Leadership Prep

8/8/2019 Leadership Prep

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Leadership Prep

Hello again.

Part of the journey through my business life is to get to know leaders

and influencers...I mean really get to know them, inside and out. As such,

over the years I have written about the luminaries and leaders whom I

respect.

A question I often get at speaking engagements is what does it take to

prepare to be a leader? Here are some of the thoughts I've gathered

over the years which answer the question "Do I have what it takes to

lead?"

Enjoy!

Chris Widener

Leadertship Prep!

So you want to be a leader? Or you want to be a better leader?

It can be done, you know.

No matter where you are in your leadership journey, you CAN move

forward. You CAN lead better. You CAN lead more people. You CAN lead

your organization to higher ground. Yes, you CAN!

But....There is always a but isn't there. It is not a bad thing, It is a

heads up, know what you are getting into, prepare yourself. YOU CAN so

read on...

But let me tell you this: You won't do it via osmosis! It won't just

"happen." Growing in your leadership is not something that comes from the



fairy godmother of leadership. You can't touch the hem of Jack Welch's

garment and become "Super-Leader!" Oh, that it were that easy!

So what does it take?

Time.

Experience.

Training.Hard Knocks.

A Mentor.

Discipline.

And a few others.

But let's start at the very beginning. You want to be a leader. That's

good. You want to be a better leader. That's good too. But what comes

first? Preparation. Leadership Prep. What is it? What needs to happen in

order to get yourself ready to become a leader? As you get ready for

2002 and you want to take the next step in your leadership, take these

last days of November and go through a little reflection on LeadershipPrep.

Before you become the leader you want to be:

Count the cost. Leadership is hard. There will be times that you say,

"Leadership isn't worth it. These people are crazy and I don't deserve

this." It is true. You don't deserve it. But you choose it. You choose it

because you want to lead people. You want to improve their lives. You

see the higher ground that they cannot see and you desire to take them

there. It will take time. It will take money. It will sap your strength and

energy. Count the cost, my friend. Leadership is not for the weak andtimid. Yes, the rewards are great, but so are the sacrifices. Prep

yourself for the cost of leadership.

Assess your strengths and weaknesses. Too many people dive into trying

to lead and end up dying out because they were not honest with

themselves about their strengths and weaknesses. They get going and

realize that they should have strengthened themselves in certain areas

because now it is killing their ability to lead. If you know your strengths,

then you can focus yourself on them and allow yourself to be successful

through them. If you are aware of your weaknesses you will be able to

stay away from them, or hire to cover them, and thus allow yourself to

become even more successful as a leader. So prep yourself by becoming

exceedingly clear on your strengths and weaknesses.

Settle in for the marathon, not the sprint. Very few - I mean VERY few

- people get big leadership assignments at early ages. And when they do,

even fewer of the few see things happen fast in their leadership. No,



usually things happen slowly. Why do we think they will happen fast then?

Because those are the only stories we hear on TV and read about in

magazines. "Twenty-five year old starts business that grows to $20

million a year in sales in JUST TWO YEARS," Sells a lot better than

"Forty-five year old works hard for twenty years and builds lasting

business that makes a difference in her community." Right? Right. So,unless you are one of the chosen few, you will need to prep for a

marathon, not a sprint. This is both a mental and emotional adjustment

that needs to be made. Prep for the long haul!

Develop a learning attitude. You have perhaps heard it said, "Leaders are

readers." It is true. Even more so, leaders are learners. I don't know any

leader who has attained any level of leadership who doesn't keep him or

herself on the edge of learning. One of my mentors runs a company that

you would all know by name - in fact, you probably used one of their

products today, no matter where you live in the world - that doesbillions of dollars a year in revenue (Yes, with a "b") and he still takes

time each year to go to a school of leadership! He is already a

tremendously successful leader yet he is still working on it! THAT is a

learning attitude! If you want to lead, prep yourself for it by developing a

learning attitude.

Acquire a love for people. In reality, we do not lead organizations or

businesses. No, we lead people. We are successful if we know how to lead

people. People are the name of the game. And the best way to become a

leader of people is to love people. Others can tell instinctually whether or

not we love them and have their best interests at heart. If they do not

know that we care for them they will not follow. Leadership is the art of

directing people who we care for and desire to help. In other words, we

love people. If you have an issue with people, chances are you are not

ready to lead them. To prep yourself for leadership, acquire a love for

people. If the other things are in place, then they will want to follow you.

You CAN become a leader. I truly believe that. If you are already a

leader, I know you can become better. Take a long, hard look at yourself

and see if perhaps there are some areas you need to prep yourself in

regard to leadership so that when you really get going you don't have tostop and go back!

Leadership Prep - that's the place to start!

P.S. Today is the last day to take advantage of the special offer on my

Winning with Influence 8-part audio program. That means that right now



is the last opportunity to get the exclusive interview with Brian Tracy,

for f.ree.

Evaluating Your Associations, Part 1 by Jim RohnIf you were to evaluate the major influences in your life that have shaped the kind of person you are, this has to be high on the list: the people and thoughts you choose toallow into your life. My mentor, Mr. Shoaff, gave me a very important warning in t hoseearly days that I would like to share with you. He said, "Never underestimate thepower of influence." Indeed, the influence of those around us is so powerful! Manytimes we don't even realize we're being strongly affected because influencesgenerally develop over an extended period of time.

Peer pressure is an especially powerful force because it is so subtle. If you're aroundpeople who spend all they make, chances are excellent that you'll spend all youmake. If you are around people who go to more ball games than concerts, chancesare excellent that you'll do the same thing. If you are around people who don't read,

chances are excellent that you won't read. People can keep nudging us off course alittle at a time until, finally, we find ourselves as king, "How did I get here?" Thosesubtle influences need to be studied carefully if we really want our lives to turn out theway we've planned.

With regard to this important point, let me give you three key questions to askyourself. They may help you to make better analysis of your current associations.

Here is the first question: "Who am I around?" Make a mental note of the people withwhom you most often associate. You've got to evaluate everybody who is able toinfluence you in any way.

The second question is: "What are these associations doing to me?" That's a major question to ask. What have they got me doing? What have they got me listening to?What have they got me reading? Where have they got me going? What do they haveme thinking? How have they got me talking? How have they got me feeling? Whathave they got me saying? You've got to make a serious study of how others areinfluencing you, both negatively and positively.

Here's a final question: "Is that okay?" Maybe everyone you associate with has beena positive, energizing influence. Then again, maybe there are some bad apples in thebunch. All I'm suggesting here is that you take a close and objective look. Everythingis worth a second look, especially the power of influence. Both will take y ousomewhere, but only one will take you in the direction you need to go.

It's easy to just dismiss the things that influence our lives. One man says, "I live here,but I don't think it matters. I'm around these people, but I don't think it hurts." I woul dtake another look at that. Remember, everything matters! Sure, some things matter more than others, but everything amounts to something. You've got to keep checkingto find out whether your associations are tipping the scales toward the positive or toward the negative. Ignorance is never the best policy. Finding out is the best policy.

Perhaps you've heard the story of the little bird. He had his wing over his eye and hewas crying.



The owl said to the bird, "You are crying."

"Yes," said the little bird, and he pulled his wing away from his eye.

"Oh, I see," said the owl. "You're crying because the big bird pecked out your eye."

And the little bird said, "No, I'm not crying because the big bird pecked out my eye.

I'm crying because I let him."

It's easy to let influence shape our lives, to let associations determine our direction, tolet pressures overwhelm us, and to let tides take us. The big question is: Are weletting ourselves become what we wish to become?

Next week, we'll take a look at the three forms of disassociating from negativeinfluences.

Vitamins for the Mind

by Jim Rohn

Emotions

Emotions will either serve or master, depending on who is in charge.

Our emotions need to be as educated as our intellect. It is important toknow how to feel, how to respond, and how to let life in so that it cantouch you.

Civilization is the intelligent management of human emotions.

Measure your emotions. You don¶t need an atomic explosion for a minor

point. Women have an incredible ability to pick up on emotional signals. Forexample, there are some wolves that are so clever they have learned todress up like sheep. Man says, ³Looks like a sheep. Talks like a sheep.´

Woman says, ³Ain¶t no sheep!´

"Vitamins for the Mind" is a weekly sampling of original quotes on aspecific topic taken from The Treasury of Quotes by Jim Rohn. Theburgundy hardbound book with gold-foil lettering is a collection of more than 365 quotes on 60 topics gathered from Jim's personal

journals, seminars and books and spanning more than 40 years. Clickhere to order The Treasury of Quotes.

On Friendship by Zig Ziglar Somebody remarked that a stranger is simply a friend you haven't met. My trusty1828 Noah Webster dictionary says that a friend is one who is attached to another byaffection, which leads him to desire his company, or one who has sufficient interest toserve another.



The dictionary definition amply describes Mike Corbett who, along with his fri endMark Wellman, started the assault on El Capitan on July 19, 1989. El Capitan is asheer rock wall 3,569 feet above the floor of Yosemite Valley in northern California. Itis one of the most difficult mountains for rock climbers to scale. The combinatio n of difficulty and danger is sufficient to test the strength and courage of even the world'smost elite climbers.

It took Wellman and Corbett seven days to make the climb. They encounteredtemperatures of up to 105 degrees and wind gusts that made the asc ent even moredifficult. When they reached the summit, Corbett stood in triumph, but Wellman justkept his seat. Wellman is the first person to scale El Capitan without the use of hislegs.

Wellman had given up climbing in 1982 after he was paralyzed as t he result of a fall.From that point on the only rock climbing he did was in his dreams. Then Corbettconvinced him they could climb the mountain together. Wellman certainly couldn'thave done it without Corbett, who led the way and helped Wellman move thr ougheach stage, higher and higher. On the seventh day, Corbett was unable to secure the

pitons in the loose rock skirting the summit. Knowing that a misstep would send themboth plunging to their deaths, Corbett hoisted Wellman onto his back and clamberedthe remaining distance to the top.

An old but very true statement holds that if you would have a friend, be a friend. Iencourage you to be a friend as Mike Corbett was to Mark Wellman.

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Leadership Prep