Serve to Lead
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Serve to Lead
When I first start to work with them, many of my Founder clients (and more than a few of those who are helming bigger businesses) often see themselves as lone heroes at the helm, steering their ship towards success.
However they soon come to realise that, in today's dynamic business landscape, true business (and personal) growth comes through becoming a servant leader.
It's the foundational principle upon which our military is built - and there's a reason why the motto of the famous Royal Military Academy Sandhurst - my old alma mater - has Serve to Lead as its motto.
This leadership style flips the traditional pyramid on its head. Instead of the CEO sitting at the top, demanding service from their subordinates, servant leaders prioritize serving their team.
They become facilitators, providing the tools, resources, and environment necessary for their employees to thrive.
So, why is this crucial for founders seeking long-term success?
"Serve to Lead" is a Leadership Differentiator
There are several compelling reasons why embracing servant leadership is crucial for founders seeking long-term success:
Empowering Employees for Peak Performance: Servant leadership prioritizes the needs and well-being of employees. This translates to a more inclusive and supportive work environment, fostering greater satisfaction, motivation, and increased productivity. When employees feel valued and heard, they're more likely to go the extra mile and become dedicated champions of the company's mission.
Building a Collaborative Dream Team: Servant leaders are excellent communicators who actively listen to their team members and value their expertise. This fosters a culture of collaboration where ideas are freely exchanged and diverse perspectives are considered. This collaborative spirit is essential for innovative problem-solving and tackling the challenges that inevitably arise on the path to growth.
Igniting a Shared Purpose: Great leaders understand the power of a compelling vision. Servant leaders go a step further, ensuring their vision resonates not just with themselves, but with the entire team. By aligning the company's goals with the values of their employees, they create a sense of shared purpose, inspiring loyalty, commitment, and a collective drive towards success.
Lifelong Learning, Collective Growth: Servant leaders are dedicated to their own continuous development, and this commitment is contagious. By setting the example of lifelong learning, they inspire employees to do the same, fostering a culture of growth that benefits both individuals and the organization as a whole.
Beyond Words: The Inverted Pyramid in Action
The shift from traditional leadership to servant leadership has to extend beyond rhetoric.
Imagine a reversed pyramid, with your employees at the top not the base. Their needs, well-being, and success are the foundation upon which the entire organization rests.
You, as the founder/CEO, are now positioned at the bottom, where you become the chief encourager, the one responsible for ensuring your team has the right tools, resources, and processes to excel.
Here, you actively listen to feedback, address roadblocks, and champion your team's accomplishments.
By prioritizing service over power, fostering collaboration, and empowering their people, servant leaders cultivate a positive and sustainable work environment. This, in turn, fuels innovation, drives results, and propels the company towards long-term growth.
By embracing servant leadership, you'll discover that true power lies not in control, but in empowering others to do their best work.
And that's a recipe for a thriving business and a fulfilling leadership journey.
What I've been doing this week
We're back from our vacation cabin, and so this week has been playing catch-up with clients and other work-related things whilst my husband and daughter (both in the education system) are still on holiday 🙄.
The challenges of transitioning to becoming a servant leader has come up in at least three of my 1-2-1 sessions this week, hence the lead article in today's newsletter.
I've also been working with my Chief Knowledge Officer, Shiva Venkateswaran, on our new PerforMetrix™ platform, which combines employee engagement, performance management, goal-setting, and recognition. We're very excited about this new offer, and you can find out more at https://performetrix.growth-circles.com/
And - as if that weren't enough tomorrow, my DD will be 17! 😱😱😱 Seems like only yesterday that I was dropping her off at Nursery for her first day at school...
...And now she's only a month away from her AS levels, with one more year to go before she heads off (hopefully) to University.
BTW for those of you in the US, our Nursery is the equivalent of your first year of KG; is part of our formal education system; and kids start there when they are 3. Our only-just-not-toddlers then move on to the first year of their full time education when they enter the Reception class at Primary School aged just 4!
What I'm Reading
This week, to support my work on servant leadership I've been delving into 3 books:
Servant Leadership in Action - How You Can Achieve Great Relationships and Results; Ken Blanchard and Renee Broadwell
Servant Leadership - A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness; Robert K. Greenleaf and Larry C. Spears
Serve to Be Great - Leadership Lessons from a Prison, a Monastery, and a Boardroom; Matt Tenney
Links will take you to the getAbstract authorised summaries or reviews.
Substacks worth subscribing to: as promised, I've compiled a list of my must-read Substacks, which you can find here.
Three Pillars of Growth™️ - 3 Things to Do This Week
Strategy: Host a Vision Brainstorming Session: Gather your team and facilitate a discussion around the company's vision. What problems are you solving? What impact do you want to make?
Structure: Implement Upward Feedback Mechanisms: Create avenues for employees to provide feedback on processes, strategies, and leadership decisions. Actively listen to their suggestions and implement feasible changes. This fosters trust and a sense of shared responsibility.
Leadership: Connect the Vision to Individual Values: Help employees understand how their work contributes to the bigger picture. Solicit their input on how the vision can be better aligned with their personal values. A shared sense of purpose fuels motivation and engagement.
Wondering how stable your foundation for the Three Pillars of Growth™️ is? Find out with our FREE (and absolutely no obligation) Three Pillars Power Assessment™️
I'll Leave You Now With These Golden Nuggets
This week's quote: “Leading with a focus on serving others...help[s] an organization achieve sustainable success.” Matt Tenney (as above)
Give it a try: Have a look at the servant leader inverted pyramid, and think about who you have at each of the levels, and what each level means in terms of management expectations and reporting lines. What do you - as CEO - need to do to make sure every one of these people has everything they need to do their best job? And more importantly, how will you create a reporting structure and upward feedback mechanism to facilitate this?
What's your biggest growth challenge right now?
Tell me in the comments section and let's start the conversation!