Leadership Trait 8: Builds Leaders
In this series of blog posts titled, “They Don’t Build Monuments Honoring Managers,” I have documented and shared my thoughts about the eight traits found in GREAT LEADERS. While understanding that leadership styles may vary, the successful, truly transformational leaders I have encountered in my 30+ years in business exhibit these eight traits.
Trait 8: A Great Leader Builds Great Leaders
Perhaps I have become somewhat cynical, but after 59 birthdays and 40 years in business, two things have become apparent to me.
First, the scarcity of strong leaders is increasingly noticeable. I understand and acknowledge that leadership styles have had to adapt to the evolving expectations of followers. Strong, decisive leaders who possess charisma, knowledge, encouragement, effective communication, adherence to performance standards, and earned trust are rare these days. Today, it appears that leadership is often crowd-sourced to the leader, with phrases like "How do you all think we should handle this?" becoming the new norm. While it is commendable to accept and seriously consider all input, a true leader must ultimately make the decision, assume responsibility for it, and guide the team towards success.
Second, many individuals in positions of authority display a distinct lack of desire to foster the development of the next generation of leaders. A person cannot be a great leader without the drive to uplift those around them. I have witnessed numerous leaders who assign tasks but fail to delegate authority. I have seen countless individuals in leadership positions who hoard their knowledge as if it were proprietary, instead of sharing it. I have observed far too many leaders who lack foresight and neglect to prepare their successors for success. A leader's duty extends beyond achieving success in the present; their responsibility is to cultivate success today and in the future.
Whether at lower or higher levels, leadership in business undergoes turnover approximately every eight to ten years. A great leader is always engaged in identifying and preparing someone to take their place. The legacy of some exceptional managers has been tarnished because their unprepared successors failed to maintain the same standards. These managers, who were not true leaders, neglected to prepare their successors for the role.
Leadership is a skill that can be taught and acquired. While certain desired personality traits like charisma may not be natural to all, other leadership qualities such as knowledge, earned trust, integrity, ethical behavior, clear vision, and effective communication can be developed. It is the responsibility of every leader to ensure that future leaders are given opportunities to practice and hone these skills.
Some managers adopt an attitude of "why should I invest in these employees when they will just leave after I have trained them?" While that may sometimes be the case, it is important to remember that America was built by great individuals who acquired their skills elsewhere. With such a dismissive attitude, can one truly be surprised when employees seek other opportunities?
When I began this blog series, I started with a post titled "They Don't Erect Monuments to Managers," using Mount Rushmore in South Dakota as an example. Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt, and Lincoln learned to be leaders elsewhere before they became generals, governors, senators, and eventually presidents. Other often lesser-known but remarkable leaders invested their time and resources in creating these future great leaders.
We all yearn for and require more leadership in our businesses, communities, churches, and particularly in our state and federal governments. The only way this can happen is if the few true, strong, ethical, and visionary leaders of today begin to prioritize the development of the leaders of tomorrow.
Are you striving to be a great leader and build the next generation of exceptional leaders? The future may well depend on it.
Builds Leaders is the final trait in the series of eight key leadership traits about which I have shared my thoughts. Please follow RWSmith Education, Training, and Consulting on LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com/company/87207378/) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/rwsmithetc) for a link to each post. Or one may visit www.rwsmithetc.com/blog to catch up on past posts. Appropriate comments are encouraged and please follow us, comment on, and “like” these social media posts if you find them valuable. Finally, forward this to your friends… or maybe your manager.