John Hersey Leadership Blog

A few years ago, Randall was the general manager for a restaurant chain.  One time, he and the other managers were having a meeting in one of the restaurants that had just been remodeled.  There was a table with some papers and a bottle of ink on top, and everyone was just hanging around, talking and having a good time.

At one point, Randall’s boss pulled him aside to speak to him about a possible candidate for general manager; the person was currently an assistant manager.  This young man was very good at organizing schedules, food orders, sanitation, and staffing, nevertheless, Randall felt there was something he lacked.  His boss kept asking Randall for specifics so as to not consider this person as an option, but Randall was not sure why he didn’t consider this employee worthy of a promotion, he just felt he was not a leader.

Right that minute, someone knocked the bottle of ink off the table, and everyone witnessed how it hit the new carpet and rolled under the table leaving a dreadful dark blue stain.  Immediately, one general manager got down on his hands and knees and crawled under the table to get the bottle; he just did it without giving it a second thought.  This man was big, he was around 300 pounds, but still, he never hesitated. He got the bottle of ink even knowing that there were others there for whom it would have been much easier to do.

Right then, Randall knew what his hesitation about the general manager candidate was.  He turned to his boss and said: “this person would not have gotten the bottle of ink”.  He would have asked someone else to do it, even if he had been alone in the room at the time.  He was not willing to do what he asked others to do.

Clearly it is not a manager’s job to do the cleaning; he must let others do that so that he can focus on the customers, but in a crowded restaurant sometimes managers must get involved in the operation to get things done, because there isn’t anyone else.  Managing a restaurant is more than walking around asking clients if they enjoyed the meal. Managers must be willing to get their hands ‘dirty’ if necessary.  Randall recalled how he had washed dishes for days after a dishwasher didn’t show up and until he found another one.  He didn’t like it, but it was necessary.

After thinking about it for a while, Randall’s boss agreed that he could not recall a time when this person had done a less than pleasant task. Needless to say, he never got promoted.  This episode was so remarkable that it was discussed at every manager’s meeting from then on.

A true leader picks up the bottle of ink.
If you want people to follow you, pick up the bottle.
If you want to inspire others, pick up the bottle.
If you want to be trusted with the big things, do the little things.

Randall spent lots of time working on the little things to help his employees, and they did much more for him.  He always found someone to cover for a sick colleague, in fact, before accepting, employees asked who the manager was for the shift. If it was someone who was not very respected, they said no, but Randall always got a yes.

A leader leads by example; you cannot expect others to do what you are not willing to do yourself, so, next time a bottle of ink is knocked off the table, get down and pick it up!

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Many of the top magazines and newspapers hire inexperienced writers to write about business topics, and although it is understandable that these publications hire young people, some of the information and advice out there is plain wrong.  In many cases, these don’t match what truly experienced and successful business people have gone through, and the problem may reside in the process.

Secondhand information gets misunderstood, oversimplified, and it is vague; it is cleaned up, edited, and adorned.  In many cases, the people being interviewed are to blame; they are experts who want to make their teams stand out.

Good business writers identify an interesting and good idea, and know how to present it in a clear and persuasive way, period.  This being said, we have to say that there are many misunderstandings out there about what leadership is, and if you pay attention to them, you can harm your business in a serious way.

Here are two common ideas of what leadership is, that are definitely wrong… any true leader will tell you so:

1.    Leadership is about being ‘soft’
You read it all the time; that a good leader should listen to his employees, share his feelings with them, and be open to their ideas, no matter how bad they are, otherwise, business is dead.  Today’s business leadership arena is presented as one where employees want to be listened to; they want to contribute to decisions and give creative solutions.

As truly experienced leaders will tell you, the opposite of this is completely true.  Employees want leadership, meaning they want someone to solve the problems and provide clear direction.  Leaders are paid a lot of money to do just that, make tough decisions and get the job done.  Obviously, a leader must be open to ideas, and should communicate and pay attention to his employees, but he has the last word on the direction the company takes and the way to get there.

In order to do this, a person must have vision, knowledge, skills, and great ideas, but above all, he must know how to make others support his ideas and work to make them a reality, even if he is criticized or opposed.  And the way to do this is by making the work valuable.

2.    Leadership allows for participation over sharing a vision
The idea is that when establishing goals, a leader must focus on encouraging employees’ participation instead of on creating a plan for better business.

A true leader can delegate a lot of work if he has the best people around him, but he can never let another person establish the goals and create the vision.  The leader is the only one who knows what the business can accomplish, how far it can go, and how great it can be; this is his most important job.  He can ask questions and he can look for advice, but in the end, he decides where the business is going and what he wants to achieve.  After everything is clear, the leader can share his vision.

This is not easy to do.  True leaders have the blessing of knowing how to create and communicate their vision in an inspiring way.  They are able to communicate to others the value of the work being done; they make others understand that what they are doing is good.

In order to be a leader, you have to take the time to think about how you can make things better, and make people believe in the good behind your ideas.  Only then, will employees feel honored to work for you; you become powerful and meaningful.  You possess authority and influence; and it is a responsibility as much as an honor.  True leadership changes lives, all you have to do is define a worthy vision and inspire others to work with you to make it a reality.

Become the Leader Your Company Needs. Get My 6 FREE Leadership Videos Here: www.JohnHersey.com

As the bestseller author Melody Beattie states:

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.  It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”

Gratitude is not a Thanksgiving Day or Christmas time ‘thing’.  Although these special times of year are all about consciously counting our blessings, gratitude is a way of life, a habit we must get into so as to get the best out of life and the people around us every single day.

Showing gratitude is the best way to spread positive feelings around you.  Think about it for a minute:

How do you feel when someone expresses a sincere thank you for something you did?  Doesn’t it make you feel great?  Positive feelings lift people up, increase their enthusiasm, and motivate them to achieve more.  Reaching a goal starts with a single positive thought.

Gratitude can have a very positive snowball effect that keeps you and others moving forward towards achieving your goals.  It is a selfless and lasting feeling that will inspire you and others around you for a long time.  When being grateful to others, be open and expressive, so that they truly know how you feel.

No one should be taken for granted.  A good leader shows gratitude for even the smallest things. It could be just a verbal ‘thank you’, a note, or a small gift; the important thing is to recognize the service others give, in order to create a strong and loyal relationship.  It is fundamental to learn how to express gratitude towards others, however it is equally important to learn to accept it from those around you.

Gratitude prompts better communication and interest in helping.  Everyone understands a word of love that comes from the heart.  No matter how constructive criticism is, it may put people in a defensive state, but if you employ a grateful attitude, it can really do wonders.  By highlighting what you appreciate in people, it is easier to talk to them about what they need to improve.

Being grateful is a practice that requires training; this is why it is a great idea to keep a gratitude journal.  You should write on it five things you are grateful for every day.  Maybe today you want to acknowledge how grateful you are for your health, for your family, friends and colleagues, for your finances, for your personal accomplishments, for your intelligence and ingenuity, for the things you love, or for your freedom to dream.  The more you write the more you will start being grateful for the smallest things.  Showing gratitude every day will change the way you think, and will benefit you and others around you.

When you are thankful for what you have, you will get more of it.  If you center on what you lack, you will never have enough.

Gratitude makes you appreciate life and keeps your thoughts positive, so that you cherish everything you have and acknowledge the people around you as valuable human beings with lots of wisdom and valuable ideas to share.

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