5 Ways to Become the Leader People Look To When it Counts
Unrealistic kindness and untempered helpfulness result in unreliability.
A reliable average leader is more valuable than unreliable top talent.
Reliability validates your value.
The good news is, reliability doesn’t take talent.
Reliability refreshes everyone it touches.
Lack of reliability drains confidence, strains relationships, and stalls careers. On the other hand, people look to leaders that are predictably reliable.
5 ways to become the leader people look to:
#1. Manage and limit commitments.
The ability to say ‘no’ makes reliability possible. People-pleasers end up over-committed and stressed out.
The number of times you step up only matters if you follow through.
#2. Stick with what you do well.
Avoid jobs, tasks, and responsibilities that require strength where you’re weak. Don’t volunteer to organize the office Christmas party if you hate parties.
#3. Stay on the hook.
Character is understood in the behaviors others come to expect from you.
Unreliable people find reasons to let themselves off the hook. They stayed up too late. The alarm didn’t go off.
Excuses for unreliability intensify disrespect.
#4. Simplifying life.
Complexity is enemy to reliability. Keep projects simple and relationships uncomplicated. Honesty, transparency, and candor help simplify projects and relationships.
#5. Schedule execution.
If you don’t know when you are going to get something done, it likely won’t get done.
- Set alarms on your phone.
- Put sticky notes on the mirror.
- Develop a relationship with an accountability partner.
How might leaders become more reliable?
Be Trustworthy, Confident in your Purpose, Faithful in Commitments, Considerate use of others’ time, Follow your plan adding frequent updates. YOU Can Do This!
There are some advantages to stretching on #2, I think. If you do not try to build on things that are not strengths, they will never become competencies. But building on reliability is solid, and all this also builds trust. Meeting expectations. Important stuff, for sure.
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Reliability may not require talent, but #1, #2, and #4 do require something that most people aren’t taught and most parents, teachers, and bosses actively discourage, and that is the ability to say, “No, thank you.”
Always feel grateful as your writings surface my/human inherent qualities.
Great principles. Needed the reminder (personally). Thank you.