See you at the front…

At BUILT TO LEAD, our work is mostly one comprised of perpetual study.  We study what causes individuals to work and live at their best, what transforms these same individuals into teams laced with chemistry, and we study the few teams that continue to transform themselves and their world, beyond the leadership of their founder. We study, learn, and slowly we apply.

Every so often, I read the newspaper.  Today, was one such morning.  A full page advertisement targeted for business leaders graced the business section with it’s promise of the greatest leadership development event of our time.  For a mere $5, you could come hear from the likes of Laura Bush to John Maxwell and a whole bunch more in between.  There’s nothing wrong with going to the stadium and getting fired up by a few good speakers, it’s just not how leaders develop.  According to our study of history and to our own experiences at BTL, here’s a brief reminder of how leaders are built.

1.  Leaders model the way.  For leaders to model the way, they must know the way.  For leaders to know the way, they must know who they are, where they are now, why they desire to move themselves and their team toward their dream state, and how to actually do it.  Real leaders, once they arrive here, get to the front and simply say, “follow me.”  These leaders are believers.

2.  Leaders master the art of speaking and listening to the team.  They combine curious George and my way is the highway.  They speak clear, concise, and direct.  Always laced with respect.  They tell the team the truth in LOVE. These leaders are connectors.

3.  Leaders embrace pain and suffering far beyond the reach of the common man.  Leaders develop a vision worth dying for, head to the front and model the way, tell the team the brutal facts of reality, and live out their unvarnished embrace of the truth in LOVE. AND, fully expect that most of their team will follow when it’s easy, some will stick with them when it gets a little rough, most will abandon the cause simply because they’re soft, a few will turn on them when the cost is too high or the price is right, and that, in the end, they will most likely be alone or side by side with no more than a few, good ones.  These leaders inspire.

You won’t hear that at your conference on leadership.  You just won’t.

Stop looking for quick fixes and easy answers to your leadership challenges.  Start modeling the way forward, speaking the truth in LOVE, and embracing pain and suffering for the cause…

In the end, a few will follow.  The good news, remember, is that a few is all it takes to change the world.  A few on fire is all it takes to change your family.  A few on fire is all it takes to change your company.  A few on fire is all it takes to change your Church.  A few on fire, throughout history, is all it has taken to change just about anything.

See you at the front, my friend.

See YOU, at the front…