Leaders Add Value By Serving
May 03, 2023
The Law of Addition--Leaders Add Value by Serving Others
--John C. Maxwell
I was discussing DISC behavioral styles with a couple the other day. We agreed that some personalities can be difficult to work with depending on the styles involved. Thank goodness, there are different styles, or the world would be quite boring.
I loved my staff when I was a CEO! They all had such different personalities styles which made work very fun and interesting...most of the time. There were times when we knew what the other was going to say or do, and then there were times when we just didn't get each other.
It's was in those "just didn't get each other" times that made it really difficult for me to remember that leaders add value to their team members. In those times where I didn't understand or I wanted to judge rather than accept, I needed to make certain the other person felt valued---even if I didn't want to.
Every communication that leaders have with followers is relational and all relationships either add to or subtract from a person's life. To lead well, we need to be intentional about adding value to others lives. When we add value to the lives of others, not only does it become reciprocal, but we model behavior that they can emulate. Think about the positive impact that can have on our teams!
I believe that knowing and understanding other people's personality styles is a definite value add! This helps us to serve and accept the other person for how they are wired rather than judge them because of their differences.
John Maxwell provides some other guidelines to help us add value to others:
1. We add value to others when we truly value others.
We need to value people and then demonstrate that we care in such a way those we influence know and feel it.
2. We add value to others when we make ourselves more valuable to others. We can't give what we don't possess. We need to continue to grow and become more, so we can have more to offer. When we stop growing, we stagnate, and...that sometimes stinks...or can make us a relational subtractor.
3. We add value to others when we know and relate to what others value. My son didn't always live with me when he grew up. When I first read this chapter on The Law of Addition, I was convicted that I didn't really know what Ben valued in life as an adult. So I asked him. That was one of the most amazing conversations we had, and it opened up many doors to closer communication between the two of us. It taught me a great lesson in leadership, as well. Knowing what my followers value, helps me lead them from those perspectives. That demonstrates that I care.
Some questions to ask ourselves this week:
Do we have a servant's attitude when it comes to leadership?
Do we become impatient or resentful when required to meet others needs?
Do we judge others because they are different than us?
Do we know what those who follow us value?
Do we believe that certain tasks are beneath our dignity or position?
I don't know about you, but this has given me much to think about. I need to make adding value to others part of my lifestyle.
Learning addition again,
Jan
I was discussing DISC behavioral styles with a couple the other day. We agreed that some personalities can be difficult to work with depending on the styles involved. Thank goodness, there are different styles, or the world would be quite boring.
I loved my staff when I was a CEO! They all had such different personalities styles which made work very fun and interesting...most of the time. There were times when we knew what the other was going to say or do, and then there were times when we just didn't get each other.
It's was in those "just didn't get each other" times that made it really difficult for me to remember that leaders add value to their team members. In those times where I didn't understand or I wanted to judge rather than accept, I needed to make certain the other person felt valued---even if I didn't want to.
Every communication that leaders have with followers is relational and all relationships either add to or subtract from a person's life. To lead well, we need to be intentional about adding value to others lives. When we add value to the lives of others, not only does it become reciprocal, but we model behavior that they can emulate. Think about the positive impact that can have on our teams!
I believe that knowing and understanding other people's personality styles is a definite value add! This helps us to serve and accept the other person for how they are wired rather than judge them because of their differences.
John Maxwell provides some other guidelines to help us add value to others:
1. We add value to others when we truly value others.
We need to value people and then demonstrate that we care in such a way those we influence know and feel it.
2. We add value to others when we make ourselves more valuable to others. We can't give what we don't possess. We need to continue to grow and become more, so we can have more to offer. When we stop growing, we stagnate, and...that sometimes stinks...or can make us a relational subtractor.
3. We add value to others when we know and relate to what others value. My son didn't always live with me when he grew up. When I first read this chapter on The Law of Addition, I was convicted that I didn't really know what Ben valued in life as an adult. So I asked him. That was one of the most amazing conversations we had, and it opened up many doors to closer communication between the two of us. It taught me a great lesson in leadership, as well. Knowing what my followers value, helps me lead them from those perspectives. That demonstrates that I care.
Some questions to ask ourselves this week:
Do we have a servant's attitude when it comes to leadership?
Do we become impatient or resentful when required to meet others needs?
Do we judge others because they are different than us?
Do we know what those who follow us value?
Do we believe that certain tasks are beneath our dignity or position?
I don't know about you, but this has given me much to think about. I need to make adding value to others part of my lifestyle.
Learning addition again,
Jan