Who Is Going To Step Up And Lead?
They just stood there! When the captains left the court, none of the other players stepped forward to lead. It was funny. It was sad. It was telling. Communication broke down and chaos ensued.
I was watching a high school girls sporting event. Unfortunately, I have seen this in the business world too. When the leader is gone and nobody steps forward, a bump in the road can cause a relatively smooth running team to end up in a ditch.
Who’s Going To Lead?
3 Reasons People Don’t Step Up?
1. Fear
Some people don’t want to step up because they are afraid of making a mistake. These people fear their own mistakes more than they fear team failure.
With leadership comes responsibility. Some people are afraid of responsibility. The thought of making a decision that they could be blamed for prevents them from doing anything. They hope for someone else to step up and lead. When nobody does, they sit back and watch the chaos.
2. Training
Sometimes people have not been trained to lead. When they see there is a leadership void, they expect someone with more training to step forward.
Unfortunately in most companies, no one has been trained. The 2014 Global Leadership Forecast points out that only 15% of the 14,000 leaders they interviewed, reported having strong leadership bench strength.
Only 39% of those same leaders felt like the company did an adequate job of preparing their frontline people for future leadership positions.
3. Laziness
These people value their own comfort more than they value being part of a winning team. Laziness often prevents people with the skills and/or the talent from leading.
For the person who steps forward, there will be more work and more headaches. By the way, the headaches are usually caused by the lazy people….
For the person who steps up, there will also be higher expectations. High expectations are something the lazy people don’t want thrown on them. They are perfectly happy with mediocrity or failure as long as they aren’t asked to do anything beyond what they are comfortable with.
Overcoming Fear
Everyone is afraid the first time they step up and lead. The risk of making a mistake is real. But the willingness to make mistakes is what separates a leader from the rest of the pack. There has never been a leader who did not make a mistake.
Mistakes are the prerequisite to learning. Those who don’t make mistakes, don’t learn. Those that don’t learn, don’t accomplish anything in life. Those that don’t accomplish anything in life rarely claim to have a fulfilling life.
Initiating Training
It is ironic that the same leaders who bemoan their lack of bench strength are the same leaders who do not invest in developing their people. A team with leaders at all levels will always beat a team that only has leaders at the top.
Why? Because no matter what happens to a leader at any level, someone is prepared and willing to step up and lead. They are prepared because their company has invested in their growth. They are willing because they are confident they are ready due to the training they received.
Past Blog: 4 Steps To Building Bench Strength
Eliminating Laziness
I really don’t believe children grow up aspiring to sloth. Laziness is a habit. It is a habit any of us can change. We can all change our habits. We create new habits one decision at a time.
If I have the talent and the skills to lead, but I have been too lazy to lead in the past, the first step to changing that habit is to step forward. Each time I make a decision, whether it be a positive or a negative one, it makes it easy to make that decision again next time.
However the key to eliminating laziness is having the desire to change. Some people will never change. They will always choose their own comfort first and never step forward.
These are the people that will tread water for the rest of their lives and get tossed around by the waves of change just like a piece of drift wood in the ocean. No one wants these people on a team. The only way to eliminate their laziness is to get them off the team.
The Bottom Line:
As an individual, I have to make the decision to step up and lead no matter what my title may be. If the person above me is not able to lead at the moment, then I must overcome my fears or my laziness and step forward. Each time I do that, it will become easier the next time.
As an organization, expecting people to be ready to lead at new levels when we have done nothing to prepare them is short-sighteded and foolish. The leadership is taking a tremendous gamble not training people to lead at all levels. When the troubles come, they HOPE someone will be ready to step forward. HOPE is not a strategy.
Question:
What do you need to do to prepare for the next time you NEED to step forward and lead?
Dave- Great topic and timely for me. My CEO recently resigned (effective immediately) and the Board Chair asked who would step up until a permanent replacement was found. Interesting to see who was ready to take on the additional responsibilities. Those of us who had previously sought out additional training and project assignments to broaden our skill set were far better prepared and, by and large, willing to step up. Additionally, I see those who have maintained their professionalism with their subordinates and upheld standards as being the most prepared for this next level. Thanks for the topic!
Great addition to the conversation. Thanks Shane
Leadership starts at home. Love your wife. Love your kids. Do what you say you will do. Lead by example. These are the every day step ups we all should be taking. Shoulder your share of the load. Do the right thing. In this day and age, this is leadership. A great question that should shape our leadership of the most important organization in society – the family. Practice stepping up at home first.
Troy you are right. Thats why I love what I do. Leadership development transcends business. It goes home and makes people better their as well.
There is a reason many of the requirements for church leadership mentioned in 1 Timothy revolve around how a man manages his family. “If anyone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of God’s church.”
Nice article. Wondering how the image of the car crash at the top plays in? “Seaton Road Accident” Maybe that was just in my browser?
The picture goes with the metaphor from the line prior to the picture. “When the leader is gone and nobody steps forward, a bump in the road can cause a relatively smooth running team to end up in a ditch.”