Top Three Ways To Lead

I had the opportunity to listen to the upcoming valedictorian from a local high school the other day. He was a particulate person dedicated to providing community service. He talked about a middle school or with whom he was coaching.

The young person was very appreciative of the help our speaker had given him. He said it was news to him that he had made any impact on this young person at all.

If you’re reading this article you are likely to be in a similar position many times. Just because someone has a position of authority means they really can influence others. Sometimes dramatically.

Authority figures are given a leadership role regardless of whether they desire it or not. It is very typical for someone to look up to someone in authority. And, followers will be influenced by the leader's behavior.

In a traditional business situation somebody is typically the boss. That person is also considered the leader. The points I’m going to make it a bit will apply in that situation but first…

In a situation similar to the one the young speaker talked about, the leadership position was given as a result of the sixth-grader looking at an older impressive individual. There was no formal relationship established.

Leadership will always be “awarded” to the person viewed as the authority. The same situation could apply to many people. People in roles like an aunt or an uncle.

In either situation, leaders can have profound impacts on others. Everybody that works for somebody will automatically check out their supervisors attitudes and feelings every day. If the boss is up the troops are up. If the boss is down the troops are down.

Anyone in a leadership position must know this fact At all times you should be cognizant of the impact your position of authority and leadership is having on those around you. If you’re in a great upbeat mood it’s likely that you’ll positively impact your direct reports. However, if you're in a down mood that will have the same sort of impact. But, it is not a good one.

However, you won't like the results of the second mood.

This is a very good reason why you want to know a leader's attributes well. You'll soon notice that almost every thing you do or feel will be picked up by your team. They'll change when you change.

You’ll be able to use your own personal behavior as a way to significantly improve the results around you.

Even if you don't understand this relationship the impact will still be there. This is almost a natural law. Not understanding it or ignoring it won't make any difference.

A very important point is, don't stick around if you don't feel good. The best thing to do is to leave if you don't have good. It's important no one sees you when you're feeling other than great.