Where to Look to Determine the Value You Provide as a Leader

My assumption is that every leader wants to improve his or her effectiveness in causing specific measurable desired results in his or her organization as part of a commitment to profitably grow their business.

So where to look to get evidence that your leadership is effective, and where not to look:

1) Look for the insights that get generated and acted on by the people you lead - not in what you say, no matter how brilliant you think it is

2) In having your people discover the belief systems that are not valid - not in the ideas you generate or the advice you give

3) In seeing your own actions that are inconsistent with espoused commitments and values and correcting, because people pay more attention to what you do than what you say - not in pointing out the inconsistencies and inauthenticities of others

4) In the specific measurable results that are being produced and in the behaviors of your people - not in your opinions, your story, your feelings or thoughts

5) In your capacity to forward a possibility you have committed to - not in your ability to get agreement (or lip service)

6) Your ability to identify and resolve problems, conflicts and breakdowns - not in your ability to diplomatically smooth things out

7) Your ability to enroll others, to gain alignment and cause coordinated action to build high performing teams - not in you power to command and control

8) Your ability to acknowledge, praise, validate and appreciate actions, outcomes and ways of behaving that are consistent with your intentions - not in focusing on complaining, correcting and chastising.

THE most effective leaders see their organization's performance as directly correlated to their own leadership effectiveness. If the organization is underperforming then so are you.