Leaders should not want to lead well so that they're loved and respected by their people. Rather, leader should lead well so that they become worthy of their people's love and respect.
The difference between these two motivations, though subtle, is huge.
In the first, the motivation is all about you’re a leader’s ego. It's about behaving in ways that make the leader feel important.
In the latter, it's about those who one leads. Exceptional leaders shape their behavior so to inform, guide and inspire. Their leadership style is about keeping things real. Indeed, it's about being authentic, approachable and knowing how to keep one’s ego in check
By being humble and putting other's needs first, a great leader sets the example that others want to follow.
You must put insular interests aside.
It may be part of the human condition to be self-serving. But, selfishness is a sure-fire way to fail as a leader of great change. Put your self-interest aside for the greater good of your firm, and watch what can be achieved.
For example, John Mackey Co-Founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market Foods, earned $1 in salary and bonus in 2016. It was acquired by Amazon for $13.7 billion in 2017.
By contrast, Chesapeake Energy ousted its former CEO Aubrey McClendon, after word got out that he allegedly was running a $200 million hedge fund from within company headquarters that speculatively traded in "the same commodities Chesapeake produces." In November 2019, Chesapeake stock dropped to a 25-year low.
Which one of these leaders would you be willing to bust through a brick wall to follow?
Are you worthy of their respect?
Worthy leaders not only possess the requisite honesty and righteousness needed to gain "followership", but they emanate the hunger and conviction needed to motivate others to do great things.
Here are some questions that you should get in the habit of routinely asking yourself:
Do you put your people first?
Do you strive set the example of what ‘good’ looks like?
Do you keep your ego in check by recognizing your staff’s success starts with you?
Do you share the credit when your team is successful?
Do you take the 'heat' for your people when things go south?
Do you always do what is right because it's the right thing to do?
Do you do your best every day to provide the leadership that your people need to do their best?
Yes, it requires tremendous courage to ask these questions. However, they are essential to ensuring that you are behaving in ways that make you a worthy leader.
To Close
There’s no doubt that leadership is a key to becoming indispensable. Without it, a firm has no chance of becoming the company that their customers prefer.
That said, you have to be deliberate in your actions and behave in ways that are worthy of earning your people's respect. Indeed, you owe it to your business, your people and, as importantly, yourself to provide exceptional leadership every day.