To Serve Is To Lead

Leadership is not a title. Nor is it a right. It is not an excuse to boss others around. It doesn’t bestow upon its owner powers over others’ choices, values or decisions. Leadership is service. It is putting others first—their interests, concerns and needs. It is not glamorous. Any perks are outweighed by its responsibility and magnitude. And it is never about the leader. 

Leadership is not about the leader. It’s about those being led—the organization and its employees. Inherent in leadership is a paradox—to lead one must serve, to lead one must have others’ interests first. 

For all the alphas out there such advice seems counter intuitive. Alphas want to take the hill, storm the castle and bask in the glory. A leader’s team, however, wants to know and feel appreciated and wants to see, through the leader’s actions, that their interests are at the forefront of the leader’s mind and heart. The team will buy into the leader’s vision and mission if that vision and mission is as much about them as it is about the leader.

Effective leadership begins with defining a vision where the organization and its employees, not its leaders, are served. This selfless approach breeds loyalty. Prioritizing others motivates them to prioritize the leader and her vision. Caring for others, expressing sincere interest in their interests, empowering them to fulfill their goals within the organization, propels them to reach beyond themselves and serve as the leader serves, serving others and the organization.  Selflessness is a virtue often extolled but rarely exercised. Putting others first is difficult to practice, but once done it becomes contagious. 

An organization requires everyone to put forth their best and sacrifice a bit of themselves for it. Leading by example and sacrificing for others promotes self-sacrifice. By showing others one cares for them, they will care, promote and support the vision. They in turn will sacrifice for others on the team.

Serving others cannot be a ploy. It is not a show one puts on to con others to do one’s bidding. It is authentic and born of good character. One serves because one values service. One serves because serving the greater good is ingrained in one’s personal mission long before it is reflected in one’s company’s mission.

And this brings us to hiring. Hiring begins and ends with character. Servant leaders can be created but it’s so much easier when you start with an employee that has a servant’s heart. True team players, those who subjugate themselves for the greater good and the good of others, those folks are the loyal ones whom you want to hire. Learn more about prospective employees’ attitudes and actions at their prior jobs and at organizations they volunteer for to dive deeper into their character. One can teach others how to be servant leaders, but one can’t teach them to want to be servant leaders. Core values are developed and ingrained over time.  Service, loyalty, selflessness—identify these values in candidates and hire them. They will buy into the vision and advance the mission.

In short, teach servant leadership and hire servant leaders.