Managing by Example

As a department head or leader all of us should not forget that our life is like we are always “on Stage”. Live each day and perform each action as if it will be on TV Chanel the next day for the everyone to watch. Just as kids watch their parents closely and mimic almost every action, so do employees look to their leader to set the example. A good leader is someone whose example sets the pace and creates the appropriate environment. A reporter once asked great tennis player why he gave 100 % every day even if the score was lopsided. His reply was “there might be one kid in the stands who has never seen me play before and I want him to see me at my best.”

A trustworthy leader is someone who works as hard as, or harder than anyone else. There aren’t any office hours for the great leader. He was approachable to his employee and customers. And from his actions they could see his steadfast belief that the customer was truly the most important person in his enterprise, and stayed close to the people who could make or break the business.

As a leader also should pay as much attention to the last impression as they do to the first impression. Many people run a 95 yard dash and leave a very poor last impression in the last five yards. We spend a lot of time, money, and energy on training for the first impression, but hardly anything on the last impression. Too many people have burned so many bridges in their lives that there are now very few rivers they can cross.

Teaching by example also applies to parents raising children. Good character, like good soup, is usually homemade. Children of all ages close their ears to advise and open their eyes to examples. One of the biggest challenges for parents is to have their actions and their words on the same track. It is very difficult for parent with a bottle of beer in one hand and a cigarette in the other hand to tell their children not to smoke or drink. Good leaders are leading the organization by performing example in all of their action and they don’t send out mixed signals.

Most good leaders have heroes or role models themselves. They are still inspired by them, and continue to learn from the actions of their model. Don’t underestimate the power of teaching by example. How are you in your role as an exemplar?