Leading One at a Time

 

You’ve probably read or heard, even learned, that leaders lead people. I may be the only person who will ever tell you that that’s wrong. Effective leaders don’t lead people. They lead persons. Persons are individuals who have their own values, purpose, vision, and influences.

 

You’ve also read or heard, even learned, that you have to develop your own leadership style. I may be the only person who will ever tell you that that’s wrong, too. If you only have one style, you’ll alienate everyone on your team except the person or persons who appreciate that one style you have.

 

If you’re going to be an Effective Leader, you HAVE to lead each individual. You HAVE to make that person, for that moment, feel special.

 

My daughter, Elyse, and her four children were at Caribou with Deb and me this summer. There were several times that Opa corralled the kids into the Jeep and took them off to play at the playground a few miles away. That was management. What almost wore me out, in a good way, was that I had to invest time and intentional effort with each of those four persons, in their own way, making each feel special, in an effort to inspire them to love me. It’s the same with being an effective leader. You have to do what you have to do for each individual.

 

As with your followers, I can see and feel when my grandkids feel loved and special. It permeates their spirit. I just finished reading Jon Gordon’s book, The Power of Positive Leadership. I commend it to your reading. Mr Gordon says that “Leadership begins with love.” He goes on to say that “Research from the HeartMath Institute shows that when you have a feeling in your heart, it goes to every cell in the body, then outward—and people up to 10 feet away can sense the feelings transmitted by your heart.” 

 

Leading effectively requires that you love each person. One at a time. The essence of love is unconditional giving. You have to figure out how to give each of your followers what they each need to reach their unique potential. And you do it one at a time. 

 

Until next time,

 

Be GREAT!

 

You ARE!

 

¡HEIRPOWER!

What If?!

 

What if everything isn’t a leadership problem?

What if we teach people to be leaders before and instead of being followers first?

What if we taught people to be considerate?

What if we respected each other instead of trying to manipulate them for our own purposes?

What if we focused more on leading than on being a leader?

What if we focused more on being a courageous follower?

What if we talked more about being humble than being first?

What if we learned that leading is done from the center instead of the front?

What if we found that leaders who pull are more effective than those who push?

What if we valued people for who they are instead of who we want them to be?

What if people chose to follow us?

What if we’ve been wrong all this time?

Then, what?!

Until next time, 

Be GREAT! 

You ARE!

¡HEIRPOWER!

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

Every year around this time I’m approached by people with the same question, “Hey, Chief,” they ask,  “why do we have to have Hispanic Heritage Month?  Aren’t we all Americans?”  I never argue that a bit, but there’s more to it.  I’m sure you know we celebrate African-American/Black History Month in February, Women’s History Month in March, Asian-Pacific Month in May, Hispanic Heritage Month in September/October, and Native American Month in November.  The purpose of those observances is to educate those of us who don’t know a lot about those cultures, and to acknowledge the contributions those groups of people have made to our own American heritage. 

 

What makes America great is its diversity.  If you’ll look around you (go ahead, no one’s watching) you’ll notice that what we call America is made up of people from all kinds of cultures, from different parts of the country, or the world. We’re all different yet we’re all the same. We share the same basic values that make us Americans. We’re invested in making our country and the world a better place for all of us to live. We believe in a democratic system of government where the people have a say in what and how we live. What makes America great is that although we have different and diverse needs and desires, even though we’re all different, we’ve been able to synergize all those differences to form one unified family that allows us to be ourselves and expects us to accept each other.

 

         We used to talk about the American Melting Pot.  An honorable idea, but I’m not sure it’s attainable.  Why?  Because there is very little, if any, chance that we’ll all “melt,” that we’ll all assimilate, that we’ll all be the same.  And I’m not so sure we all want to be the same.  I think it was General George Patton who said, “If two of us are thinking the same thing, we don’t need one of us.”  There’s a marked difference between thinking the same thing and thinking with the same purpose in mind. Diversity means we can think differently but attain the same goal.

 

The concept of the American Salad Bowl comes closer to describing the culture we live in.  The illustration of the salad bowl describes a dish that, as a whole, is its own entity, delicious and healthy.  What gives that dish its flavor and wholesomeness is all of the different ingredients that make it one.  Each ingredient adds its own contribution to the whole.  Any part of it that’s missing will affect the end result. 

 

         Dr. Stephen Covey said that “unity is not sameness, it’s complimentariness.”  If we are to be united, we have to be willing to accept, appreciate, and celebrate each other’s differences. 

 

As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, which is 15 September through 15 October, join the fun!  Get involved!  Make time to enjoy the various events scheduled throughout the celebration!  You don’t have to be of, or know a lot about, the culture. The people who have labored hard to organize the events will gladly teach you and will welcome your support.  You’ll learn a lot and you’ll find a kind of gratification you can’t find elsewhere.  The education you gain and the relationships you develop will make you better and they’ll make America better.  Together, we can go forward!  

 

                           ¡ADELANTE!

bob vásquez!

 

Effective Leaders C.A.R.E!

 

Decades ago, I studied with a professor who taught me that “Life is simple…once you understand its complexities.” Profound thought, if you think about it. Similarly, leading is simple, once you understand the complexities. Effective Leaders CARE! That’s it! If you do, you will! CARE and lead, that is. Here’s what it takes.

 

     Effective Leaders are COMPASSIONATE. Two key complexities of being compassionate are being there and being empathic. When you’re NOT there, whether physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually, you’re not leading. You can’t! When you ARE there in those four areas, you’ll have the opportunity to lead. You still may not accept the opportunity, it’s always your choice, but at least you’ll have that choice. Effective Leaders always accept the opportunity. Being empathic requires understanding. That’s all! NO JUDGMENT! That’s the hard part. You have to accept your followers for who they are, not compare them with who YOU are.

 

     Effective Leaders ACKNOWLEDGE presence and presents. You can’t imagine the power of greeting someone, especially eye-to-eye. The eyes don’t lie. They express compassion, or not. Letting someone know that you know that they’re there is critical to being an Effective Leader. And expressing to them that they’re valued because of the gifts they bring to the team will last way longer than the expression itself. 

 

     Effective Leaders RESPECT their followers. On THEIR FOLLOWERS’ terms. We often attempt to show respect on OUR terms. That doesn’t always work. How do you show respect? Ask! “I want to refer to you as (fill-in-the-blank). Is that okay? I want to be respectful. Please tell me if it’s not.” Once you have permission or guidance on how that person sees you as respectful, practice it until it becomes habitual.

 

     Effective Leaders EMPOWER their followers! Okay, no one empowers anyone. That’s a myth. People empower themselves. Telling or making someone do what you want isn’t leading. It’s coercion. Inspiring and equipping your followers to empower THEMSELVES to be their best selves is empowering. When you do that, people will follow you.

 

     See how simple this all is? The complexities are practicing these key components in a consistent way, and with the INDIVIDUALS you intend to lead. We often think that a title or rank or status makes us leaders. NOPE! It doesn’t work that way. The ONLY thing that makes a person a leader is if he or she has followers. Nothing else! If you do what I just suggested, you’ll have followers, which will make you a leader. It’s that simple. And the more you do these things the sooner you’ll become an Effective Leader. Effective Leaders CARE!

 

     ¡HEIRPOWER!