Listen to the episode here: (00:21:59)
What is Leadership?
- The #1 question when it comes to leadership…
- Leadership is NOT:
- About position or rank
- About your title
- About your personal attributes
- Management
- Favorite Leadership Quotes:
- “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.” – Warren Bennis
- “A leader is a dealer in hope.” – Napoleon Bonaparte
- “Leadership is lifting a person’s vision to high sights; the raising of a person’s performance a higher standard. The building of a personality beyond it’s normal limitations.” – Peter Drucker
- “Leadership is influence; nothing more – nothing less.” – John C. Maxwell
- It encompasses far more than we initially think…
- Leadership of self
- Leadership of others
- Leadership of other leaders
- Business level leadership
- Enterprise level leadership
- City, State, National, Global…
- My “30-Second” definition of leadership…
- Tapping into unlimited human potential & delivering results.
- Leadership & Talent
- We’re all blessed with some sort of talent; & we put a huge emphasis on talent…
- But talent does not equal success!
- If talent = success, then all successful people would be talented..(not true).
- If talent = success, then all unsuccessful people would be untalented..(not true either).
- Talent is a given (you have to be good at something)…but it isn’t enough.
- Talent Is Never Enough
- 50% of Fortune 500 CEO’s graduated with a C or C- Average.
- 65% of all US Senators graduated in the bottom half of their class.
- 75% of all US Presidents graduated in the bottom half of their class.
- 50% of all millionaire entrepreneurs never finished college.
- We need to re-examine our beliefs when it comes why people are successful.
- Talent is a given…you must earn your success
- The TRUTH about leadership & success…
- How well you lead determines how successful you are
- Leadership Lid Concept
- The potential of who/what you’re trying to lead will be “capped” by your own leadership ability…
- Most people don’t get assigned leadership positions based on their leadership ability…
- Most people are put into leadership roles because of some prior “technical” success in a previous position.
- The “best” accountant becomes the leader of the accounting team…
- But the skill set in being the best accountant is completely different than the skill set in being the “leader of all accountants”.
- A team can be super talented…but their abilities will never rise above the “leadership lid” of the leader.
- Unlimited Potential
- Two table lamps analogy
- One produces brighter results because the bulb allows more potential to flow through
- The same is with your leadership ability…to produce better results you need to allow more of your potential to flow through by raising your leadership lid.
- How do you raise your lid?
- It starts with “intentionality”.
- Understand that leadership is teachable.
- Understand it is a lifelong process.
- Understand that you’ve got to get into the “growth zone”.
- The “growth zone” is not in the “comfort zone”.
- You don’t have to go anywhere or wait for anything to get into the “growth zone”.
- The perfect curriculum for your growth are the circumstances you find yourself in right now.
- You just have to opt-in.
- Every interaction with another human being is an opportunity for leadership & growth.
- Leadership is easy to understand…difficult to implement because of the courage, authenticity, & vulnerability that is required.
- Stop trying to be something that you’re not.
- Stop wearing masks
- Stop focusing on false charisma
- Stop focusing on position & title
- Dedicate your life to learning what it takes (in every aspect of your life) to be:
- Calm
- Confident
- Consistent
- Courageous