Like A Boss. Like A Boss? Like A Boss!

Good bosses, bad bosses, we've all had our fair share of both. In fact, if you've ever been someone else's boss, you've undoubtedly come to realize all of the headaches you likely created for a past boss of your own. Whatever the case, whether you had a horrible boss or the world's greatest boss, there was a lesson in that interaction. Whether or not you learned that lesson, however, is a completely different thing. One lesson I've also learned that "boss" does not necessarily equate to "leader".  Bosses tend to simply mark their territory, while leaders strive to leave an indelible positive mark on those they are charged with leading.

I am of the belief that each of us is a combination of all the people who have impacted our individual lives the most in one way or another. We constantly change because we constantly meet new people; have new experiences; and are impacted by both. In essence, we're a melting pot, if you will, of all the good and bad stuff that has happened to us.

But like any kitchen, there are many different pots. There's the life pot- it is the largest of them all and its ingredients consist of ALL of your significant human interactions. Then there are a series of smaller pots like social, career, etc. Those pots have ingredients consisting of only those people you've interacted with in those particular facets of your life. Throughout our careers, we will come across numerous leaders and bosses who chuck ingredients into our pots. Here's a taste of a few lessons on leading that have stuck with me thus far.

Like A Boss.

I've had some really good bosses- especially in the early years of my career. In fact, calling them bosses is sort of selling them short. They were good leaders. Why? Because they took an interest in my personal well-being and my career development. So much so, that when it was time for me to walk away from a job that I loved; from working with people that I loved; I was encouraged to do so, without being blackballed, "lame-ducked", or talked about behind my back. I've had leaders who would tell me that a border on a chart that I produced for them was missing and instead of saving the time and simply doing it themselves, would have me go back and make the correction. At the time, I thought, "what a power trip", but as time passed, I came to realize it was really about teaching me to pay attention to details. It was about teaching me to understand that everything I produce as a professional is a representation not only of the company I work for, or the person that supervised me, but also of myself. I had a boss who once told me that I was extremely smart and talented, but lazy... and although that might have seemed harsh at the time, it was exactly what I needed to hear. Unadulterated, honest feedback from a good leader who knew how to pull the best out of a team member- namely me.

Like A Boss?

On the flipside of the coin, I've also had bad bosses. Bosses who were likeable as individuals, but lacking as leaders of men and women. I've had bosses who have manipulated, instigated, berated, interrogated and any other word you can add "-ated" to. Bosses who, in private, referred to team members as "bodies." I compared it to the queen in the ivory tower overlooking a courtyard full of workers and arbitrarily singling out the one in the red shirt for some inhumane punishment. It was as if they had completely forgot that business (and life) is about PEOPLE. I had bosses who thought that the very people (there's that word again) working for them, should be "thankful" to be working, as opposed to the other way around. That said, those interactions, each and every one, were useful. They also taught me lessons on leading, because they illustrated the type of boss I did NOT want to be. That is just as valuable a lesson as learning the type of leader you DO want to become.

Like A Boss!

The impact of these interactions weighed heavily on the leader I have tried to become. I have strived to become a leader that teaches without being ashamed to admit that I too can learn from the very people I'm entrusted to teach. I've strived to engage my team members and have them enjoy working for/with me without unrealistically requiring their blind loyalty to the company. I've decided to invest in the people on my team; to care about their wants, needs and aspirations; and to show that care by being openly truthful and boldly honest with them.

I can't say with certainty that I've been the leader that everyone of my current and former team members have needed. In fact, the only thing I can say with any certainty is that I am not a perfect leader, but I constantly try to be as effective a leader as I possibly can be.

To that end, I say to those who have, would, and will follow me, or anyone else in their careers,- one way or another, find the lesson in those interactions and decide what kind of leader you will be... but don't just be like a boss.