I Got That From YOU!

If you’re an Earth, Wind, and Fire fan, as I am, you’re familiar with their hit “September,” which is one of my most favoritest EWF tunes. There’s a more-recently-released version, a video, in fact, of the song, by Kirk Franklin. It’s a video of Kirk’s crew recording the song in the studio. I commend it to your watching, but ya gots ta turn up the sound! Anyway, near the end of the video, the late Maurice White, leader and founder of EWF, appears at the studio, surprising Kirk. Again, you’ll dig this version, I assure you. At the very end of the video, Kirk turns to Maurice and tells him (three times) “I got that from YOU!”

 

I mentioned it in my book, What I Learned From Dad Made Me A Better Man!, so I’ll say it again, We cannot teach character. We cannot teach leadership. The best we can do is show it. People will then follow. Following is most often accomplished by emulating.

 

I remember, as if it just happened, my first granddaughter’s, Nieves, expression when I asked her why she did a certain thing the way she had just done it. She touched me straight in the heart as she exclaimed, “Because YOU do, Opa!”

 

I got that from YOU! I’ve thought that many times. I’m not sure I’ve said it often enough, but I’m going to try to do so more often, now that I’ve considered it. I got a LOT of character traits from Dad. I got that from YOU, Dad! All good, thank goodness. 

 

So, I’m wondering, because this is a test of your leading, what can your followers say they got from you? There’s only one way, really, that they learned it from you, and that’s by watching, eventually emulating you. I hope that’s all good.

 

If you want your followers to be great, YOU have to be great! I got that from YOU! If you want them, including your family and other loved ones, to be loving and caring, YOU have to be loving and caring. I got that from YOU! Whatever you expect of them, you must first model for them. They’ll watch and follow. I got that from YOU!

 

As I’ve also said before, leading isn’t as difficult as we make it out to be. We just have to decide what we want our followers to be like and be that way. And it’s, most often, little stuff. How we speak, how we show respect, how we give everything our best, that makes the biggest impact.

 

And I’ll tell you, there’s not a better recognition than having one of your followers look you in the heart and tell you, “I got that from YOU!”

 

Until next time,

 

Be GREAT! You ARE!

 

¡HEIRPOWER!

 

bob vásquez!