We are what we constantly do. Leaders accept an inherent, social responsibility to exhibit honesty, inner coherence, courage, a keen sense of justice, right use of power, and understanding of “for the common good.” Effective leadership employs those principles and exacts positive change. Who is the chief vehicle for activating your vision of success for your organization? Our approach to human relations and to what does or does not work is reflected in through all organizational stakeholders from associates up to the C-Suite.
All employees can become productive. Leadership is a breeding ground, launch pad, point of origin, or spark that ignites the imaginations and energizes the internal drive of the employees it serves. SERVICE is the essence of leadership and leadership is the compass for organizational direction. Leadership influences how employees approach their profession, how clients perceive their experience, how the industry views the effectiveness of the organization, and how character is demonstrated throughout.
I have to admit here that I firmly believe in assertions from Steven Covey where he wrote on the habits of highly effective people: being proactive, beginning with the end in mind, putting first things first, thinking win/win, seeking first to understand, then to be understood, synergizing, and sharpening the proverbial saw.
- Do you already possess a proactive mindset, think in terms of win/win in most areas of decision-making, and able to put your hands on organizational synergy?
- Who is keenly proficient in the areas of planning, prioritizing, sympathy and empathy, personal/professional balance at each level of your organization?
- How do these ideals fit into your personal leadership philosophy?
Beginning with the end in mind is vital to realizing any vision. It is the guide as one plans, designs, and constructs the future. It is using where you want to go to analyze where you are and how to get there. The end goal is or should be the focal point of every initiative, policy, practice, and purpose.
- Has your long-range planning and overall approach to organizational success been influenced by any consideration of this ideal?
I am much more patient and understanding of early failures and hiccups towards progress because I have been able to visualize where I want to be and how those occurrences further enhanced that experience. It is the driving force of my coaching, instruction, teaching, and training. There is no substitute to effective planning and effective planning begins with the end in mind.
Putting first things first may be the most challenging aspect of developing organizational philosophies about human relations and leadership. Simply put, the clients come first, but there are so many clients to be served in so many ways, that leaders constantly evolve in how to approach prioritizing… many organizations have gaps in the understanding and execution of its vision and mission at the varying stakeholder levels.
- Is the group more important than the individual?
- At what point do accommodations become concessions?
- Are my programs employee-centered or client-centered?
The ability to prioritize is a definitive trait of any effective leader… it goes hand-in-hand with empathic capacity.
Here we go! Our challenge for today… Have your HR division identify names at every level of the organization that can readily assert the following:
1) I now fully appreciate the value of personal and professional balance. Spirituality, family, profession, and financial security are still the motivating factors in my life.
2) I can accept and remedy the fact that occasionally these fall out of balance.
3) My time away from my job is as important as the time I commit to it.
4) I am better at what I do as a leader because of who I am when I am not.
Consider Cummings Consulting LLC for your organizational development planning.
Demand excellence.