Leadership Leaves Scars

Don’t Quit I’ve been at this for some time now. As a leader, I have seen the good, bad and ugly. I have led through hard times (ahem, Covid) and high times. I have seen shifts in what works and what doesn’t. I have hired good people and not so good people. I have said goodbye to  employees I thought would stay, and applauded underdog employees as they soared and excelled.   I have learned the things that I’m good at and the things that I’m not. I have made great decisions and major mistakes. I have laughed and cried, danced and grieved. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it and sometimes, wanted to give up completely.   It’s not easy, this leadership thing. Sometimes I feel crazy. Sometimes I feel like I can’t possibly give enough time to both my family and to my job and keep finding time to sleep in the mix. After all of that, after it’s all said and done, I want you to know that it’s worth it.   Thanks to the great leader that my dad was before me, I have witnessed what it looks like to be resilient. He taught me what it looked like to keep going when the odds were not in his favor and when the people around him told him that he would probably fail. He showed me how hard work and staying the course leads to success and how vision and passion are essential.   Today, I am still here. I am still a leader. If I can do it then you can, too. Here are some things I learned along the way:   You Don’t Have to Do it Alone:   I have always needed people around me. My fellow leaders, family and friends have gotten me through the hardest times and my faith has truly anchored me during the storms. When the responsibility of leadership feels large and crushing, I remember to lean on them and ask them for help, for a word of encouragement, a listening ear, advice and sometimes a kick in the butt. Listening to other leaders reminds me that I’m not the only one experiencing leadership challenges. I learn from those who have gone before me and am inspired by those who have continued to lead.   Remember the Vision:   My dad was passionate about providing technology to non-profits and those who couldn’t pay the market rates. His passion carried him through the toughest of times. He had vision for a company that charged significantly lower rates than the competition and could still be successful. He didn’t give up until he had done it. I am thankful for his example. His passion reminds me the reason behind the work that I do, and on the hard days, that’s enough.   Don’t Work Too Hard:   Do work hard, but also laugh. There’s always room for fun. Make sure you don’t staunch other people’s humor or joy. Don’t book your days so full that you don’t have time for a great conversation, or to listen to a joke or to join in when someone is playing a game. Be light-hearted, quick to listen, smile and forgive. Remember not to take yourself or the work too seriously. Remember to see people for who they are and not what they can do. This will create a culture at work that is attractive and successful. It will bleed over into your leadership team and into their lives at home, making a huge different in their lives and your own.   Don’t Quit:   Sometimes the best advice is just to keep going. Get up tomorrow and do it again. Don’t give in to the stress or the negativity. Don’t believe that you can’t do it. Failure is not final if you don’t give up. Expectations might change and the work you are doing might shift. You may need to change your mindset or shift your priorities or take a step back for a season, but don’t stop. Don’t throw in the towel. Other people need you to be a good leader and to persevere when it gets hard. Remember the vision, ask for help, and keep going.   At Impact of Leadership, our goal is to come alongside you to help you grow. We can relate to all that you’re going through. We can help you avoid burnout and give you a place where you feel comfortable, have fun and get your cup filled. We know it’s hard to grow and learn while leading at the same time, so we have lots of resources available to you on the website.   Check out our 164 podcasts and 114 blogs.   Reach out, I’d love to connect with you.   Remember you’re not alone.

Turning people loose in the workplace   My third child wears the same outfit every day. My mother comments, his teachers laugh, and sometimes I even attempt to haggle with him over switching out those worn black sweatpants for his “cool blue ones,” so I can get at least one wash in.   I’ve come to realize, however, that after having three children there are certain things in parenting that really matter and certain things that don’t. A child wearing the same sweatpants every day? Not a huge deal in the scheme of things. A child hitting his brother? Definitely needs addressing.   I’ve luckily relinquished the idea that I can have total control over my children’s behavior. I lead them, but I know that I cannot MAKE them do what I want them to do. So, my son mostly wears the same outfit every day.   As a result, I am now able to see them more clearly. They are individuals, they make their own choices, they receive consequences for those choices and learn from them. They also, in fact, when given the chance, bring all the beautiful things about themselves to the dinner table each night, which blesses me immensely.   As a leader in any size company or organization, the same rings true—if you over control your employees, you’ll stifle them enough to miss all the ways they can make the business better.   Jon Greenwood, former executive at Huntington National Bank, calls this “turning people loose.” In his years of experience, he came to understand that the more space there was for people to be themselves as individuals in the workplace, the better. If given the opportunity, people could offer so much more than just task completion, they could create beautiful things. He offers four ways to let employees be who they are in the workplace. Here are four ways to let people loose:   Give space for passion: Passion is a great motivator. Identify what your employees are passionate about. If it can be worked into their current role, great. If it can be worked into a different role within the company, then move them. Allow passion to help drive motivation and success.   Listen to their ideas: Let there be space for the good, bad and crazy ideas of everyone on the team. That’s how new things come about and companies grow. Don’t promise that all ideas will come to fruition and don’t jump on bad ideas too quickly. Find the time and energy to simply allow them to be ideas that are shared and considered.   Foster fun: While not every task is fun, some are. With the right attitude and mindset, most can be. Foster an environment of positivity, joy and sometimes play. Model having fun at work, showing them that a mindset of joy can lead to growth and success.   Let them be an owner: Give them license to make decisions, take action and implement their good ideas. This empowers employees and helps the company grow. It also pushes people to become better versions of themselves.   One of Jon Greenwood’s mottos is to “fail fast and fail forward.” If leaders let their employees loose, giving them room to fail, learn, and grow then success is multiplied for everyone. ###   This blog is based on IOL Podcast #163: Know Their Numbers with Jon Greenwood, check it out! The title is taken from Mel Robbins popular theory, “Let Them.”