Blog #5: My Two Cents on…Leadership

I spent more than two decades serving in the United States Air Force, and almost from day one, there was talk of leadership. That's understandable because when defending a nation, leadership is integral to that defense. Leaders must be in place to make sure that what needs to get done is getting done when it needs to get done. After the military, I spent another decade working in the civilian sector and could see that it was the same. Today, we continue to talk about leadership and what it means, about leadership versus management, and whether leadership is inherent, taught, or both. I have learned that leadership is an integral part of leading others, but I have also learned that leadership has many components necessary to lead; but the most important component is getting your followers ready and willing to follow you. To quote Dwight Eisenhower, “Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.”

 One component of leadership is empathy. If you want to lead others, you must be able to put yourself in their shoes, figure out how they operate, and meet them where they are so that they can follow you where you need them to go. When you do this, you gain their trust and belief that you have their best interest in mind when making decisions that involve them.

 Another component of leadership is communication. If you want to lead others, you must be able to communicate with them. I don't mean talking at them, talking over them, or talking around them. I mean talking to them and listening to them. Listening is equally as important as speaking. It is when we listen to others that we understand them. By listening, you can find the right way to communicate with individuals. If you want to be a good leader, you must be a good communicator and be able to speak at their level.

 Yet another component of leadership is honesty. It is so important because it is the link to trust. If you cannot be honest, you should be quiet. Your honesty will garner you trust; likewise, your dishonesty will garner you distrust. While trust may be easy to lose, it is hard to regain once trust is lost, and sometimes. And if those you lead don't trust you, will they genuinely follow you? If your followers don't trust you, they may follow your orders to get things done, but they are not following you; they are complying with your orders.

 I have also learned that the most influential leaders know how to follow. If you cannot follow, you cannot lead. You must understand the importance of following a leader and impart that to your would-be followers. Leading others is about getting them to follow you, and following is the foundation of leading. To truly lead, you sometimes must show them how to follow, and you cannot teach them what you do not know.

 The final component of leadership is leadership itself. Authentic leadership is not about the leader but those they are leading. It is about taking care of business and taking care of your followers. Leadership is about having their back even more fervently than them having your back. It is about putting those you lead first so they can focus on the task at hand. Leadership is about leading everyone in the way they need to be led, meeting them where they are, giving them the tools they need, and leading them where you need them to go.

 For what it's worth, my two cents on leadership…it's about leading others, but leadership is just one component needed to lead effectively. Leadership also includes empathy, trust, communication, honesty, and followership.