Serve or be served. Every leader faces this question when considering how they will lead. Whether you are a leader in a company, a parent leading at home, a student leading on your campus, an athlete leading in the locker room, or a performer leading out on the road, you will have to come to grips with this question. Your response, or better said your choice, says a lot about your character as well as how effective you will be as a leader.
We all want to be served. Only a few brazen bullies actually shout, “SERVE ME!” Most of the time, it is more subtle and reveals itself in our actions and behavior. For example, a leader in a company who sets the vision and direction for a department reveals a lot about his or her leadership style in the moments after the vision has been verbalized. Does the leader sit back and wait for people to act? Does the leader take credit for the work of others? Or, does the leader seek ways to help the team be successful? Ken Blanchard states that we have 2 choices as a leader. We can choose either to be a servant leader or a self-serving leader. Blanchard says that a servant leader inverts the traditional hierarchical pyramid once the vision and direction have been established. A servant leader who is responsible for others doesn’t sit atop the pyramid waiting to have every need met and every order obeyed. A true servant leader becomes responsive to the needs of his or her people and asks the following questions:
• How are you doing?
• What do you need from me to be successful?
• How can I help you?
• Do you have the resources you need to accomplish the task?
Overall, the servant leader communicates belief and trust in the abilities of his or her people through words and actions. Think about how people develop whether it is a child, a student, an athlete, a performer, or a business professional. They must be surrounded with belief, trust, encouragement, accountability, application, and room to fail, learn, grow, and succeed.
Whatever your roles in life, how are you serving the people you are responsible for?
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