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Leadership is about serving your people. In other words it’s not all about you. Use a daily self-edit as a useful exercise to maintain perspective and a sense of contribution. On your way home, in the car, on the bus, or in the train, ask yourself the following three questions. The answers to these questions will provide a useful internal dialogue about how you performed as a leader today. We all learn from reflecting on our actions. We learn by reflecting on the “doing” and integrating those learning’s into our “being” a leader.
1. What did I contribute today? (A value question)
We all ask the big question, “why am I here?” I believe we have the gift to touch somebody’s life and create a positive memory. A servant leader is inspired to add value to somebody’s life.
Peter Drucker, said, “The effective leader focuses on contribution.
He asks: What can I contribute that will significantly affect the performance and the results of the institution I http://viagrapillnow.com/ serve?”
In other words, did I make a difference today? Did I add value to create a competitive edge for my team and as a result, the organisation is performing better?Life is expanded when we make a contribution. Meaningful contribution adds an abundance of meaning to your quality of life with other people.
2. What did I communicate today? (A mentoring question)
Leaders have to communicate daily with their teams. It’s a big part of a leader’s responsibility to ensure on-going, two- way communication is part of their daily agenda. Ask yourself: did you provide new information today? Did you share something about the organisations direction and goals to increase people’s awareness of the overall big picture? How did you inform, educate and explain new initiatives to your team? As you reflect on these communication questions, remember it’s about your ability to communicate clearly so that your team has the ability to carry your vision forward to deliver the results you communicated. Many leaders get frustrated when their teams don’t understand why a certain initiative or a project didn’t meet its objectives. This is the time to reflect on how well you communicated and engaged with your teams to create that sense of urgency to your goals.
3. Who did I thank today? (A recognition question)
We are not alone in producing results. As a leader, it’s up to you to set the tone for a positive working environment. Leaders are judged by the environments they create. Are you saying thank you regularly? Are you recognising and appreciating people’s efforts and contributions? Do you encourage positive feedback? Take the time to reflect whether you helped and facilitated that type of environment. As leadership sage, John Maxwell says, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.