DEVELOPING A SUCCESSFUL LEADERSHIP TEAM
By: Robyn Elwood
F or as long as I can remember, I’ve always been drawn to leadership author John Maxwell. It only increased when I had the opportunity to attend one of his sessions and meet him in person. In my observation, what stood out most was his keen ability to connect. It only makes sense that years later he would write the book, “ Everyone Communicates, Few Connect ”. When I found out I had the opportunity to write about developing a successful leadership team, I was excited as I could visualize myself pulling from my Maxwell library and absorbing the pages only to find out I had to accomplish this task in four to five paragraphs! “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect.” - John Maxwell My solution is to share some of my favorite leadership nuggets I’ve learned to be true from Maxwell when building a team. Acquiring and keeping good people is a leader’s most important task as systems become dated, buildings deteriorate and machines wear. However, people can grow, develop and become more effective. Job descriptions on a resume address skills, not character. Strength of character is the most important trait to look for in a leader. Character flaws should not be ignored as they will eventually make the leader ineffective and have the potential to destroy the business. The critical task of a leader to develop a successful leadership team is to nurture. As a leader, those you are developing need your best. You need to believe in them, encourage them, share with them and trust them. In order to create the right opportunity, we as leaders must look at the potential leaders around us and ask ourselves what does this person need in order to grow? A generic formula does not work. Look for the leader within the person. Some of the qualities include: Positivenes, servanthood, growth potential, follow through, loyalty, resiliency, integrity, discipline, big picture mind set, discipline and gratitude.
Things to ponder, as we say in Texas: • Spend more time on the farm team than on the free agents. Are you looking within? Who are you purposing to mentor? • Teams that don’t bond can’t build. What can you do to create opportunities to bond as a team? • Individualism wins trophies, but teamwork wins pennants. How are you addressing those on your team who are challenged with being a team player? • Positive confrontation is a sure sign that you care. How are you challenging your team to grow? • A person should be spending 80 percent of his/her time doing things that require his/her greatest gifts and abilities. Is it time for a shift? • To continue winning you have to avoid burn-out with your team. The best way to do that is to see it coming. Is your team’s workload manageable? If not, why not? • An opinion before a decision is made has potential value. An opinion after the decision is made is worthless. Remember followers tell you what you want to hear and leaders tell you what you need to hear. What can you do to create an environment where transparency is encouraged and valued? • Leaders see what is, but more important, they have vision for what could be. They are never content with the way things are. Is your team striving to get better? “There are two questions I picked up from a leadership conference years ago that still hold true when you’re engaging with someone and that can help better determine a potential leader. How do you feel about being in this person’s company, and how does this person make you feel about yourself? What if it was your purpose to build those kinds of leaders within your business or organization? Remember as Maxwell says, “Everyone Communicates, Few Connect”.
18 PIPELINE® | EDITION 1 2017
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