The Importance of Character in Leadership

Each person is a leader in some capacity: as a big brother or sister, a parent, an employer, a manager, or a mentor.  Each person also chooses whom they will follow.  Our choices are either going to encourage or discourage those who look to us for inspiration. 

Dr. Tim Elmore, a leadership expert, likes to teach using word pictures.  One that has stuck with me is the Iceberg illustration.  Ten percent of the mass of the iceberg is visible above the water line while ninety percent of its mass remains invisible below the water line.  The visible part of the iceberg is not what sinks a ship; it is the invisible part.  In his illustration, Dr. Elmore likens the visible part of the iceberg to the ten percent of our character that we show the people around us, and he likens the invisible part to the ninety percent that is the real us.  That ninety percent is how we act when we think no one is looking at us and is what will determine our success as leaders.  If we compromise in our character and integrity in our private lives, it will sink our proverbial ship in our public lives, but no one will have seen it coming.

As leaders, it is essential to be diligent to maintain our honor and integrity in all areas of our lives.  Our success is not measured in bottom line profits or losses, but rather by the positive or negative impact that we make on the lives of the people around us.  Personally, I endeavor to leave people in a better place in their lives for having met me.  I want to be a blessing to people not a source of hurt or frustration.  I encourage you to take the time to examine your life ‘below the water line.’  Are there any changes that you need to make so that you do not sink your life or the lives of those around you?  If so, make the necessary changes, or have the courage to ask for help to make them.

Remember why!

Knowing why you started your home business is essential in getting started, but remembering why you started your home business is the key to staying motivated.  Sometimes our businesses don’t grow as fast as we thought they would, and we can get discouraged and want to give up.  When we feel like quitting, we have to remember why we started down this road in the first place. 

I started with Ignite with the goal of building my business to the point where I can live off its income, so that I can focus on my real passion, my Biblical counseling ministry.  I want to be able to offer my counseling services for free.  The only way I will be able to do that is to generate an income elsewhere.  My grand vision is to generate enough income to be able to support other Biblical ministry and missionaries by teaching them to build their own Ignite business as well as donating funds to solid ministries. 

When I get tired or discouraged, I review my why, pray, and get refocused on Jesus building Ignite through me.  I get excited when I think of what God can do for me with Ignite, and then what He can do through me with the excess funds He provides me.  I don’t want to accumulate lots of stuff; I want to send as much ahead as possible by reinvesting it into building the Kingdom of God.  I don’t mean to sound super spiritual; I just get excited about being able to give big to Jesus. 

So, what is your why?  Don’t compare it to mine; that’s not my point.  You have to know why you started your business, and you have to remember it every day.  Your why is what will direct your business goals and strategies.  If you haven’t already, sit down and write out your why, and then post it where you will see it.  Never lose sight of your WHY!

The Power of Positive Thinking

I am not a big fan of ‘spin doctors.’   I am more comfortable with someone who is straight up with me.  There are times when our circumstances are painful and difficult.  At the same time, as a Biblical counselor, I also know that where I set my mind directly determines what I feel emotionally.  So, it is critical to build the habit of looking for something positive in every situation. 

Positive thinking staves off discouragement.  One of my Ignite leaders made the statement, “If you think you can, you will.  If you think you can’t, you won’t.”  I find this to be very true.  As soon as a person starts thinking, “I can’t do this,” they are inches away from giving up.  There is a Bible verse that says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13).  Now, that is a positive mind set.  All means all.  There is no exception to this principle for the person who has trusted Jesus as their Savior. 

As a Christian, I realize that God measures success differently from this world.  The world measures success strictly on the outcome of my performance, my appearance, my income and possessions, and my social network.  God measures success on my attitude in the midst of my performance.  When I submit to obeying God’s will for me and I do the task with the mindset of Jesus doing it through me, I have been successful in God’s eyes regardless of actual outcome of my performance.  Living out of this positive mindset frees me from the fear of worldly failure and from the snare of discouragement when my efforts do not yield the results for which I hoped.  I have also found that living out of this attitude of total submission to and dependence on Jesus, more often than not, yields positive outcomes from my efforts. 

So, look for positive to focus on in every situation.  This will help you fend off discouragement and keep you from quitting.  Failure is often the backdoor to success, but only if you look at your failures in a positive way!

An Effective Leader is a Servant

One of the things that I found so appealing about working for Ignite, the marketing division of Stream Energy, is their emphasis on Servant Leadership.  In order to develop a successful Ignite team, you have to be willing to serve the people who join your team.  This means that you have to be willing to sacrifice your time and energy to help your teammates reach their goals.  The reality is that when they reach their goals, you reach your goals.  So, all your sacrifice for them is really an investment in them that will pay off in the long run. 

What happens to any business when its leaders are selfish and fail to serve their workers?  The morale of the workers sinks, and their production drops.  When workers see their leaders sacrifice for them, they are motivated to work harder to prosper the company.  As a leader, you need to foster an environment of mutual support and respect in order for your workers or teammates to be motivated to work diligently.

Think Strategically

Now that we’ve set our 2012 goals, how are we going to achieve them.  I suppose it is a little like the odd question, “How do you eat an elephant?”  One bite at a time.  I recommend developing weekly strategies on Monday mornings.  Look at your yearly goals and then determine at least 5 things you are going to do that week in order to reach the goal that is earliest on your timeline.  Schedule these strategic steps into your week’s calendar, and check it every day to remind you of what you need to do to accomplish that week’s objectives.

Remember to stay flexible in order to keep your emotions stable.  The only person we can control is ourselves.  We cannot control if people answer the phone when we want to talk to them; we cannot control or predict emergencies that require our attention; we cannot control the weather or traffic.  Only God is in control!  So, staying flexible in our expectations of others and life’s circumstances will empower us to adjust to unexpected circumstances and not to be subject to emotional ups and downs when things don’t go our way.

Resolutions

This is a great time of the year not only to evaluate our personal lives but also to establish our business resolutions for the New Year.  The old adage, “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time” is just as true in business as it is in our personal lives.  So, here is a reminder in how to develop S.M.A.R.T. resolutions for your business. 

S – Specific:  Resolving to make more money is too vague.  Think about what percentage you want to see your bottom line increase this year.  How many employees do you want to be able to hire because your business is expanding?  How many new clients do you want to gain this year?

M – Measurable:  Resolutions should be quantifiable in some capacity.  You have to be able to measure a goal in order to know if you have achieved it.  Make your resolutions statistically measurable.

A – Accountable:  Share your resolutions with your key staff members who will own them as well and review them in staff meetings to keep each other accountable to accomplish them.  If you don’t have a staff, enlist a close friend, find a mentor or hire a life coach to provide you the needed accountability to accomplish your resolutions.

R – Realistic:  Keeping your resolutions firmly based on reality enables you to set your aim at a reasonable level.  Doing so, helps provide encouragement and prevent discouragement.  To hit a bulls eye target, you have to aim in the middle.  Setting your sights too high or too low both result in missing the mark.  Keep you resolutions real!

T – Time frame:  Set a date to achieve your resolutions.  This helps keep you motivated and focused on achieving your goals at an effective pace.  If you don’t set a date, it is likely that you will either take too long to accomplish the goal or not get it done at all. 

Now, go set your business resolutions for 2012, and make it a great year!