The first principle: leadership is creating positive influence
Each person has the potential to exert influence in any given situation or with any group. There are five stages of influence that individuals move through alongside five levels of leadership. The key to progression is to understand one’s present source of influence and level of leadership. Further, advancement to the next level can only happen once an individual has excelled in the present level.
The five levels of leadership
Level one: position
At stage one, an authority figure exerts control largely because of position. Often, a leader at this level rules by intimidation. People will follow because they have to. Otherwise, employees will not exert effort beyond their job description or what is required. At this level of leadership, staff lacks commitment leading to high turnover and low morale within the organization.
Indicators of excellence:
Level two: permission/relationships
At this level, a permission leader relies on people interrelationships with strong emphasis on bringing people together. Employees begin to follow beyond the leader’s stated authority.
Indicators of excellence:
Level three: production/results
At level three, the leader brings the people together on a journey to accomplish a purpose,
allowing them to share in the glory of results. People follow to accomplish an objective.
Indicators of excellence:
Level four: people development/reproduction
A leader at this stage empowers followers and helps them grow personally. People follow because of loyalty brought about by how the leader has helped them grow.
Indicators of excellence:
Level five: personhood
A level five leader has spent years growing people and organizations. People follow because of
who and what the leader represents.
Indicators of excellence:
The second principle:
leadership is setting the right priorities
What sets a leader apart is the ability to think ahead and prioritize responsibilities.
The principles of priority
Use the Pareto Principle as your guide. The principle states that 20 percent of priorities will give 80 percent of one’s production. Spend
time, energy, money and personnel on twenty percent of the priorities.
Organize. Identify three or four high priority projects. One must
remember, “A life in which anything goes will ultimately be a life in
which nothing goes.”
Label projects as high importance/high urgency; high importance/low
urgency; low importance/high urgency and low importance/low urgency.
Tackle high importance/high urgency projects first. Set deadlines for
completion of high importance/low urgency projects. Delegate low importance/
high urgency projects. Postpone indefinitely low importance/low
urgency projects.
Keep priorities in place through regular evaluation, elimination and
estimation. Evaluate requirements, returns and rewards. Eliminate
from your list those that can be done by somebody else. Estimate the
top projects that must be done and measure how long it will take.
Learn how to overlook the unimportant. Avoid the petty and mundane
that takes too much of one’s time.
Know what you want. Realize that nobody can have it all. Ninety five
percent of achieving anything is by knowing what you want.
The third principle:
leadership is modeling integrity
Eighty nine percent of what people learn comes from what they see, ten
percent from what they hear, and one percent from other senses. Thus, true
leaders need to be consistent in words and in action and behavior.
The principles of integrity
Integrity is grounded in trust. In order to successfully lead followers,
a leader must gain the trust of followers.
Integrity means high standards that leaders must model. An individual
who rises to become a leader must assume responsibility and
model the high standard expected of a leader.
Integrity is what the person is. It must not be a false image or baseless
perception.
Integrity is role modeling. When leaders do not walk the talk, they
lose credibility. Leaders must mean and act what they say.
Integrity is earned. Integrity is the result of a leader’s self-discipline
and honesty as well as followers’ trust.
The fourth principle:
leadership is creating positive change
A leader who is receptive to new ideas and is willing to make personal
changes before asking others to follow him has the makings of a successful
change agent.
Why people resist change
Lack of involvement and ownership among people.
Change disrupts old habits forcing people to reevaluate and unlearn
routine behavior.
Change creates inconvenience, insecurities, a fear of the unknown
and a fear of failure.
Absence or lack of information other than that which comes from
the grapevine.
Lack of trust and respect for the leader.
Perceived disadvantages far outweigh perceived advantages in terms
of personal gain or loss.
Leaders resist change, believing it is a personal attack of previous
programs and directions.
Change demands added time commitment from followers.
Old habits and traditions restrict change.
A culture of narrow mindedness and negativity resists change.
How to create a climate of change
Create a high-trust relationship with people.
Make personal changes before asking others to do the same.
Exhibit an effort to understand the history of an organization. This
assures employees that the leader truly understands what happened
in the past before making changes for the future.
Tap the support of influencers in the organization before making
the change. Also, encourage influencers to influence other staff
informally.
Share the ownership of change with the people by providing them
information, by walking them through the implications of change,
by explaining the objectives of the change, by seeking people participation
in the change process, by fostering open communication, by
stressing belief and commitment to change and by fostering enthusiasm,
assistance and recognition of change implementers.
Develop a meeting agenda to facilitate and smooth the change
process.
Stand firm that change will happen and that it is never too late to
change.
The fifth principle:
leadership is problem solving
The test of a genuine leader is the ability to recognize a problem before it
becomes an emergency. Nonetheless, when problems arise, true leaders are
willing and prepared to manage the problems.
How to recognize problems
Intuition. True leaders sense problems before they become evident.
Curiosity. One starts asking and looking for problems.
Processing. Gather information and accurate data.
• Communication. True leaders share their feelings and findings to
trusted colleagues and followers.
• Documentation. Define and write the problem.
• Evaluation. Scan and assess available resources.
• Leading. Leaders make a decision.
Steps to problem solving
• Identify the problem. Define the problem by asking the right questions,
by talking to the right people, by getting the hard facts and
by getting involved in the process of solving the problem. Problems
must be solved at the lowest level where it first appeared.
• Prioritize the problem.
• Select people who can help in the problem-solving process.
• List problem causes by asking what caused the problem. Find out
how it can be avoided in the future.
• List down as many solutions as possible.
• Select the best solution by asking which solution has the greatest
potential to be right, which solution is in the best interest of the organization,
which solution has momentum and training on its side and
which solution has the greatest chance for success.
• Implement the best solution.
• Evaluate the solution. Identify real operative problems that are
observable then make adjustments.
• Set up principles or policies to keep problems from repeating itself.
The sixth principle:
leadership is having the right positive attitude
Without the right positive attitude, successful leaders would not have
reached their full potential.
Why is the right attitude important
• Leadership has a lot to do with disposition and less to do with position.
A leader’s disposition is important because it will influence the
way the followers think and feel. Setting the right atmosphere will
enable the right response from others.
• No one can succeed with negative thinking. Many destroy themselves
because of wrong thinking and loss of self-esteem. True leaders
believe in themselves.
• The right leader’s attitude helps define the attitude of followers.
How to change to a positive attitude
Assess one’s self
Identify problem feelings, problem behavior, problem thinking.
Identify the right thinking
Make a public commitment to right thinking and develop a plan for right
thinking. The plan for right thinking must include:
• Developing a written statement of the desired right thinking.
• Completing a daily progress report of right thinking.
• Identifying a person to whom one shall be accountable.
• Reading a daily diet of self-help materials.
• Associating with the right thinking people.
Resolve to change
Refine one’s mindset
Think, “I can, I will and I am.”
Reenter
Begin the change in behavior.
Act the part of the person one
would like to become.
Repeat
Make the changed behavior a
habit. An action constantly repeated becomes an attitude realized.
Renewal
Over a period of time, positive attitudes are replaced by negative attitudes.
Weed out bad habits and negative thoughts.
The seventh principle:
leadership is developing people
Successful leaders understand the importance of developing people who
can help realize the leader’s vision and dreams.
Principles of people development
Make the right assumptions about people
Positive assumptions about people will make for positive leadership while
negative assumptions lead to negative leadership. The right assumptions
about people are:
• Everyone wants to feel worthwhile. Make people feel important.
• Everyone needs and responds to encouragement. People do better
work and exert greater effort under a spirit of approval.
• People buy into a leader before they buy into his or her leadership.
A leader’s stated authority, position or organizational chart does not
motivate people. They respond to the person.
• People think success is luck. Leaders teach followers that success is
the result of planning and happens when preparation and opportunity
meet.
• People are naturally motivated. Create a people-friendly environment
that does not de-motivate by acknowledging significant contributions,
by encouraging goal sharing, by fostering a culture of
positive dissatisfaction, by recognizing people and setting clear
expectations.
• Avoid de-motivating people by belittling, publicly criticizing and
cutting conversations; manipulating or using people; being insensitive
and discouraging personal growth.
Ask the right questions about people
This means asking the following six questions:
Question one: Am I building people or am I building my dream and using
people to do it? This is about the leader’s motive where manipulation or
motivation makes the difference. Manipulation is moving together for
one’s advantage. Motivation is moving together for mutual advantage.
Question two: Do I care enough to confront people when it will make a
difference? When confronting people or clarifying issues, observe the following
ten commandments of confrontation:
• Do the confrontation privately, not publicly.
• Implement it as soon as possible.
• Clarify one issue at a time.
• Stress a point but do not over-repeat.
• Deal with actions the person can change.
• Avoid sarcasm.
• Avoid words like always and never that urge defensive behavior.
• Present criticisms as suggestions or questions.
• Do not apologize for a confrontational meeting.
• Do not forget the compliment. Use the bookend formula: compliment
–confront-compliment.
Question three: Am I listening to people with more than my ears; am I
hearing more than words? Assess one’s self based on the following:
• Do I allow the speaker to finish without interrupting?
• Do I listen between the lines?
• When writing a message, do I listen for and write down the key facts
and phrases?
• Do I repeat what the person just said to clarify the meaning?
• Do I avoid getting hostile and/or agitated when I disagree with the
speaker?
• Do I tune out distractions when listening?
• Do I make an effort to seem interested in what the other person is
saying?
Question four: What are the major strengths of this individual? Encourage
followers to work at areas of personal strength.
Question five: Have I placed a high priority on the job? Keep people motivated
by letting them see the importance of things they are asked to do.
Regularly use the five most encouraging words in an organization, “It will
make a difference.” Avoid the five most discouraging words, “It won’t make
any difference.”
Question six: Have I shown the value the person will receive for this
relationship?
• Recognize that people development takes time.
• Realize that people skills are essential to success. Chief executives
of major organizations concede that the single characteristic most
needed by those in leadership positions is the ability to work with
people. Successful leaders with people skills have the following
qualities:
→ They admit their mistakes and accept the consequences rather
than blame others.
→ They are able to get along with a wide spectrum of people.
→ They have strong interpersonal skills, sensitivity to others and
tact.
→ They are calm and confident rather than moody and volatile.
• Leadership is role modeled. People do what people see.
• Lead others by looking through their eyes.
• Leaders must care for people to develop and grow them successfully.
A Wall Street Journal survey revealed that of the 16,000 executives
studied, about thirteen percent identified as high achievers cared
about people as well as profits. Average achievers concentrated on
production while low achievers were preoccupied with their own
security.
• True leaders look for opportunities to build up people.
• Leaders believe in growing people to grow the company. The largest
single cost in most businesses is people. The largest, most valuable
asset any company has is its people. Business plans are carried out
successfully or fail to be carried out by people.
The eighth principle:
leadership is having a vision
A vision is a clear picture of what the leader sees his or her group being or
doing. Great leaders know where they are going and they are able to persuade
others to follow. But leaders can never take their people farther than
they have traveled. Like leader, like people.
What hinders vision
• Being led by limited leaders. Leaders who lack vision or the ability to
successfully pass it on are limited leaders.
• Being led by concrete thinkers who cannot see beyond what is
tangible.
• Being led by dogmatic talkers who only follow convention.
• Being led by continual losers who are strained by past failures and
destroy everyone’s attempt to try again.
• Being led by satisfied sitters who have become complacent, comfortable,
predictable and very secure.
• Being led by tradition-lovers.
• Being led by census-takers who embrace a vision only when the
majority does.
• Being led by problem perceivers who see an obstacle in every change
or solution.
• Being led by self-seekers who live for themselves.
• Being led by failure forecasters who are largely pessimistic.
Setting the environment for visioning
Cultivate trust by bridging the organization’s vision and the follower’s personal
goals.
• Explain the vision. Make the people understand, appreciate and see
the vision.
• Share the vision’s endless possibilities and opportunities with the
people.
• Energize. Keep hope and enthusiasm alive.
• Develop the drive in people. Challenge followers to overcome the
obstacles.
• Allow people to grow as they pursue the vision.
• Making the vision real requires time. Take the time to reflect and reenergize
while trekking the path of the vision.
• Provide followers with the needed direction—where to begin and
what path to follow.
• Walk with the people in the pursuit of the vision. This forges the
commitment between the leader and the follower.
• Make the people realize their role and valuable contribution to the
vision.
The ninth principle:
leadership is self-discipline
Leaders take a grip of their lives and take control of areas that bring them
success or failure.
Developing personal discipline
• Start with one’s self. Confront personal inner issues.
• Begin early. Do the thing one must do, when it ought to be done,
whether one likes it or not.
• Start small. Take one step at a time.
• Begin now. Take action. Translate good thoughts, good ideas and
good intentions into action.
• Organize. Chart what you want to do before you do it so that when it
is time for it to be done, it is not mixed up.
How to organize
• Clearly set priorities.
• Calendar priorities.
• Set a little time for the unexpected.
• Do one project at a time.
• Organize one’s workspace.
• Work according to one’s temperament but do not allow it to serve as
an excuse for work you need to do effectively.
• Use driving time for light work and growth.
• Develop systems suitable for one’s work temperament.
• Have a plan for minutes between meetings.
• Focus on results not the activity.
• Welcome responsibility by being completely responsible for one’s
self and for what one can do, by accepting accountability, by being
responsible to those one leads and by being character driven instead
of emotion driven. Below is a distinction between character driven
and emotion driven people:
Character Driven People Emotion Driven People
Do right, then feel good Feel good, then do right
Are commitment driven Are convenience driven
Make principle-based decisions Make popular-based decisions
Action controls attitude Attitude controls action
Believe it, then see it See it, then believe it
Create momentum Wait for momentum
Ask: What are my responsibilities? Ask: What are my rights?
Continue when problems arise Quit when problems arise
Are steady Are moody
Are leaders Are followers
The tenth principle:
leadership is developing staff
The growth and development of people is the highest calling of leadership.
Creating the winning team
• Winning teams have great leaders.
• Winning teams move in an environment of success.
• Excellent leaders who know the basic human needs lead winning
teams.
• Excellent leaders who keep control of finance, personnel and planning
lead winning teams.
• Winning teams have excellent leaders who avoid the seven deadly
sins that include
1. Trying to be liked rather than respected.
2. Not asking team members for advice and help.
3. Restricting talent by emphasizing rules rather than skills.
4. Not keeping criticism objective and constructive.
5. Not developing accountability and a sense of responsibility among
team members.
6. Treating everyone the same way.
7. Failing to keep people informed.
• Winning teams pick good people.
• Winning teams make their team members more successful.
• Winning teams keep improving.
The 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry is equipped to deploy anywhere in the world within 36 hours to capture or destroy enemy fighters. The men and women of the 2-327th represent some of the fiercest warriors in the United States military. In spite of its reputation for power and ferocity, the 2-327th Infantry produced a hero notable for bringing about peace through his poise and presence of mind early on in America’s involvement in Iraq.
Lt. Col. Chris Hughes was leading 130 soldiers on a mission in Najaf to secure the crucial support of Shi’a cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Hussein Sistani when an angry mob congregated. Suspicious that the American troops intended to harm the ayatollah; the agitated Iraqis showered the soldiers with a barrage of rocks. In a matter of minutes the infuriated crowd had swollen in size to several hundred civilians.
Sensing the delicate nature of the situation, Hughes rushed through the ranks of soldiers, ordering them to drop to one knee, point their guns at the ground, and smile. By adopting the least hostile pose possible, the soldiers befuddled the mob. Although the furor did not subside, its intensity lessened. Then, Lt. Col. Hughes calmly instructed his men to retreat 100 yards, after which they again knelt, kept their guns down, and grinned at the Iraqis. Next, Hughes requested that all combat vehicles slowly retreat from the area. Finally, he bowed to the Iraqis before coolly leading his soldiers in a march away from the mob.
If not for the poise of Lt. Col. Hughes the situation easily could have turned ugly. Angry protestors and armed soldiers can be a deadly mix (see the Boston Massacre or the tragedy at Kent State University in 1970). Leaders often find themselves thrust into combustible situations in which they must make calm decisions quickly when surrounded by chaos. In those moments, how can leaders keep their cool?
1) Contain Your Emotions
Anger, fear, and defiance were probably a few of the emotions swirling inside of Lt. Col. Hughes as Iraqis hurled rocks at his troops. Had he responded to the situation solely on the basis of emotions, disaster likely would have ensued. For instance, if anger or defiance had motivated him, then he may have threatened the crowd by flexing the muscle of the weaponry at his disposal. In that event, a hotheaded soldier may have fired into the crowd. Or, had Lt. Col. Hughes showed fear, then a jittery infantryman may have shot into the crowd as a self-defense reflex. Either scenario would have been calamitous to the American effort to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis.
Thankfully, Lt. Col. Hughes was able to contain his emotions. In the face of danger, he led calmly and with restraint. As a result, the peace was maintained, and no one was injured.
2) Size Up the Situation in Light of the Big Picture
In an emergency, poor decisions are made when the big picture gets clouded. Lt. Col. Hughes was savvy enough to know that the safety of his men was not the only concern in Najaf. His mission was to win the support of a prominent Iraqi, and he would have no chance of doing so if his troops injured or killed Iraqi civilians. In light of his ultimate goal, he not only saw the value of protecting his men, but also recognized the importance of protecting the crowd.
3) Swiftly Settle upon a Course of Action
Seeing that the Iraqis felt threatened by armed soldiers, Hughes knew the best way to defuse the situation was to adopt a stance of friendliness. He wasted no time in barking out commands for his men to kneel, smile, and look friendly. The situation demanded urgent action, and Hughes delivered-literally running through the ranks of his men to shout out his commands.
4) Act Confidently to Influence the Emotions of Others
In moments of crisis, leaders stay poised by containing their emotions. However, a leader’s personal poise has minimal value if everyone on his or her team is freaking out. Leaders have to assist others in managing their emotions, too.
Through his confidence and the visibility of his personal example, Lt. Col. Hughes gave his men the courage to obey unorthodox orders. His unruffled demeanor rubbed off on the men and women in his battalion and allowed them to maintain self-control in the face of an angry throng of Iraqis. In the end, a potential crisis was averted because the 2-327th mimicked the composure of its leader.
Had Chesly B. Sullenberger known that US Airways Flight 1549 would fly through a flock of geese and lose both engines, then he likely would have stayed out of the cockpit that day. After all, who in their right mind wants to pilot an engineless aircraft? Thankfully for the 155 passengers on board, however, the veteran airman was at the controls to safely crash-land the plane in the Hudson River.
Although he never would have volunteered for the adversity he faced in the skies above New York City, Sullenberger’s influence soared as a result of his leadership in the midst of harrowing circumstances. Before January 15th, Sullenberger was an accomplished, but anonymous pilot. Afterward, he was recognized as an American hero, drew a captive audience whenever he spoke, and was highly sought after by federal aviation officials for his safety recommendations.
Going through adversity, though not pleasant at the moment, opens the door to new levels of influence. By staying poised and keeping a positive attitude under pressure, leaders can pass through adversity having grown in stature more than they ever could have in comfortable times. In this article, I’d like to focus on the potential benefits that can be gained by triumphing over adverse conditions.
A study in Time magazine in the 1980’s described the incredible resilience of a group of people who had lost their jobs on three occasions due to plant closings. Researchers expected them to be discouraged, but they were surprisingly optimistic. Their adversity had turned into advantage. Because they had already coped with job loss and found employment at least twice, they were better equipped to handle adversity than people who had always worked for the same company and found themselves unemployed for the first time.
During more than four decades as a pilot, both with the Air Force commercial airlines, Chesly B. Sullenberger had to weather his share of storms and mechanical glitches. When questioned by Katie Couric about his heroic landing of US Airways Flight 1549, Sullenberger credited his past experiences for giving him the maturity to steer the plane. “One way of looking at this might be that, for 42 years, I’ve been making small, regular deposits in this bank of experience: education and training. And on January 15 the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal.”
As an African proverb says, “Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors.” The bumps in the road may seem only to be nuisances, but they’re often the best instructors on the leadership journey. If we’re observant, the lessons learned during hard times can be mined at a later date for our advantage.
Just about every successful entrepreneur I’ve met has numerous stories of setbacks that opened the door to greater opportunities. Consider these not-so-flattering moments from the lives of famous Americans.
In the middle of adversity, it can be difficult to stave off feelings of hopelessness, but oftentimes a bright future waits on the other side of hardship. The mental strength acquired in dealing with misfortune can be an invaluable asset in pushing forward into new ventures.
Respect almost always is gained on difficult ground. In the words of Plutarch, “The measure of a man is the way he bears up under misfortune.” No one sees your courage in the sunshine. It takes difficulty and darkness to prove bravery. When others see your character and persistence during the rough stretches in leadership, they walk away with an enhanced opinion of you.
The economic crunch creates adversity, and leaders feel its pain and pressure acutely. While no one hopes for adversity, it can actually serve to benefit a leader. By bearing in mind the potential upside of leading through difficulty, it can be easier to deal with our present troubles.
THOUGHT LEADER
As a train’s source of energy and direction, the locomotive plays a vital role. However, unless a locomotive connects to other cars on the track, it is relatively useless. A train’s value comes from its ability to transport massive amounts of cargo, and doing so requires the locomotive to link up with dozens of freight cars. Traveling by itself, a locomotive would arrive at its destination empty-handed. In that case, its journey would be nothing more than a waste of fuel.
Leaders are like locomotives in that they’re blessed with drive, energy, and vision. However, until leaders learn the art of connection, their influence remains minimal. In isolation, their talents accomplish little, and their efforts are squandered.
Let’s look at practical ways whereby leaders can make meaningful connections with others.
#1 Don’t Take People for Granted
Weak leaders get so caught up in the vision of where they’re going that they forget whom they’re trying to lead. Instead, leaders would be wise realize that connecting to people and developing them are the surest ways to gain influence. Results happen through relationships.
#2 Possess a Difference-Maker Mindset
A hesitant and indecisive leader doesn’t enliven the hearts or imaginations of people. On the contrary, leaders who influence and inspire have a difference-maker mindset. They connect with others by passing along an infectious confidence in their ability to succeed.
#3 Initiate Movement Toward People
Freight cars sitting on the railroad tracks won’t go anywhere by themselves. They will rust and collect dust unless a locomotive makes contact and connects to them. Similarly, most people stay parked due to self-doubt, fear, or absence of vision. It takes the connection of a leader to tap into their potential and rouse them to action.
#4 Search for Common Ground
Anytime you want to connect with a person, the starting point should be shared interests. If you’re attentive to the hobbies, histories, and habits of those you lead, then you will find ample areas of common ground. Launch out from these areas of agreement to build rapport.
#5 Recognize and Respect Differences
We are capable of finding common ground with others, but at the same time we need to acknowledge that we’re all different. The greatest influencers realize that differences ought to complement rather than clash. When you demonstrate regard for diverse personalities and meet people on their terms, they will appreciate your sensitivity and connect with the understanding you’ve shown.
#6 Learn the Key to Others’ Lives
People have core motivations that vary drastically, and a leader has to discern them to forge a connection with others. Generally, the key can be unearthed by examining what a person has already done in life and by discovering what he or she aspires to do in the future. Once you’ve found the key, do not exploit it. Turn the key only when you have the person’s permission, and always use it for his or her benefit - not your own.
#7 Communicate from the Heart
Nothing repels people like a phony leader. Be authentic when you speak, and align your actions and words. People respond to passion, and they will latch onto a vision when it’s communicated directly from the heart.
#8 Share Common Experiences
Shared experiences cement a relationship. For this reason, it’s wise to be intentional about eating out with teammates, inviting them to join you on an errand, or taking in a play or ballgame together. The more time you invest in those you lead, the greater the connection you will forge with them.
One is too small of a number to achieve greatness. No one ever accomplishes alone what he can do in partnership with others. If you’re looking to grow as an influencer, start by strengthening your connections with the people around you.
As a college junior, Harrison Ford decided to take a drama course in the hopes of meeting girls. Sure enough, a love affair ensued, only not of the variety Ford had envisioned. Rather than falling for a beautiful woman, he fell in love with acting.
Like so many aspiring actors before and after him, Ford traveled to Los Angeles in the hopes of launching a career in Hollywood. However, he found the industry difficult to enter. While he was hired for acting jobs, he appeared only in small, often unaccredited roles and seldom received a speaking part.
After five or six years, Harrison Ford was tired of performing in obscurity and in need of more steady income to support his family. Having ability as a craftsman, he took up carpentry. He worked as a stagehand for rock group, The Doors, and did odd jobs for many of the people he had met while acting in Los Angeles. One day, a man named George hired him to build cabinets. While making the cabinets Ford became acquainted with his customer who turned out to be movie director, George Lucas. Upon learning that Ford was an actor, Lucas gave him the opportunity to audition for a role in his upcoming film American Graffiti. Ford won the part, a prominent supporting role and his biggest performance to date.
After acting in American Graffiti, Ford parlayed his carpentry skill into more on-screen opportunities. Francis Ford Coppola (director of The Godfather) cast Harrison Ford in a minor role in his 1974 film, The Conversation, after Ford had helped him with an office expansion project. However, it was Ford’s relationship with George Lucas that opened the door to stardom. In 1975, Lucas hired him to read lines for a space adventure screenplay. Impressed by Ford’s talent Lucas cast him as major character Han Solo in Star Wars (1977). The movie, one of the highest grossing films of all-time, was a smashing success and Harrison Ford’s performance was a big reason why.
Collaboration between Ford and Lucas continued in future years with the production of The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and The Return of the Jedi (1983). The duo also worked together on three installments of the widely popular Indiana Jones movies in the 1980s. Amazingly, what had begun as an arrangement to build cabinets turned into one of the most lucrative partnerships in American film history!
Personal Growth Lessons from the Life Story of Harrison Ford
1) Be Open to Acquiring New Skills
When Harrison Ford wasn’t going anywhere as an actor, he found another avenue to exercise his talents-carpentry. Although he didn’t have formal training as a carpenter, Ford diligently worked to gain competence at his new craft. His success in acquiring a new skill not only helped him provide for his family, it positioned him to meet George Lucas.
2) Keep Growing Because You Never Know When Your Opportunity Will Appear
One would assume that Harrison Ford battled feelings of failure when he put his acting career on hold to make cabinets. His dream wasn’t to be woodworking in the shop; it was to be performing on stage. Yet despite his disappointment, Ford kept hope alive and stayed sharp as an actor. When George Lucas gave him the opportunity to audition for American Graffiti, Ford was ready, and he won the part.
3) Honing Your People Skills Can Reap Big Dividends
Something about Harrison Ford caught the eye for George Lucas. I’m not sure if it was Ford’s charisma, his passion for acting, or his skill as a craftsman. Whatever the reason, the key lesson is that Harrison Ford forged a relational connection with George Lucas. He conducted himself in such a way that George Lucas wanted to see him succeed and decided to give him a shot. Whether you’re on the doorstep of your dream or a million miles off course from where you’d hoped to be, improving your people skills is a wise move that will attract opportunities to you.
Have you ever watched a dog chase its shadow? It can be a comical sight. Mistaking the shadow for something concrete and catchable, the dog yaps at it and tries to chase it down. Time after time, the dog dramatically pounces on the shadow, expecting to pin it to the ground. Yet, no matter how hard the dog tries, the shadow always eludes its grasp.
We laugh at the silliness of a dog’s futile attempt to catch a shadow, but it’s not nearly as funny to watch a person try the same routine. Unfortunately, that’s just what many leaders do in life. They chase after a shadow of success, not realizing that what they’re pursuing lacks depth and substance. They’re running after an illusion of success rather than tracking down the real thing.
I’ve found that there are two core fallacies that cause us to have a shadowy view of success. Let’s take a moment to look at each one in greater detail.
Fallacy #1: We see success as a place instead of a process.
Most people have destination disease. They see success as a far-off place where they hopefully will end up in the future. In the meanwhile, they float through life without a sense of urgency. Lacking a plan to get where they want to go and eschewing the hard work needed to get there, people with destination disease rarely arrive at their vision of success.
People with a proper understanding of success know that it is determined by their daily agenda. They’re aware that success has two main ingredients: decisions and discipline. Decisions pave the way to goal-setting while discipline fuels goal-getting. The two traits cannot be separated; one is worthless with out the other.
Good Decisions - Daily Discipline = A Plan without a Payoff
Daily Discipline - Good Decisions = Regimentation without Reward
Good Decisions + Daily Discipline = A Masterpiece of Potential
Successful people know where they want to go. They don’t drift; they drive. Along the way, they pay the price of daily discipline in order to achieve their goals.
Fallacy #2: We measure success by the magnitude of our accomplishments rather than by the richness of our relationships.
Many people envision success as attaining a powerful position, commanding a high salary, or obtaining luxurious possessions. None of these goals are inherently wrong. However, distortion comes when, in striving for “success,” leaders elevate getting above giving. Rather than connecting with and serving their teammates, they slip into self-absorption and start to treat their followers like pawns.
People who live solely for themselves end up by themselves-alone and disconnected. Albert Einstein hit the mark when he said, “Only a life lived for others is worth living.” An unselfish life of service never ceases to be filled with the pleasant company of friends and loved ones. If you desire true success, then put a high value on people, make the effort to form relationships, and invest in those relationships regularly.
“Failure is not an option.”
Gene Kranz, Apollo 13
Unless you’re skydiving, tightrope walking, or trying to land a space shuttle, failure IS an option. In fact, the most successful people usually are the ones who have failed the most. Unafraid to take risks, they stumble frequently, but in doing so they learn valuable lessons and improve themselves.
Consider Google. The California-based firm revolutionized Internet search technology and Internet advertising, and it has created a host of innovative tools such as its mapping service (Google Maps), email platform (Gmail), web browser (Google Chrome), and mobile phone operating system (Android).
But spectacular successes rarely come without spectacular failures. The company massively misfired with Google Wave, a web application designed to integrate email, social networking, and instant messaging. On August 4th, Google announced its decision to shut down the high-profile project, not even a year after its launch. In explaining the decision, Google CEO Eric Schmidt asserted the company’s attitude toward the situation:
“We celebrate our failures. This is a company where it’s absolutely okay to try something that’s very hard, have it not be successful, and take the learning from that.”
Celebrating Failure
Leaders set the tone for how their people view failure. In particular the stance leaders take toward failure affects an organization’s tolerance for risk, openness, creativity, and teamwork. With so much at stake, how can leaders create a culture in which failure is celebrated rather than feared?
1) Encourage Risk-Taking
Leaders invite their people to take risks when they entrust them with the authority to make decisions and the responsibility to exercise their own judgments. People who are empowered to act without having to seek the approval of higher-ups may misstep occasionally. Yet, in the long run they’ll learn invaluable lessons and gain confidence in their own abilities.
2) Set Expectations
Leaders de-stigmatize failure by setting the expectations that, from time to time, people will mess up. Instead of insisting on perfection, seasoned leaders simply desire progress. They concern themselves with effort rather than focusing only on outcomes. To this end, they don’t punish failure; they welcome it as a natural part of life and a necessary step in the process of maturing as a leader.
3) Interpret Setbacks
Some people are their own worst critics. After making a mistake, they have trouble recovering and moving on. Leaders come alongside their teammates to help them interpret failure. Instead of equating an error with disaster, leaders point to the slip-up as a portal of discovery. They frame failure as a learning opportunity and use it to instruct and guide team members.
California redwoods are enormous, majestic trees that can grow taller than a 30-story building. A full-grown California redwood is estimated to weigh greater than one million pounds. The massive redwoods can be so wide that in some places tunnel-like roads have been built through their tree trunks.
A mature California redwood tree is virtually indestructible. It has no known diseases, and insects pose no threat to its health. The thick bark of the redwood even makes it resistant to most fires. Fierce winds are perhaps the tree’s greatest hazard. That’s because, even for trees towering 350 feet, the redwoods’ roots only grow about six feet deep. Erosion or wet soil can weaken the roots to the point where a giant redwood can be brought crashing down by blustery winds.
For a California redwood, a strong root system supplies nourishment to the tree and anchors it to the earth. Character serves the same function for a leader. The strength of a person’s character below the surface sustains his or her success in leadership. Stalwart character gives a leader a base of support from which to withstand the tumults of life.
How, as a leader, do you develop your “roots?”
The first requirement is to shift your attention. As my friend Andy Stanley says, it is a mistake to focus on what you want to do before you’ve decided who you want to be. As leaders, we can be in such a hurry to build our careers that we neglect to lay a solid foundation of integrity in our lives.
The second requirement is to identify specific character qualities that you would like to make a part of your character. Set aside time to ponder this question: when I’m gone, what do I want the people in my life to remember about me? Think about each of the meaningful relationships in your life and write out the response.
Look for patterns in your answers. Words like generous, caring, or courageous may appear. These are the character traits you should hone in on developing.
The third and final requirement is to make the cultivation of character part of your regular routine. At the beginning of each week, strategize concrete ways in which you can demonstrate the character qualities you aspire to attain. If you want to be generous, then what can you give this week? If you would like to be caring, then who can you show regard for over the upcoming week? List out the specific actions you can take to build up your character. Review them during the week, and then evaluate how successful you were at accomplishing them at the week’s end.
If you diligently mold your character within, then over time it won’t matter what you do. Once you’ve grown your roots deep enough, whatever happens to you and whatever you choose to do, you’ll be in demand. With the roots of character to sustain you, you’ll experience true success.
What are the odds of a child in America growing up to play quarterback on a Super Bowl winning team? I’m not sure, but I’m guessing the chances are less than one-in-a-million. Now, what are the odds of two brothers playing quarterback for the Super Bowl winning team in back-to-back years-maybe one-in-a-billion? Yet, that’s exactly what happened for brothers Peyton and Eli Manning. Peyton was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2007 Super Bowl after leading the Indianapolis Colts to the championship. A year later Eli led the underdog New York Giants to a sensational victory in Super Bowl XLII and likewise was recognized as the game’s Most Valuable Player.
How do you account for the stunning success of the Manning brothers?
1) A Mentor to Emulate
Eli and Peyton Manning attribute much of their success to their father Archie, himself a professional quarterback for thirteen seasons. As boys, Archie taught Eli and Peyton the techniques of throwing the football along with the footwork associated with being a quarterback. While his sports-specific lessons surely left an impression on his boys, Archie’s life lessons made the greatest impact. His honesty, work ethic, and exemplary character were on display in the Manning household for his children to see.
2) The Will to Compete
Like any highly successful athletes, Eli and Peyton share a fierce competitive drive. Family dynamics factor into the equation when explaining the Manning’s spirited will to win. Eli and Peyton, along with their older brother Cooper, squared off against one another in countless contests: one-on-one basketball games, ping-pong tournaments, etc. Their good-natured competition to be the best in the family toughened the Manning’s mentally and sharpened their athletic skills.
3) The Willingness to Learn
In addition to their prodigious athletic talents, both Peyton and Eli Manning are diligent students of the game. They scrutinize their performances on video looking for ways to improve, and they spend hours scouting out their opponents searching for weaknesses to exploit. Their knowledge of the game gives them an edge and contributes to their success. In this regard, they take after their father, himself a high school valedictorian dedicated to cultivating his mind.
As you contemplate your leadership effectiveness, take a cue from the Manning’s and consider these questions:
A group of American tourists walked through a quaint English village in wonderment. They were enamored by the town’s winding cobblestone streets, the beauty of its courtyards and plazas, and the sense of history emanating from its ancient churches. While strolling through the local park, the tourists struck up conversation with an elderly gentleman and found out that he had lived in the town for his entire life. One of the Americas, eager to hear more about the town’s history, asked, “Sir, have any great men been born in this village?” “Nope,” said the old man, “only babies.”
Personal Growth Is a Process
In our twenties, we think ahead to when we’ll be ideally situated in our career, positioned to do exactly what we enjoy, and enjoying immense influence in our occupation. Like children on the way to Disneyland, we impatiently await arrival at our destination instead of appreciating the journey there. However, as we age we encounter an uncomfortable truth: growth doesn’t happen automatically. We cannot coast through life hoping one day to stumble across our dreams. Unless we set aside time to grow into the person we desire to be, we’ll not reach our potential.
Leaders develop daily, not in a day. They commit themselves to the process of growth, and over time they reap the rewards of daily investments in their development. In this lesson, I’d like to share five principles to encourage you to adopt a lifestyle of personal growth.
#1 Growth is the great separator of those who succeed and those who do not.
When I went to college, there was no gap between my peers and me-none at all. We started on the same level. However, at the age of 17, I made a commitment to spend an hour a day on my personal growth. I studied and read, filing the lessons I learned along the way. Now, in most cases, the gap between my former classmates and me is pretty wide. Am I smarter than they are? Absolutely not. Many of them got better grades than I did in college. It’s the growth factor-my commitment to the process of personal growth-that has made the difference.
#2 Growth takes time, and only time can teach us some things.
When it comes to personal growth, you cannot substitute for time. Yet, the mere passage of time doesn’t make you wise. Experience is not the best teacher; evaluated experience is the best teacher. To gain insights from your experience, you have to engage in reflective thinking. I have a habit of taking ten minutes every evening to look back on the day. As I reflect on what happened, lessons emerge, and I capture them in my notebook so that I can learn from them.
#3 Growth inside fuels growth outside.
The highest reward of our toil is not what we get for it, but who we become by it. At the age of 17, I decided that I would read, file, and begin to prepare lessons. From that simple discipline I accumulated a wealth of content that fueled my speaking and writing. I never set out to be a leadership specialist; I was simply diligent about reading, filing, and studying. With respect to personal growth, take the long view on results. The most important question to ask is not “What am I getting?” from the discipline of personal growth, the most important question is, “Who am I becoming?”
#4 Take responsibility for your own growth.
For 15 to 20 years, the school system holds us responsible for growth. Educational curriculum clearly spells out, “here’s what you do next,” and “here’s the next step.” Then we graduate with diplomas and certificates, and we no one longer have anyone to map out the next step for us. If we want to continuing growing, we have to do it ourselves. We have to put together a game plan so that we become students of life who are always expanding our minds and drawing upon our experiences.
#5 Determine the areas of your life in which you need to grow.
You’ve probably heard someone say, “You can do anything as long as you put your mind to it.” Sadly, as nice as that sounds, it simply isn’t true. In watching people grow, I have discovered that, on a scale of 1-10, people can only improve about two notches. For instance, I love to sing; that’s the good news. The bad news is that I can’t carry a tune. Now, let’s be generous and say that, as a singer, I’m a “two.” If I put lots of money, effort, and energy into developing my voice, perhaps I can grow into a “four.” News flash: on a ten-point scale, four is still below average. With regards to my career, it would be foolish for me to focus my personal growth on my voice. At best, I’d only become an average singer, and no one pays for average.
Don’t work on your weaknesses. Devote yourself to fine-tuning your strengths. I work exceptionally hard on personal growth in four areas of my life. Why only four? Because I’m only good at four things. I lead, communicate, create, and network. That’s it. Outside of those areas, I’m not very valuable. However, within those areas of strength I have incredible potential to make a difference.
A class clown who devoted more time to sports than studies, Bill Cosby flunked the 10th grade and dropped out of high school to join the Navy. While rehabbing injured Korean War servicemen as a physical therapist, Cosby took note of the ethic of personal growth in his fellow navy men. In addition to fulfilling their duties as naval officers, many of his peers were also taking high school and college courses via correspondence.
As Cosby watched his friends struggle with schoolwork that he had no trouble comprehending, he came to two realizations. First, he had above-average intelligence. Second, he was committing a “mental sin” by wasting his intellectual talent. Resolved to make use of his smarts, Cosby enrolled in a distance-learning high school program and gained his diploma.
With a high school degree in hand, Bill Cosby hoped to attend college after his four-year stint with the navy ended. His application impressed Temple University, and he gained admittance. Thanks to his exceptional athleticism (Cosby could run a 10.2 second, 100-yard dash), he was awarded a track and field scholarship.
Although his tuition was paid for, Cosby took a job as a bartender to pay for his room and board. His wit and humor connected with customers who demanded to hear more of his jokes. As word spread about the comical bartender, Cosby began receiving opportunities to entertain audiences as a paid comedian.
As his popularity grew, Cosby faced a choice: should he stay in school or pursue a career in comedy? He agonized over the choice, but decided to dropout of school for the second time in his life. He quickly attained fame, lining up performances across America in major cities, appearing on The Tonight Show, and recording a comedy album.
Bill Cosby’s reputation jumped another level after he was cast in the espionage adventure, I Spy. As the show’s co-star, he captured three consecutive Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series. Yet for Cosby, fame was never the endgame. While he enjoyed making people laugh, he felt motivated by a deeper responsibility. In particular, he was burdened by the plight of children who were poorly educated. In trying to figure out how he could contribute to education in America, Cosby felt the need to increase his understanding of how kids learn. So, as a celebrity in his mid-30s, Bill Cosby went back to school.
Despite not having completed his undergraduate studies, the University of Massachusetts admitted Cosby based on the merit of his career accomplishments. Over the course of the 1970s, Bill Cosby earned his masters degree and doctorate in education. Armed with newfound knowledge Cosby leveraged his talent like never before. He starred in the educational programs Children’s Theater (NBC) and Electric Company (PBS), hosted Picture Pages and Wake Up (CBS) and then, in the 1980s, produced and acted in one of the all-time great sitcoms, The Cosby Show.
As The Cosby Show made its run, Cosby expanded his repertoire by developing his skills as an author. His comical yet poignant writing led to successful books on fatherhood, marriage, and childhood. Now in the twilight of his career, Cosby remains active, lobbying for educational reform and raising funds for educational charities.
Summary
The life story of Bill Cosby attests to the power of personal growth. Having neglected education early in life, in his twenties, Cosby dedicated himself to developing his potential. Getting his high school degree put him back on track in life. Then, even after achieving stardom, Cosby felt compelled to sharpen his mind by going back to college. He didn’t rest on his success but kept pushing himself to grow. Later in life, he continued learning-gaining competence as a producer and author.
How does contemplating Bill Cosby’s life impact you? Have you made a commitment to personal growth? Do you have a system to aid you in continual learning?
As any farmer knows, the growth of a crop only happens when the right ingredients are present. To harvest plentiful fields, the farmer has to begin by planting the right seed in rich topsoil where sunlight and water can help the seed to sprout, mature, and bear fruit. If any of the ingredients (seeds, topsoil, sunlight, or water) are missing, the crop won’t grow.
Growing as a leader also requires the proper ingredients. Unless the right attitudes and actions are cultivated an aspiring leader will sputter and fail rather than growing in influence. Let’s look at five basic qualities essential for growth in leadership.
1) Teachability
Arrogance crowds out room for improvement. That’s why humility is the starting point for personal growth. As Erwin G. Hall said, “An open mind is the beginning of self-discovery and growth. We can’t learn anything new until we can admit that we don’t already know everything.”
Adopting a beginner’s mindset helps you to be teachable. Beginners are aware that they don’t know it all, and they proceed accordingly. As a general rule, they’re open and humble, noticeably lacking in the rigidity that often accompanies experience and achievement. It’s easy enough to have a beginner’s mind when you’re actually a beginner, but maintaining teachability gets trickier in the long term especially when you’ve already achieved some degree of success.
2) Sacrifice
Growth as a leader involves temporary loss. It may mean giving up familiar but limiting patterns, safe but unrewarding work, values no longer believed in, or relationships that have lost their meaning. Whatever the case, everything we gain in life comes as a result of sacrificing something else. We must give up to go up.
3) Security
To keep learning throughout life, you have to be willing, no matter what your position is, to say, “I don’t know.” It can be hard for executives to admit lacking knowledge because they feel as if everyone is looking to them for direction, and they don’t want to let people down their people. However, followers aren’t searching for perfection in their leaders. They’re looking for an honest, authentic, and courageous leader who, regardless of the obstacles facing the organization, won’t rest until the problem is solved.
It took me seven years to hit my stride as a communicator. During those seven years I gave some boring speeches, and I felt discouraged at times. However, I was secure enough to keep taking the stage and honing my communication skills until I could connect with an audience. Had I been insecure, then the negative evaluations of others would have sealed my fate and I never would have excelled in my career.
4) Listening
Listen, learn, and ask questions from somebody successful who has gone on before you. Borrow from their experiences so that you can avoid their mistakes and emulate their triumphs. Solicit feedback and take to heart what you’re told. The criticism of friends may seem bitter in the short-term but, when heeded, it can save you from falling victim to your blind spots.
5) Application
Knowledge has a limited shelf life. Unless used immediately or carefully preserved, it spoils and becomes worthless. Put the lessons you learn into practice so that your insights mature into understanding.
( source : http://www.giantimpact.com)
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