An amazing mentor and leader I work with has been talking to me recently about what real leadership looks like and shared with me a list of quotes he keeps on his desk that his dad who had a leadership role in the military collected and gave to him. He gave me a copy and said I was free to share them.
My [Dad’s] Rules Of Leadership:
- Develop a vision and live it.
- Dont lie for your people and dont lie to your people.
- Beware of RUMINT. It’s faster than you are.
- Dont back away from the hard decisions, especially personnel decisions.
- Bad news never goes down easy and it won’t get easier with time. It’s best to get it over with.
- Support your subordinate supervisors when they take the high road.
- Tell people exactly what you expect of them, including the obvious.
- Involve your people in decisions and action planning.
- Give them credit when things work. Give them top cover when things go awry.
- Trust the experts. That’s what you pay for them for.
- Avoid Bullshit. You may get past the fans, but you won’t get past the players.
- Knowledge may be power, but knowledge shared is powered squared.
- Set an example by taking on the hard jobs.
- Listen-Decide-Explain-Act.
- Old ship-driving rule: When you get in extremis, DO SOMETHING. The worse thing you can do is nothing. Make decisions smartly and dont vacillate. If you are wrong, admit it, back up and turn right.
- No, you are not always right. Get over it. You are not as smart as you think you are and you may not be as smart as others think you are either.
- Never underestimate the power of the expression “Thank You”.
- Don’t fight with your friends. You haven’t got the time.
These quotes are amazing and I will be reflecting on this list for the rest of my career and am really happy to be able to share them.
Here is a “leadership” picture so shared links look better:
