Leading for Results

In his second year of university, James found himself with the daunting task of directing a professional stage production for the first time ever. 

As a student, although he loved drama and the arts, he had no experience in directing, and most of the cast members and production team were friends of his who simply loved drama and stage plays. One of those friends advised him to delegate roles and responsibilities in the production, which he did.

However, James was so determined to be identified with the title “Director” that he simply imitated what he had seen other stage directors do. He became a task master, with little sympathy for team members who were not performing at his level, sometimes even yelling at them, over-working them and setting unrealistic targets for the team, even though the production was on voluntary basis. This was all behavior he claimed he had seen from other play directorsBy the time the production was nearing its opening performance, a lot of good team members were disillusioned and had left the production, there was animosity and tension between James and his friends, and the production itself had gone way over budget and had to be shelved.

Leadership plays a pivotal role in every organization. As John Maxwell puts it, everything rises and falls on leadership. Leading a team to achieve desired results is a daunting task, but doable nevertheless.

I strongly believe that leaders should not be directly invested in results, but in painting the big picture, and molding the think tanks responsible for the success. Leadership is centrally concerned with people. By investing in the team, we will automatically realize the results.

It is vital that every leader prepares his/ her team member to lead. The leader must elevate, call out greatness and challenge the team member to be a better leader every day. Consequently, by encouraging others to lead, organizational goals become more attainable thereby creating a nurturing and supportive work environment.

Here are a few pointers on how you can do this:

• Walk the talk – As a leader you must realize that the camera is always rolling. Lead by example! Be a strong leader! By practicing what you preach, your team will trust you more, and will go the extra mile to make things happen! Invite people to hold you accountable! Followers will only go as far as the leader is willing to go.
• Value your team members – Celebrate your team members’ efforts! Take time to know how they are doing outside work! Find out their individual life goals, and how you can be part of making them a reality. Continuously affirm them and let them know how unique their contribution is to the overall well-being of the organization. Always look out for verbal and nonverbal cues that help you understand, and in turn serve them better!
• Invest in building your team – Leadership doesn’t come easy for everyone! Season your team through training, and instill in them confidence they need to lead others to achieve results. We don’t find great leaders! We create great leaders by intentionally identifying and investing in them.
• Clarity – Clearly outline the goals and objectives you would like to achieve. Equip your team with the ‘WHAT’ and the ‘WHY’ and support them in figuring out the ‘HOW’. Firm this up by building an environment where your staff will connect with each other in ways that produce great results.
• Leadership without Leverage – As Bill Hybels puts it, positional leaders have no real leverage and influence on those who follow them. “In the Military, leaders can use rank when everything else fails. In business, bosses have tremendous leverage in the form of salary, benefits and perks. Most followers are cooperative when their livelihood is at stake” John Maxwell defines leadership as influence. Are you able to still lead and influence your team when the leverage is withdrawn? If you have no real influence over your team, you cannot drive them towards achieving significant results. Invest in increasing your leadership effectiveness and influence. Your organization and followers can never outgrow your leadership level. Being the best version of yourself as a leader gives you the confidence to call out greatness in others.

As a leader, you are as a director at the helm of a production, as you inspire productivity in your cast members. The tone, quality and level of that production will be determined by the tone, quality and level of your leadership. 

But always remember,