achievement?
Do I actively search for potential leaders to empower?
Would I be willing to raise others to a higher level than my own level of leadership?
Would I be willing to invest time in developing people who have leadership potential?
Would I be willing to let others take credit for what I have taught them?
Do I allow others freedom of personality and process or do I have to “control”?
Would I be willing to publicly give my authority and influence to potential leaders?
Would I be willing to let others “work me out of a job”?
Would I be willing to hand the leadership baton to people I empower and truly root for them?
When you believe in others you are influential.
Lead with influence and empower your team towards success.
Lynn Giuliani
www.progressionsinc.net
Call Lynn at 360 319-6776 or email her at lynn@progressionsinc.net
She will gladly help you with your sales success through individual sales coaching, classroom training or custom designed programs.
* Featured Book of the Month*
Book: Leadership
-by Rudy Giuliani
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
New York's celebrated former mayor explains how he used specific management strategies to run the city and handle crises in this captivating memoir. It's momentarily jarring when Giuliani's familiar voice on the introduction switches to Roberts's voice for the body of the book, but listeners will quickly adjust. Roberts reads the former mayor's words in a calm, authoritative and thoughtful tone. He sounds earnest and persuasive as he expresses Giuliani's point of view. Giuliani's minute-by-minute account of his actions on September 11-trying to coordinate rescue efforts and reassure the populace while reeling from the deaths of firefighter friends he'd spoken to just minutes before-is harrowing. Other anecdotes are equally forceful, as when Yasser Arafat arrived uninvited to Giuliani's U.N. anniversary celebration, and Giuliani insisted on making Arafat leave while attempting to avoid an international scandal. Giuliani's main advice to leaders: surround oneself with talented people, hold daily meetings to keep everyone on track, define the core mission and make sure procedures and policies serve that mission efficiently, demand accountability from everyone (including oneself), show loyalty to employees and become knowledgeable about all subjects related to one's organization or business.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Get it on Amazon.com
TODAY'S ACTION PLAN
Inspire your team through demonstration and empowerment. Recognize and celebrate success.
