Bring on the servant leaders!

I am finding, the more I read about servant-leadership, affirmation of my own ideas about how a leader should be. In my own experience with a handful of ‘not-so-good’ leaders, I just couldn’t understand how they didn’t grasp how their lack of certain behaviors, or certain character traits, were negatively affecting their employees.  I have always had these notions about leadership, and it just seemed to me to be common sense. Reflecting back on those times when I have encountered others who seem to lack many of the servant-leader characteristics, I can understand why they fail as a leader or simply cannot gain a decent following of people. A true servant-leader doesn’t have to ask for respect, he or she simply earns it and maintains it.

Beginning with Robert K. Greenleaf's writings, servant leadership has become one of those things everyone reads about, but few manage to live it out. I recently came across a book called “Seven Pillars of Servant Leadership” by James w. Sipe and Don M. Frick which has proven itself an essential partner to Robert Greenleaf’s book. While I gained a lot of insight into the idea of servant leadership by reading Greenleaf’s book, “Seven Pillars of Servant Leadership” is bringing all of Greenleaf’s original concepts full circle for me. I remember while I was reading Greenleaf’s words, I kept feeling as if I wish he could have expounded a little more in order to give clear vision for the implementation of his ideas. Sipe and Frick have come to the rescue in that aspect.

They have not created a new idea, but simply clarified a lot of Greenleaf’s message and created a map for the process of actually carrying out servant leadership. “Seven Pillars of Servant Leadership” is introduced with an outline of what Sipe and Frick believe to be the seven characteristics of an ideal servant leader. Those characteristics are a person of character, putting people first, communicating skillfully, collaborating compassionately, having foresight, being a systems thinker, and leading with moral authority. The authors, Sipe and Frick, understand that change is difficult for people and offer up some advice about how to change our own behavior and thinking in order to adopt the servant-leader characteristics. They often stress the practice of asking ourselves questions and reflecting our answers.

Beginning with the idea that a servant-leader is a person of moral character, we begin to understand that this type of person has integrity, humility, and serves a purpose higher than their own self. The basic idea is about following a moral compass and keeping your behavior and actions consistent in all areas of life, whether someone is looking or not. We must ask ourselves, at the end of the day, “Did I do anything today that I do not feel ‘good’ about?”  A true servant-leader avoids acting impulsively, thinks through the consequences of any action before doing things, and practices patience. 

Next up, the servant-leader puts people first.  In a nutshell, the servant-leader genuinely cares for others and being empathic is simply automatic. A servant-leader truly wants what is best for those around him or her and will put forth a servant’s heart that guides and teaches those around in order to help others grow. They are genuine in grooming their protégés without self-serving interests. One of the most important traits, in my opinion, is being a skilled communicator. While we can hold almost any of the other traits, if we do not know how to effectively express ourselves and communicate appropriately, then the package is never really complete. Being able to relate to others, and using the ABCs (act interested, be encouraging, and clarify) of communication will aid in helping others to see that you are empathic and that you value them enough to be clear and straight with them.  Also important is being able to ‘call a spade a spade’ so to speak. Get in touch with our feelings and being able to correctly label what feelings we are having. This will aid us in being assertive without being too forthright and to be relatable to others. As Sipe and Frick state so well:

“Like water falling on rocks and dissolving hard minerals, calm, persistent listening and direct, respectful sharing of the self can break down barriers to communication and slowly transform people”

So, where are all the servant leaders? At what point will hiring managers and top executives realize that servant leaders will inspire their teams to take organizations to the next level. Want to be a successful company? Then, my friends, it is time to change your perspective and see that servant leaders are the key to getting there. Promote the people who care about their team members, the ones who inspire and encourage others to reach their full potential and then strive for more. STOP promoting based solely on competancies! STOP promoting (or not promoting) on the basis of your own emotions! Be objective realistic and you will not regret promoting folks based on merit and potential.