Maxwell“People naturally follow leaders stronger than themselves”
I have always heard that respect is not given, it is earned. I agree with this.
There have been quite a few times in the corporate setting that I have respected a position, but not the person. I respected the position because it was a higher seniority, and I know the responsibility that went along with it. However, there have been times when I did not respect the person in the position. As I think about it, it was because they did not do what they said they would do, or they did not treat their people very well.
With this lack of respect, I remember not feeling like I was engaged as much, and I did not fully embrace many of their ideas. As an organizational leader, I did what I needed to do for the organization, and though I did not disrespect the leader, I know I did not fully give my all to him at the time.
Though I am not proud I did not give my all, as I should always do so “as unto the Lord”, I think it is natural and people do not perform as well when they do not respect the leader.
I like that Maxwell gave 6 qualities to work on to help build respect. These are not simple, and we must work on them to gain the respect of our people, peers and other leaders.
- Natural ability
- Giving respect to others
- Courage
- Success record
- Loyalty
- Value added to others
A respected leader is one who will have his team rally around him and get things accomplished.
“When people respect you as a person, they admire you.
When people respect you as a friend, they love you.
When people respect you as a leader, they follow you”
I am working with a group on developing their leadership skills. One of the activities I am having them do is to read through and provide their insights to each chapter of the book 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell. This series of post provides the basic summary of each of the Laws along with my thoughts.
Prime Leadership & Development 