About the A-B-C or W-H-Y of leadership

Being a leader is a role you easily step in and out to achieve certain results at a respective time. It is a job you fulfil while being at your workplace pleasing your boss and the boss of your boss. It is not more about than being a good speaker and making others to serve or deliver. Absolutely not!

??A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.? John Maxwell American author, speaker and pastor

… ?and knows as well as shows WHY he goes that way.? Me

?A JOURNEY WITHOUT MEANING AND VISION? - THE INFLUENCE LEADERS HAVE ON OUR CULTURE

??Where there is no vision, there is no hope.? George Washington Carver American agricultural scientist and inventor

?To be honest, the quote sounds quite dramatic at first. However, if we let it have its effect, the true core becomes apparent: a flight without a destination, building a house without a concept and raising children without a value system seems like restless madness. I, at least, would neither get on this plane, nor start building this house, nor start raising this family.

A vision, a target picture of what we want to achieve and build is the compass that guides our decisions and actions - without this vision, we are lost "trudging in the dark".

?Nevertheless, it is not the sparkling and shining visions that convince and inspire people - it is leaders. People ?[…] buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.? (John Maxwell - American author, speaker and pastor)

People are longing for role models with clear ideas, lived values and the self-perception of being servants of the big picture. They want to be convinced and inspired by honest actions and lived integrity and be part of the path of such leaders. They want to follow because of sharing the same values. They buy into the WHY leaders go the way.

So, how much influence/leverage do leaders have on their followers?

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?I am not afraid of an army of lions led by a sheep; I am afraid of an army of sheep led by a lion.? Alexander the Great king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon

?Why does an army of sheep led by a lion sound so fearsome? The clear majority are just sheep - sheep that we find outside in the pasture chewing grass and giving us disinterested looks. But are they really (still) these sheep? Or do we now suspect a lion beating in every sheep's heart?

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?LEADERSHIP IS FAR MORE THAN MANAGEMENT – WHAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE

??Leadership is not about the next election, it's about the next generation.? Simon Sinek American author, speaker and consultant

?Admittedly, opinions on leadership differ to some extent - many distinguish between transactional and transformational leadership and a combination of both. My belief is that successful leaders don't motivate people, they inspire motivated people to be part of their larger vision. But, what does this look like in detail?

?1 | Leaders inspire people to be part of something bigger, managers use them to achieve goals.

Leaders create a vision and engage people in turning that vision into reality while managers focus on and control situations to reach or exceed their (self-serving) objectives.

?2 | Leaders are authentic and willing to stand out, managers are a copy.

Leaders are passionate to be unique while managers seem to be an obvious mix of adapted, foreign successful practices of leadership style.

?3 | leaders are convinced that changes create waves, managers maintain the status quo.

Leaders are proud of innovation and understand their leverage while managers (compulsively) try to reduce the risk of change and changing conditions.

?4 | Leaders have intentionality, managers work for shorter-term goals.

Leaders stay motivated toward a big, often very distant vision while managers seek more regular acknowledgment and rewards.

5 | Leaders understand risks and failure as a step on the path of success, managers work to minimize them.

Leaders take risks to realize their vision while managers obsessively seek to avoid them.

?6 | Leaders grow personally and expand their thinking daily, managers try to perfect existing skills or adopt proven ones.

Leaders know the necessity and chance of remaining curious and remaining relevant in an ever-changing world while managers rely on existing and proven behaviors.

?7 | Leaders build Relationsships with trust and loyality, managers build systems.

Leaders focus on people and the unbreakable relationship with them by constantly delivering on their promise while managers focus on the analytical and ensure systems are in place to attain desired outcomes.

?8 | Leaders coach people to expand their potential, managers assign tasks to employees with existing strengths.

Leaders see their people as competent and know thar their team is able to find the answer while managers tell their people what and how to do it.

?9 | Leaders inspire people to become their path comrades and fans, managers ?have Staff who seek to please them.

Leaders build a bond with people that makes them go beyond following them and achieve their goals while managers have employees who do not dare to leave the given direction.

?(further information: Forbes.com)

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LEADERS SERVE THEIR VISION AND PEOPLE - FROM A LEADER'S PERSPECTIVE

??If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.? John Quincy Adams American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and the sixth president of the United States

?So, leaders serve the bigger picture by inspiring people to passionately develop and expand their personal potential in constant change for the shared vision (WHY) they strive for. Inspiration and passion drive a leader's team/teammates. When inspired and passionate people work on a shared vision, it is only a matter of time before it becomes a reality.

Therefore, leaders are convinced of the value of the interplay of passionate contributions.

?But, how can we harness this knowledge for safety?

Read more about ?What #SafetyLeadership really is about? in my next article.