What is the greatest gift a leader can give to his or her team?
This is the question that opens the 8 Essentials of Leading Teams, and the one that, yesterday, I posed to a group of leaders in their opening “practice” session of 2010. There’s a reason that this question is at the start of our 8 playbook. AND, there’s a reason that, when I told this team a story about from whom we desperately want to receive this gift, all the men in the room grabbed their pen and wrote like a banchee.
It is simply that important.
How do you answer this question?
How would those around you?
What would your team say?
What would your team tell me is the greatest gift they receive from you?
Why? Why? Why?
Take a few moments and write what you think. If you want to, send them to all of us in the form of a reply. Tomorrow, I’ll share what I believe and I’ll even tell you that story…
BUILT TO LEAD 
Dear Chester,
I, for one, really like getting pen sets from my boss/leader. One can never have too many pen sets. Especially nice ones, like Mont Blanc, although I’ll settle for Cross on up.
Then again, maybe I should think about whether pen sets are really the greatest gift a leader can give his or her team…I’ll get back to you on that.
Just havin’ a little fun in 2010!
Your Pal,
Sully
Trust