Becoming a Leader: The Ten Commandments

Leadership - ?Leadership is a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal. - Kevin Kruse

A big misconception about leadership is that seniority, or an individual's title/position in the hierarchy of a company, classifies them as an ACTUAL leader (or a good leader). Most people speak about a company’s leadership referring to the senior most executives in the organization. At the end of the day, they are just senior executives. Leadership doesn’t suddenly spring into a person's skill set or behaviours just because they’ve been given a certain title or pay grade.? Additionally, when ill-prepared leaders fall into these roles, it can lead to a sense of entitlement and become counter-productive.

If leadership is a path you choose or fall into (See Choosing Your Career Journey), it’s now time to actually lead. ?Starting on the right foot in a leadership role may seem simple enough, but it’s not easy - especially if it’s the first time that you’re getting into a leadership role. You need to prepare yourself mentally and become familiar with some fundamental “commandments”. These fundamentals may sound obvious, but are commonly neglected - even at the most senior levels of leadership.

1. Respect - Treat people with respect. We’re all human beings with diverse backgrounds and positions. Remember that every person on a team plays an important role. Treat them well and take care of them, because they will take care of you.
2. Humbleness - at the end of the day, it’s honourable to be in this type of position, and your team is counting on you to help steer them to achieving their goals.
3. Ownership - failures and mistakes are often a result of a lapse in leadership; own up to it. As Jocko Willink says, “Leaders must own everything in their world. There is no one else to blame”.
4. Acknowledgement - recognize and give credit to others - even if a result came directly from yourself. Others will speak for you if you’re doing a good job as a leader anyway - trust me.
5. Nobody likes a know-it-all - ask smart questions and collaborate with the team; they likely know more about a subject than you do; you should leverage this knowledge.
6. Integrity - Do what you say and say what you do - actions speak louder than words. don’t lie about what you will do and make sure you act with intent.
7. Actively Listen - understand the root cause of problems, dilemmas, etc. Take the time to actually listen; don’t preplan a statement and talk over someone without hearing what they have to say.
8. Decisiveness - if you have the data you need, are informed by others, have done your due diligence, and etc. - when it comes time to make a decision; make one!!! Analysis paralysis is a curse when it comes time to action.
9. Nurture Relationships - a good team is a group of diverse people who operate in a culture of trust, feedback, respect, friendship, and play well off of each other's strengths. Take time to nurture these relationships and develop this environment - otherwise you’re just a disconnected cluster of individuals.
10. Complete the Mission - most importantly, if you don’t complete the mission, you’ve failed as a leader - simple as that. Although the journey to achieving success matters, performance matters more. You’re hired to lead people towards the achievement of a goal.

A LITTLE STORY FOR YOU…

It wouldn’t be a “The 2-Minute Drill” post without one of my extreme examples. So here you go, straight from my Great Grandfather’s (Vangel) Military dossier (page 2) from 1903 in Ottoman Occupied Macedonia.

Translated from page 2:

“My cheta(armed unit) reached the village (Maloviste) which had been captured by the Ottoman soldiers for a second time - their army was just too large and outnumbered us significantly wherever we met them. Our approach needed to be different this time - so I ordered something unexpected. At night, while the Ottoman soldiers were asleep in their barracks with a few guards on watch in the center of the village, we decided to evacuate the families in the houses on the perimeter of the village, and then set fire to those houses to create a ring of fire around the barracks. We exchanged fire from on top of the ridge with the soldiers, and in their panic, a majority of them fled without their weapons. The rest were defeated or surrendered. With 14 men and 2 women, we were able to overwhelm a force of 40 - 50 soldiers in the chaos that surrounded them. Unfortunately, one of my team members & friends (Kocho Gajtan) lost his life, a burden I will bear from a decision I made. When we finally came to the aid of the countless villagers that were oppressed, we found most of them hungry and sick. Now we had to lead these innocents over Pelister Mountain on a two day hike to get them fed, clothed and to safer pastures - as we knew the Ottoman Empire would retaliate with a larger force once they found out. We only had 3 horses, so we had to carry some people on our back…”

The dossier is full of CRAZY stories, but the ENTIRE point of this extreme example of leadership is to reiterate that leadership is DIFFICULT - regardless of leading freedom fighters or a business unit, get comfortable with being uncomfortable. Yes, stress levels in the aforementioned example are drastically different, but stress is stress nonetheless. Whether it comes to making a difficult decision that can have repercussions, building trust with your team, taking ownership, motivating teams, giving others a voice, completing the mission, etc., leadership can be extremely challenging. The important part is how you manage this stress, organize yourself & the team, exude confidence, and maximize the efforts of the team towards the achievement of a goal. Hopefully, the journey towards the outcomes is a positive one.

WHY THIS MATTERS…

Everything in a given discipline relies upon the fundamentals. They are the foundation from which all amazing feats are derived. Whether that’s in sports, driving, cooking, mathematics, etc. - going back to your fundamentals and mastering them is critical; especially in leadership.? Think of these “commandments” like building the foundation of a home. You build a house starting with the foundation, not with the windows, doors, roof, etc.? These “commandments” are the fundamental elements of leadership you need in order to then evolve into a mature leader - further implementing advanced tactics and thought leadership. Regardless of what you have achieved or think you know, take the time to reflect back on these fundamentals. If you feel like you have gaps in these areas, address them quickly.?

All my mentors and the best leaders I’ve ever worked with (and continue to work with) follow these “commandments” to the tee (or some form of these).?

So take the time to master the fundamental "commandments" whether you’re an existing leader or not - either way, it will put you on the right path!