Without leadership development, there will be frustration.

MINIMIZE FRUSTRATION

Without leadership development, there will be frustration.

“Failing organizations are usually over-managed and under-led.” ~ Warren Bennis

In failing or struggling organizations, there’s always a lot of people at all levels who are experiencing frustration. Often, on a daily and maybe even an hourly basis. Frustration seems to never end. In many organizations, frustration is the norm, not the exception. Even in highly successful, well-led organizations, there will be frustration. However, there will be much less.

Merriam-Webster defines frustration as, “a deep chronic sense or state of insecurity and dissatisfaction arising from unresolved problems or unfulfilled needs.”

Answer this simple question:

The last time you were frustrated with a member, or members of your team, was it because you had too much influence or too little influence?

This question is intended to be thought-provoking.

Pause and think deeply about it for a moment before you continue. Then, reflect on several more recent examples from your life, at work and away from work.

When we’re frustrated, it’s absolutely because we didn’t have enough influence. Not sometime, every time. It’s a fact at home and at work. It’s true with team members, customers, suppliers, family members, and strangers. It’s a principle: When we’re frustrated, it’s due to a lack of influence.

This principle is easily validated.

When my son was a teenager, I was often frustrated because I couldn’t get him to do what I wanted him to do. In other words, I didn’t have enough influence.

When I couldn’t get someone on my team at work to buy-in to my idea, I was frustrated. Whether they reported to me, I reported to them, or we were peers on the same level. I simply didn’t have enough influence.

Frustration occurs when we want something to happen, but it doesn’t. Or, when we wanted to prevent something from happening, but we couldn’t.

The root cause of both of my examples was my lack of influence. The root cause of the examples you thought about was your lack of influence. Ultimately, I was frustrated with myself and my inability to influence my desired outcome. It’s the same for you too, whether you know it or not and whether you want to admit it or not.

To understand why leadership development is crucial to eliminating frustration, we must consider the definition of leadership.

Leadership is influence. Nothing more. Nothing less.

I learned this from John C. Maxwell. When I first read his definition, it was very thought-provoking.

I validated it quickly after asking myself, “Is the person with the most influence at any given time for any given reason in any given situation the leader?” Absolutely. Every time. The person with the most influence is the one determining the outcome at that moment in that situation. That person is leading, not following. They’re not frustrated, although everyone else may be.

Leadership is not about position, title, and rank as many believe. It’s about influence.

Do people with position, title, and rank have influence? Absolutely. But, not all the time and not with everyone. When they have influence, they are leading. When they don’t have it, they are not leading and are likely frustrated as a result.

Therefore when there is frustration, it’s due to a lack of leadership or influence. These words have the same meaning. The principles in Blue-Collar Leadership & Culture: The 5 Components for Building High Performance Teams and all of our other books will help you increase your influence and reduce your frustrations. Not when you read them, but when you learn to apply them and inspire others on your team to do the same.

Simon Sinek observed, “One of the great things that is lacking in most of our companies is that they are not teaching us how to lead. Managers must go through a transition—from being responsible for the job, to being responsible for the people who are responsible for the job.” There’s a big difference between doing a great job and being able to influence others to do a great job.

Leaders who are frustrated should consider Henry Cloud’s words, “One of the biggest differences between successful people and others is that in love and in life, in relationships and in business, successful people always ask themselves…What part am I playing in this situation?”

Help your team discover the fundamentals of leadership and influence!

“When we are in the presence of good leadership, we usually are not even aware of it. Everything goes so well that leadership seems unnecessary; it creates the illusion that everything is seamless and smooth.” ~ Jimmy Collins, Chick-fil-A? President/COO (Ret.) 

“My first words are, GET SIGNED UP! This training is not, and I stress, not your everyday leadership seminar! I have never been a part of anything like it. After 30 years in technology and two years in Concrete Construction, I have attended dozens and sent hundreds to the so-called ‘Leadership-Training’…while all of the courses, classes, webinars, and seminars, had good intentions, nothing can touch what Mack and Ria Story provide…100% of the team that attended said that they were ‘blown-away.’” ~ Sam McLamb, VP/COO

Read and/or download (no email req’d) 15-20 pages worth of content from 8 of Mack Story's 13 books (including those pictured below) here.

Do you have a desire to change your culture? Discover how in Mack's newest book, Blue-Collar Leadership & Culture: The 5 Components for Building High Performance Teams.

“We just can’t find any good people,” is a phrase Mack Story hears far too often as he speaks to and interacts with leaders all across the USA. If you or a member of your leadership team has ever spoken these words, this book was written specifically for you. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Blue-Collar Leadership? & Culture will help you understand why culture is the key to becoming a sought after employer of choice within your industry. Culture matters because those who work there will determine who wants to work there.

Becoming a sought after employer means, “People who don’t work at your organization have a strong desire to work there.”

Becoming an employer of choice means, “People who already work at your organization have a strong desire to continue working there.”

Mack wrote Blue-Collar Leadership? & Culture specifically for leaders who want to become THE sought after employer of choice within their industry and in their area of operations. Sought after employers of choice attract great people and don’t spend their time and resources constantly searching for good people.

Mack has logged over 11,000 hours leading leaders and their blue-collar teams through hundreds of kaizen events, process improvement, organizational change, and cultural transformation and speaks with his wife, Ria Story, on personal growth and leadership development throughout the USA as they help leaders transform their cultures and develop high performance teams.

Although leaders in all industries at all levels will benefit greatly from this book, Mack structured the content specifically for the top leader who has never led a cultural transformation but is curious to find out what will be required. He’ll help you not only discover why you should transform your culture, but also what to do and how to do it. Therefore, Mack includes many references and links to additional resources throughout the book that will support and accelerate your cultural transformation.

Blue-Collar Leadership? & Culture is intended to not only teach, but also to serve as a tool, a guide, and a transformational road map for leaders who want to create a high impact culture that will become their greatest competitive advantage. It’s a starting point for those who don’t know how to start or those who want to become more intentional and methodical as they take their team to the next level and beyond.

In Blue-Collar Leadership? & Culture, you’ll also discover how to leverage the components of The Transformation Equation to create a culture that will support, attract, and retain high performance team members. To learn more about The Transformation Equation, visit GetTheTransformationEquation.com