“Lead by example”, is what almost every new manager is often told. We can not agree more with these words of wisdom. Let’s try to understand what it precisely means and how every leader and manager can implement it at the workplace:
We all aspire to be the leaders who are trusted, respected and admired. The true leaders, on the other hand, are not given respect but they earn it. They are not trusted per se, they earn the trust of the people they lead.
The best way to earn trust and respect and to earn the right to lead people is to lead by example. For example I can start to trust you and follow you only when I’m sure that you strongly believe in what you say. This happens only when your actions unfailingly support your words.
Here’s how one can lead by example.
Get things done in your workplace
A true leader doesn’t just state that “execution is important”, they rather demonstrate that “execution is important. The successful leaders actually roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty, they do not just ensure that work is done.
In the process, their experience leads them to the better ways of performing the work. Even though as a leader you might have administrative duties to perform and the big picture strategies might await your approval, never forget the basics “the tasks require execution and the spirit of getting things done.”
Be a part of the company’s culture
The culture of an organization is or at least it should be simply an extension of its leadership. The leadership should belong to the culture and not be over and above the company culture.
So suppose if your organization has an open door policy, the same should be applicable to the leaders. Unless a leader is not a living example of the company’s culture, all the values, vision and mission statements of the company lose their significance.
Learn to share the credit and take the blame
At all the levels, with great power and authority, comes great responsibility. So, if you want your team members to have a sense of accountability, you need to take the ownership of your tasks as well as your team’s tasks first.
Take blames for what you deserve as well as for what you don’t deserve. The only reason is your understanding that you can handle it but your team perhaps can not. Be it a client complaint about poor service, facing the anguish of a customer or facing the criticism from another department for the team’s effort, the true leaders always throw themselves under the bus rather than throwing the others.
On the other hand, make it a habit to share the credit with your team, when things go exceptionally well. It is very trust-breaking, when a leader takes the full credit for something that was actually a shared effort.
By developing the habit of taking blame on yourself and sharing the credit among your team, you build a trust among your team. With your example, they also learn to take the responsibility of their mistakes and share recognition with other team members. This creates an environment of sportsmanship and healthy teamwork.