its been a little while since the last time I posted on this topic, but lately my mind has been thinking more and more about what to post next as far as what this new “Vision” of leadership looks like. To give those who haven’t heard about any of these posts, I recently was in a year long leadership program and felt like during my time, I was entrusted with a new “Vision” of what leadership could be and should be. These are just various thoughts, practices, principles and strategies that will allow all of us to become better leaders if we begin to put these ideas into our everyday way of living. 

I know it’s been a little while since I have talked about leadership, and its been a long time since my last post about the new “vision” i have recently caught for what leadership should be. The first thing I talked about was how important it is to realize that relationships are the most important thing in life, and if we can own up to that, we will lead better, love better and enjoy the presence of those in our lives. 

I then talked a little bit about what it means to turn our minds to focusing on teams. and how it is crucial to take time to love on your own team members and not necessarily work out every fine detail of your next event or next project. And most recently, I talked about placing ourselves in strategic positions to leverage our ability to be available, accessible and aware of the surrounding environment. 

All of this is a result of a new vision that I have for leaders. The one I want to talk about in this post is very much a part of what I think leaders would embody.  This is my vision… and I would like to share it with you.

PROVIDE SUCCESS

I know that at times it’s tough to measure success, because its night and day different  for every organization. What is consistent among every organization is that there is a way to measure success. It may be the number of people that come to an event, the amount of products sold, the number of lives saved, or the amount of impact people have on another person or client. Whatever the case may be for your own organization, you know exactly that there is success in some way or another. 

What great leaders need to do is figure out how they can put their team members in positions to be successful. One of the great leadership teachers, Andy Stanley from North Point Community Church in Atlanta, GA said once, “When you walk into a room and realize that you have the greatest amount of influence of all the people there, great leaders have to figure out how to leverage that influence to better the lives of everyone else.” 

That is exactly this same though process… How can you as a leader put your very own team members in positions of success? For my team on the Orientation Council at Belmont University, it was figuring out a way for the 8 section leaders below each of us to be successful in our own way. 

I think there is a myth in leadership. A myth that states that a good leader is “hands-off” that is not what I am talking about in providing success. What I am getting at is a leadership model that looks more like a coach or a mentor as you walk with your team members and prepare them to have a success. Help them find pitfalls before they experience them, and help them understand on a deeper level the vision and purpose of an event. 

When you can figure out how to get your team to a position of continual success, you will realize that each member of the team will begin to take more ownership in their projects. More ownership, equals greater momentum and faster growth. You also prepare and raise up more leaders by providing others with success. 

What are ways that you can provide your team with success?  

I do need to forewarn you that at times trying to find success for a team may result in failure. It’s inevitable. But, what we can do with this failure is learn from it. If this situation happens for you, and failure results before success, it is key that you as a leader helps your team understand what success looks like when they actually hit it. 

What would it look like for a world of leaders to be more focused on providing success for each member of their team rather than finding ways to be successful publicly themselves? I think we would see a leadership revolution. Its’ not about ourselves and its not about how great you can become. 

As Andy said… its all about leveraging everything we have to better the lives of the people in the room with us.

So, do you know that you have influence with many other people? 

how are you providing them with success?

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