Follow the Leader

Jonathon Sprinkles, author and motivational speak, shares a hard hitting thought on leadership. He writes in his book, Why Settle, that he always thought of himself as an "all-star when it came to leadership. He was popular and charismatic. However his thoughts of leadership changed when a visiting professor, Dr. Eric P. Abercrombie from the University of Cincinnati, challenged the students in Sprinkles college class. Here's the Dr.'s challenge:

'Do you call yourself a leader?' he asked. 'If you are a leader, then you ought to have ten people that you personally can get to come to this conference tomorrow. If you can't, you ought to rethink your so-called leadership status.'

This all goes back to the definition of leadership. It's not a title, it's not how many people you have on your team, and it's not what you call yourself. Leadership is all about influence.

Let me ask you. Are people following you because of your title? Do your followers respect you as a leader?

One of the best recommendations for leaders is to work with a mentor or coach. You need honest feedback to grow as a leader. If you are lacking in influence, wouldn't you like to know?