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How Setting the Example Builds Great Teams

Written by: Marshall W. Northcott

Article Overview: We live in a monkey see, monkey do world! Men and women want to follow those who aren't affraid to lead the way not with their words, but with their example. Discover how setting the example can make the difference for you, read on...

How Setting the Example Builds Great Teams

Dictators demand, "Do as I say, not as I do." However with human beings, the rule of thumb more often than not is, "Monkey see, monkey do!" Or even worse, for that matter, followers will do fifty percent of what you do right and one hundred percent of what you do wrong.

Get around a group of people that respect and admire the leadership and they will noticeably copy and mimic them. They will do so in their fashion choices, physical posture, body language, facial gestures, tone of voice and even vocabulary. In addition, on the up side, they will pick up on the good habits and on the down side, the vices of those setting the example. Is the example that you set worthy of being followed?

In a leadership role every move is scrutinized under the microscope. Whatever you choose to teach them, good or bad they will pick up on once they have made a conscious or subconscious decision that they want to follow your leadership.

Are there some questionable techniques, ideas or methods that you or your leaders, have modeled as acceptable practices? If not you have no worries. If the answer is yes, you may wish to rethink what you have taught and let your team know that you have had a change of heart. Give people an example that is worthy of modeling.

You've likely heard the saying, "The apple doesn't fall too far from the tree." This statement refers to the behaviors and habits of children as compared to their parents. The same applies to followers of leadership. If they spend enough time around you during work hours or socializing afterwards, if they admire and respect you, they will begin to emulate you in many ways.

I once heard someone say, "I enlisted in the military in my younger years and there, I encountered all kinds of people, with all kinds of morals." "I decided to try them all." Unfortunately there is a majority of people in this world who aren't free independent thinkers. They don't have a strong sense of values, moral judgment or a rigid standard for codes of conduct so they just go with the flow. That is a good thing if your goal is to influence and persuade people to follow your way of thinking or doing things. However for them, if they are being shown ways of conducting themselves personally and professionally or doing business that are illegal, immoral or unethical, they could be headed down a path of personal destruction.

My encouragement to you is that you really think about what you want from your team. Write out what you expect from them in terms of performance, behaviors, habits and actions. What principles and practices do you want them to follow? How do you want them to conduct themselves when interacting internally with other staff and externally when working with customers? What sort of work ethic do you want them to have? How do you want them to manage challenges and problems that arise? How do you want them to think when you aren't available to make a decision? What skills must they master in order to be able to do their job effectively? Once you have gone through the exercise of answering these questions, begin to ask yourself how do I stack up when I ask myself these very same questions? Do your leadership standards benchmark a level of character, integrity and workmanship that exceeds the grade?

A self conscious, fearful leader has no desire to grow and develop his or her people. The leaders they promote are the whining, sniveling, "yes" men and women on their staff. They don't want their people to become strong independent thinkers who can stand squarely on their own two feet because these people are a threat. They feed off of the dependency of their followers. A strong leader knows that the only way they can build a strong organization that will flourish beyond them is if they create solid leadership within. Will you be proud when one of your people says, "I just did what I was shown"? It all begins with the example that you set for the team.

"What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Article Tags: Leadership by Example, Leading by Example, Sales Leadership, Sales Management, Team Building



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