Leaders that have had media training would know that when speaking to a journalist, you must be very precise with your word selection. The media will most likely quote less than a dozen words out of the hundreds that you may have said.
A similar situation exists when addressing a team. Although they will likely remember everything you said, it is critical for you to narrow your message and utilise short sentences that are impactful and memorable to set the team on the right path. Similarly, these statements can be powerful in guiding your leadership team and yourself, and can be a shorthand on how you operate.
Below are some of my favourite leadership quotes that I have accumulated over my career. I have credited the author for most, however not for all. These have guided me, and my teams. Hopefully they will assist you:
“Be here now” – Ram Dass.
This is relatively obvious, and means to be present and focused on the situation you face. As a leader, you are being watched and evaluated (refer to the earlier article of Shadow of the Leader). A distracted leader looking at their phone, computer or tablet sends a message to the team about where they rank in your priorities.
“You can’t see the picture when you are in the frame” – Les Brown.
As a leader you need to regularly step away and look back. If you are too deep in the issue, it becomes difficult to see the solution.
”If you want to go fast, then go alone. If you want to go far, you need a team” – unknown.
Sometimes leaders think expediency is most critical so they do the task themselves. This is effective in the short term but not the long term. This is a very powerful quote to use with your team as they lead their own direct reports; particularly those on your team that delegate poorly.
“Loyalty is the consequence of leadership and leadership is the touchstone of competence” – unknown.
Think about your career as a leader and reflect on how many of your direct reports have resigned. This is a good litmus test of your ability to engender loyalty. Every employee has career options and a key factor in their decision to stay or go is their faith in their leader.
“Sunlight is said to be the best disinfectant” – Louis Brandeis, US Supreme Court Justice.
Bringing an issue out into the open is the most powerful approach to overcome it. When making a decision that has ethical complexity, think about how well you could explain the issue if it were to end up on the front page of the news.
“Oblige luck by examining its sources” – unknown.
A similar version of this was said by the great golfer Gary Player, “The more I practice, the luckier I get”. So don’t just accept your good fortune, think about all the inputs that may have influenced the outcome.
“Trust but verify” – Ronald Reagan.
Some leaders are cautious about requesting status from their team about a task or initiative as it potentially suggests a lack of trust. I disagree, as a leader you need to verify progress and completion. Your team must accept this. Similarly, your team must have the same mindset with their teams.
“The more you share, the more they care” – Sam Walton.
The most powerful tool to engage the team is to involve them and demonstrate trust; this requires sharing information. In my experience, many leaders withhold information from lower-level operators with the excuse that the individual could leave and share this information with the competition. I would argue that the opposite is true; if you don’t share information, and thereby don’t empower the operators to be able to best perform their role, then they will definitely leave.
“When you are 20% up, act like you are 10% behind” – Andy Pearson.
Another version of this is “be pleased but never satisfied”. In business the playing field can shift extremely quickly and any complacency or loss of intensity could lead to a material shift in the performance. Enjoy the wins, but do not slow down.
“I don’t like this man; I need to get to know him better” – Abraham Lincoln. Everyone has a story. Get to know that person’s story and that may change your perspective of them and their capabilities.
“He whose life has a why can bear almost any how” – Friedrich Nietzsche. Similarly, if your business has a clear purpose, beyond financial gain, your team will be more engaged and passionate.
“History may judge this differently than tomorrow’s newspapers” – unknown.
What seems like a poor decision today, does not necessarily mean it will be a poor decision tomorrow. The true evaluation should be further down the track. Acquisitions and divestments should be viewed with this lens.
“We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
Your demonstrated values, impact and results are all that matter to people. Not what you say you will do or what you believe you can do.
Impactful Leadership can assist you on your journey of discovery to find phrases and sentences that define you as a leader and that will also direct and align your team.
