Success Through the Power of Presence

The harsh reality of leadership is that it is a messy process. It is not like a morning routine where you brush your teeth, slap on some aftershave, and proclaim yourself a leader. What worked in the past could be ineffective today, and each day you must convince a group of strangers that the goal they are attempting is necessary. A great leader creates conditions for a team to succeed, while a poor one creates failure out of the ether. My leadership journey in the business community began twenty years ago, and I have discovered a few insights along the way. Today, I want to share two of them.  

Rank Has Responsibilities –

When you lead others, you have two responsibilities. The first is to look after the well-being and growth of your people. You eat last and make sure everyone else is safe before taking a break. The other responsibility is making sure the team accomplishes its goals. When I was a high school student, a former company commander from Vietnam, Lieutenant Colonel Richard Weidner, instilled that message in me. As a teenager, I did not fully understand that lesson, but thanks to my business experiences, it is crystal clear.

Leaders often receive special treatment and perks as part of the job. Luxury offices, eyewatering compensation, and unearned respect come with the job. What many people do not see is the pressure from the board of directors, the emotional labor it takes to maintain team unity, and the constant demands on your time and energy. Geographically distributed teams make this more challenging because you must make fit sleep and family commitments into wildly divergent time zones. The perks are often compensation for the pressure.

Poor leaders enjoy the perks and are paranoid about their responsibilities. They are aware that a missed report, poor attention to detail, or a moment of carelessness can lead to a demotion or unemployment. I suspect this is why micromanagement is so prevalent in the business community. Leaders do not take the time to train their people to do good work, and so they get into an abusive cycle of obsessing over details and pestering the people whom they should help succeed. The lack of trust is palpable, hurting the team's morale and hindering your ability to get things done. It is why, before you enjoy the privileges of rank, you must master the responsibilities.

It Is Never About You –

During the Paris Olympics, Steve Kerr was a nervous wreck. He had a team of all-stars and was the favorite to win an Olympic Gold medal. Kerr was aware that the French national team was dangerous and that many of his players were recovering from the NBA playoffs. As a championship coach and player, he understood that anything could go wrong during the tournament. Despite those pressures, Kerr trusted his team. Behind the scenes, he helped players work together, and when things got tense in the gold medal game, he counted on veterans to find ways to score. It was not a public or heroic performance of leadership, but rather professionalism and trust that won the gold medal.

Kerr understood his role as a mentor, facilitator, and emotional shock absorber for the team. Good leaders understand this and let their team succeed. Poor leaders make the team's success and failure about themselves. It is never about the coach's personal ambitions or desires, but about the team's success. When you understand that you can focus on what matters, which is the team. Often, we send the wrong message that highly visible leaders inspire great teams. The truth is that great leaders get out of the way and facilitate good teams becoming great. Looking at Steve Kerr and his career illustrates that great leaders have skill but also depend on their teams to build trust. They also get out of the way when necessary. It is a hard lesson to learn, but one that will pay off in the long run.

Wrapping up –

Ultimately, leadership is a demanding, often messy discipline that requires much more than simply occupying a high-level office or enjoying executive perks. To be truly effective, you must first master the dual responsibilities of ensuring your team's well-being and achieving your collective goals. By shifting the focus away from your own ambitions and acting as a facilitator who trusts and empowers others, you create the conditions necessary for a good team to become great. While these lessons are often learned through years of pressure and experience, embracing them now will allow you to stop being a hurdle and start being the catalyst for your team’s long-term success

Until next time.