I remember many years ago when a friend of mine (Dr. Jim Hoven) mentioned to me a book called "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" by John C. Maxwell. I eventually got around to reading the book and found some great principles in the book but I was not quite as excited as my friend had been when he finished reading it. Since that book has been shelved in my library I have been through so many other books and ideas by many great authors. I have encountered so many opportunities to apply the things I have learned and missed many as well. ;-(
I read a another book released by John Maxwell a year or so ago called Leadership Gold all about holding us accountable as leaders in our lives. The people we affect, The decisions we make, The words we choose.....
It makes me realize more and more every day that my reality and my destiny are created by my daily choices on how I live and how I inspire others. There are times when you are placed in some sort of
official leadership role that you think boy do I wish I was not the go to person all the time. Have you ever felt that just for a year, a month, a week or maybe even a day I would like to not be the one to
give the final answer. The reality is that every human being is a leader. We are affecting and leading the people around us to make decisions every single moment of our lives. As we interact with
friends, family and strangers alike we make decisions that cause them to react so it is in our decisions that we choose to lead people. The question we must stop and ask is what is the predominant direction we are choosing to go?
What is the Attitude that I project every day?
What is the spirit that I instill in the people around me?
Is it a Positive one?
In reading the book I mentioned above there was such an awakening in me because I could see that my decision to be a good leader was evident in every word I said to ANYONE not just those that I am directly in charge of. If my attitude is on a downward trend there is no way that I can turn that off for just the people who are "in my charge". The decisions begin with me first choosing the effect I have on ALL people. The second is then replicating that same spirit in the people around me. WOW. Is that tough or what? My attitude as a leader will inspire others to make their own choices. It is so easy to say "Well they just don't do it right" or "They did not listen to what I told them to do".
These types of phrases can become "cop outs" or excuses as to why we are not seeing the growth or change in our circumstances that we want.
What effect are you choosing to make?
The next step that I saw John Maxwell overcoming as I read his new book was that not only was he being cognizant of the attitude he was projecting and how he was inspiring others but finally he was putting it all together by learning to listen to those around him. It was obvious he was beginning to trust them to start applying the things they were learning. This is HUGE! If I begin to cultivate the right spirit and then trust others to carry it out I can grow exponentially!
Instead of me often feeling like Don Quixote stabbing at windmills I can start to feel that I am a part of an army that is accomplishing things by using the culture that I am instilling as a leader. We want
easy answers but there are none. We want quick fixes but there are none. It is not possible for you to have any marketing, check sheets, measurement standards or magic potions that will alone cause your organization to succeed. While there are some great marketing items out there along with some fantastic check sheets that may bring additional amounts of success it all begins with personal
accountability.
Am I creating a culture that should be replicated or am I creating a culture that is keeping me where I am? Even worse have I bought into the negativity that is so prevalent in todays world that it is causing me to shrink when I should be growing? It is all about starting with me and the people around me will make their choices based upon my leadership.It does not matter if I am the Business owner Leading my team, If I am the team leading my customers or if I am the customer leading my friends and family. It could be that I am the parent leading my children or the child leading others by what they learned from their parents. It all began somewhere under someone's leadership. Are we leading in a positive direction? Are we leading them to remain the same? Are we leading them in a negative direction?
John Maxwell points out the changes in his leadership style over the years. He points out that he remained open to learning what he was doing wrong so that he could improve upon it. As he shares through out the book it is more than obvious he built some great organizations to great levels of success but what has allowed him to continue to grow is being open to what's next. What can I do different with today than what I did yesterday that will have greater impact on the positive.
I recently made a comment to my friend Dr. Hoven about this last book being such an overwhelming amount of growth in John Maxwell and his ability to communicate through writing. There are so many authors who keep writing the exact same message they found success in over and over and
over. I was really amazed at how much John Maxwell had managed not to simply repackage the same 21 laws in another format but it was obvious to me that he had really grown. Over the next couple of days that thought stayed with me and I started wondering why was it that this book rang out to me so loud and clear?
The answer was that I really needed it!
There are so many people in my life that are looking to me as a leader to help them reach their goals, it is without any doubt that this book was created just for me. I have really enjoyed applying these
principles in my own life as much as sharing them with others and it is today that I stand here thanking John Maxwell for his growth as an individual that gave me such a great message to share. With that being said I ask one final question "Was it really John Maxwell that grew so
much in the past 10 years or was it me?
Cool Leadership Video by General Stanley McChrystal
Thanks for taking the time to Lead!
Brian
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