I hope & trust this post finds you all having a great day as a beautiful new day begins to dawn on the Texas Gulf Coast! The hope, opportunity & promise in this new day is so palpable you can almost feel it!
Last week, for my business trip, I took the book, The Leadership Challenge: How To Make Extraordinary Things Happen In Organizations by James M. Kouzes & Barry Z. Posner. On this, my third reading of the book, I have decided this will be my blueprint for leadership. The thought/idea hit me as I wrapped up meetings in Portland that I would buy a notebook at the airport and I would then transfer the key parts from each section/chapter to the notebook which I intend to always keep with me - filled with highlights from the book, scriptures that speak to me and yes, quotes. :) As I began my search I thought, "You are crazy. Nobody uses notebooks any more. You will never find a notebook." Then, tucked away in the corner of a little store I found a book that has "God, grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and Wisdom to know the difference." If you regularly read Happy Friday you will know - based on my post from a few weeks ago - that this was more than just the notebook I was looking for, it was affirmation. :)
This morning I want to share several excerpts from Chapter 2: Clarify Values, and then I want to offer a challenge to all of us. Here are the excerpts that spoke to my heart:
"Who are you?
People expect their leaders to speak out on matters of value and conscience. But to speak out, you have to know what to speak about.
To become a credible leader, you first have to comprehend fully the deeply held beliefs - the values, standards, ethics, and ideals - that drive you. You have to freely and honestly choose the principles you will use to guide your decisions and actions. Then you have to genuinely express yourself. You have to authentically communicate your beliefs in ways that uniquely represent who you are.
Leaders must not only be clear about their personal guiding principles but also make sure that there's agreement on a set of shared values among everyone they lead. And they must hold others accountable to those values and standards.
If the words you speak are not your words but some else's, you will not, in the long term, be able to be consistent in word and deed. You will not have the integrity to lead.
You can be authentic only when you lead according to the principles that matter most to you.
We use the term values to refer to here-and-now beliefs about how things should be done.
When sailing through the turbulent seas of change and uncertainty, crew members need a vision of the destination that lies beyond the horizon; they also need to understand the principles by which they must navigate their course. If either of these is absent, the journey is likely to end with the crew lost at sea.
Values are guides. They supply you with a compass by which to navigate the course of your daily life.
The clearer you are about your values, the easier it is for you and for everyone else to stay on the chosen path and commit to it. This kind of guidance is especially needed in difficult and uncertain times. When there are daily challenges that can throw you off course, it's crucial that you have some signposts that tell you where you are.
People can speak the truth only when speaking in their own true voice.
Leadership is a means of personal expression. To become a credible leader, you have to learn to express yourself in ways that are uniquely your own.
Don't tell people what to believe, tell them about your own beliefs and ask them to find in their own values their reasons for being involved with the organization.
You cannot lead through someone else's values or someone else's words. You cannot lead out of someone else's experience. You can lead only out of your own.
People don't follow your position or your techniques. They follow you.
You have a a responsibility to your constituents to express yourself in an authentic manner, in a way they immediately recognize as yours.
The clarity of personal values makes a significant difference in behavior at work.
Personal values drive commitment. Personal values are the route to motivation and productivity.
You won't stick around a place for very long when you feel in your heart and in your soul that you do not belong."
One thought and one challenge.
Thought - While this book is written for and about organizations, I don't think it only applies to them. Replace the word organization with the word family. Do your family members know your values? Have you clarified them for them? Do they know their own? Have you established shared family values? Just as this is the beginning point for leadership of an organization, we would be wise to also make this the starting point for the leadership of our homes & families. Let me see if I can help...:)
Challenge - Define your personal values. There are no right or wrong values, only those that are yours. Here is the deal; you are already thinking, speaking, acting, making decisions, etc. based on your personal values, whether you realize it or not. Think about the things you truly value and write them down. Think about them. Clarify them. And then, communicate them. As noted above, in your own words, in your own voice. Not only will this be enlightening to you, it will also open the pathways to pure, authentic relationships with those you lead - in all aspects of your life.
Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your families. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please cherish your precious families.
Kev
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