The Leaders effective modeling of the vision makes the picture come alive!
John Maxwell
What a leader does sets the tone for those who follow him.
The Law of the Picture is about setting the example. About showing your people how you want them to be and then modeling the way. It is telling me a good leader cannot sit behind a desk and give orders then expect everyone to follow him.
Maxwell says “Good leaders always embody two seemingly disparate qualities. They are both highly visionary and highly practical.”
The vision helps them to see beyond the immediate.
- Mission provides purpose – answering why
- Vision provides a picture – answering the what
- Strategy provides a plan -answering the how
As leaders we need to be visionary. We need to see down the future of what we want to be, and what we want our business to be. Then along with that vision we have to be practical and develop strategies on how to get to the vision. But our people need to see us working the strategy also. They need to see us working in the trenches and doing some grunt work. People react to that.
When I was 16 years old and a new cook for a Hardee’s restaurant. One evening my GM said he wanted me to scrub baseboards. I was new, and young, and did not really know how to do what he wanted. He spent the next 30 minutes with me on hands and knees scrubbing baseboards with me. Then I went on the finish the job. That left a great impression on me that he gave me a “not so fun Job,” then helped me accomplish it. This man is now a VP of a major corporation.
As the leader of a training division, I made sure I could do every one of my people’s jobs. I wanted to show I understood what they needed and could coach them on their individual needs.
As leaders we need to be in the picture, working and leading the team to success.
Prime Leadership & Development 