If You Lead It, They Will Come

One of the most famous investors of the 20th and 21st century was arguably Warren Buffett. He made billions investing in stocks and trading in the value of other people's businesses. One of his most famous lines for picking a good stock or business to invest in was famously “money follows management”.

In many years of working with business and observing businesses of all shapes and sizes, I have to confess that this is a highly accurate statement. I've seen some of the worst ideas come to life and turn a healthy profit simply because the person managing the business really understood the mechanics of business and how to manage it well.  On the flip side, I've equally seen exceptional products and services never quite make it past the startup phase because the owner simply didn't educate themselves enough on how to manage a business. I don't think this is the business owner’s fault or failure, I simply think that managing a business involves a very wide breadth of skills and taking them all on by yourself can be a sort of maddening endeavour.

So how do we overcome this massive skill gap when we're trying to build our dreams and build it to a level that people gravitate towards us just like Kevin Costner’s ghost field? What magic can we draw from the air around us to simply make things work in our favour and learn how to holistically manage well?

Over the years, there is one brand of magic I've seen move mountains and influence thousands of people to bend to their will and gravitate towards their dreams… making a dream into a reality. And it's this one simple thing called leadership.

But not leadership as you might know it.

Leadership is not a buzz word or a job title. Leadership is a way of thinking and acting as only a leader can. And there actually different phases of leadership, which is another aspect of business that many people don't share and talk about enough.

The very first phase of leadership is self leadership. Self leadership is not the same as being a self starter or being self sufficient or being self aware. Leading one's self is a way of being present in every aspect of our day and understanding that leadership starts with the thoughts, actions and habits that begin when no one else is looking.

Some of the worst operational managers I've come across have had the same mindset and thoughts towards their staff base and customers. It is an undeniable cause and effect that I've seen over and over again throughout my years in business where if an operations manager has negative thoughts about their staff, their staff in turn will perform extremely poorly and never feel the sense of leadership and support that they could have from a positive experience through that operational manager.

But operational managers do not start out thinking negatively about staff. They start out thinking of themselves as capable managers and expect others to fall into place around them. In fact, their thinking towards staff begins with that time before they become managers when no one else is looking. Those thoughts towards others, either positive or negative, begin like a seed planted in the earth. All the elements of their life their, career and their experiences come together,  in the perfect storm that shapes their opinions of others, their actions towards others, and the habitual choices and influence they exert in their role.

If one can lead one's self with positivity, with responsibility, with open-mindedness and agility, with a sense of curiosity, and the fundamental understanding of cause and effect … this is the first phase in exceptional leadership.

Learning to lead oneself creates the perfect environment for understanding how to lead others. In the next phase of leadership where we may manage a small team, or even just one other person, the next layer to leadership is empathy and emotional intelligence. Understanding how other people think, feel, respond and regulate their emotions in a group environment creates a working culture that feeds into positive, competent leadership. And that's you.

As your team grows and develops, we move beyond self-leadership and empathising with others to creating a vision for the future. Having the skills and positive environment to lead others is only matched by having a clear vision and direction for where you are leading people to. People can only follow a leader if they're moving in a forward direction with clarity.

Leadership can sometimes be confused with charisma and influence. But true leadership is understanding that our thoughts create our actions, and our actions create habits, and those habits no matter how small are observed and followed by the people around us. It takes more than a winning personality and an articulate voice to truly lead well and to build a business that people want to gravitate to and follow your lead.

Leadership can be learned.

Start with your thoughts. The main ingredients of leadership thinking are:

-          being clear enough on your future to choose a path

-          being comfortable with making mistakes and failing

-          being brave to take responsibility regardless of the outcome

-          understanding that there's no such thing as ‘cannot’ but simply that there are only problems seeking solutions

-          accepting that people are imperfect including one’s self

-          knowing that you may not know everything

-          understanding that everybody is just trying to do the best they can and sometimes to be the best they need guidance, including one's self.

These foundational thoughts allow us to take actions that always move forward in a positive, inclusive, and mature way. They permit us to make mistakes and try again and to keep seeking the information and opinions we need to solve problems even when the challenge appears to be insurmountable. It also encourages us to guide, mentor and lead others with equality towards a common goal.

Leadership forms the foundation for sustainability and growth in every aspect of your business.

If you want to build your dream business … everything can be learned, every problem can be overcome, and every staff member and client can gravitate towards your business vision. But it doesn't come with building the perfect business, it comes with creating oneself as the perfect leader, even if we are imperfect and stumble along the way.

Here’s a few simple ways to build your self-leadership skills…

1.      Catch negative thoughts before they become an internal conversation. The longer your inner voice dwells on the negative thought, the more connections your brain is making to solidify the idea as truth.

2.      Avoid gossip…like the plague. Gossip is a way of coping with challenge, without overcoming it. When we gossip, we are externalising the issue to something outside our control…we literally turn OFF the solution-seeking part of our brain.

3.      Encourage, don’t criticise. Accept and embrace imperfection, everywhere and in everyone. When we voice appreciation for intent and effort, instead of criticising the imperfections, we are acknowledging that someone tried something and lost, but we can still learn from it and support and guide the next steps.

4.      Say ‘no’ with confidence. We must follow our own path and vision. When we say ‘yes’ to every opportunity and every request, we derail our path and create ambiguity. You essentially regress into building someone else’s vision.

5.      Own responsibility with intent. As the manager, as the leading force, as the operational driver, you are at the helm and you are responsible for everything that follows. By owning ALL responsibility, you take control in directing how and when to steer the business vehicle down the path. This makes our brain a problem solving leader, rather than a victim of chance.