“If you can’t take me beyond where I’ve already gone, where I am now, what I’ve already experienced, and/or what I already know, why am I following you?”

Now isn’t that an interesting question? But unbeknownst to too many leaders, that is the question those who follow us ask themselves subconsciously every day. So leaders, have we asked ourselves the same question? And more importantly, do we have any good answers?

This question is simply meant to challenge us and to help ensure we remain focused on leading from the front. Our organization’s success, growth, and development is never limited to finances but always includes our most valuable asset – our personnel. Thus, if we truly are only as strong as our weakest link, we can never afford to be that person.

We must understand that leading from the front requires our own growth and objectivity. It requires for us to make an investment before we can expect a return. So leaders, let’s talk. What exactly are we doing to develop the assets within our companies? What exactly do we provide to those we are responsible to lead? What goals will we help them attain? What skills will we help them develop? What are we doing to shape their lives both presently and for their future? And how exactly are we doing this?

To obtain answers to these questions, we must be willing to honestly examine our leadership impact. And this can be accomplished by taking an analytical view of our organization from an “eagle’s eye” objective perspective. We must examine every detail from initial contact with our company to customer (and employee) retention to identify where we can improve and grow.  We must be able to clearly see the Power and Responsibility of leadership itself.

The Power of leadership provides the opportunity to influence, shape, impart, develop, build, and direct. Leadership is a privilege and we must never fail to remember that it is about transformation. Thus, nothing we touch should remain unchanged and unimpacted in a profitable manner. And this is Responsibility of leadership – we are accountable for positive outcomes and obligated to those we lead / serve.

In example, today I identified the person I should help “groom” for my Executive Director chair when I transition to greater opportunities. Was I intimated by this “revelation?” Not at all – it was actually very liberating! It gave me an opportunity to sit back and look from an “eagle’s eye” perspective across the company for individuals that could take this individual’s current position and so on.  It brought a different level of excitement to my day, as I saw many opportunities for growth and development.

Our success is always beyond meeting or exceeding the financial goals, growth projections, service metrics, etc. Our success as leaders is inclusive of our ability to help develop a stronger workforce.

© 2017 Kassandra McGhee