10 Powerful Beliefs of Unstoppable Leaders
What you believe is the most important thing about you.
Choose your beliefs carefully, they determine your destiny.
#1. Believe you matter. “It is not a question of ‘Will I make a difference?’ Rather, it’s ‘What difference will I make?’” (The Truth about Leadership, Kouzes/Posner)
#2. Distill problems and solutions to behaviors.
- Deal with specificity. Vagaries are the enemy of successful leadership.
- Vision that doesn’t find expression in observable action is worthless.
- Define problems by the behaviors, or lack of behaviors, that cause them. A problem – defined in behavioral teams – is 50% solved.
- Define solutions in terms of behaviors. What behaviors create desired outcomes?
- Small, simple, observable behaviors exponentially exceed the value of unactionable big ideas.
#3. Strengths have corresponding weaknesses.
- Great strengths are accompanied by great frailties. You aren’t great at everything. Your teammates aren’t either. Allow and accept weaknesses.
- Self-development is the first development. There’s always room to grow.
- Compensate for weaknesses. In order to compensate for weaknesses, you must acknowledge they exist.
#4. Action trumps talk.
- Mistakes of action are better than mistakes of neglect.
- Meetings that end without action plans are wasted time. Useful information always impacts action.
- The three questions of leadership are:
- What have you done?
- What are you doing?
- What will you do tomorrow.
#5. Leading is serving, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Success is ultimately about the achievement of others.
#6. Get people doing what they love.
#7. Environments and relationships have trajectory. They always take us somewhere.
#8. Instability, uncertainty, resistance, and ambiguity are opportunity.
#9. Lasting impact requires persistent, unglamorous, sweaty endurance.
#10. Exponential success requires others. People, not programs, are the future.
What are the beliefs of unstoppable leadership?
More leadership questions:
1) How are you doing (personally)?
2) How are you doing (professionally)?
3) How are we doing (at supporting/collaborating/advancing/improving/etc.)
4) How are you doing compared to your plan/expectations?
5) How will tomorrow be better than today?
6) What have you learned?
7) Knowing what you know now, what will you do differently?
Thanks Brad. Great questions! My favorites are #5 and #6.
Brad,
These are great questions!
I like #7!
Your Section #3 is very valuable.. as an “seasoned leader” I enjoy the privilege of sitting back and saying “I know my capabilities and I’m just not good at XYZ.” Sadly at 35 these words would have never come from my lips.
Your section #9 is so true..
Excellent post Dan! Our core beliefs will absolutely determine our outcomes. It is those core beliefs that will provide the fuel to keep us going in spite of the obstacles that will come our way.
Unstoppable leaders never give-up, never give-in and continue to follow their vision no matter what. It is the vision of leadership that provides opportunity to develop others and creating a culture of success.
Dan, I like #7. In life it is thousands of small things that define the path we are on and take us to a final destination, not a few big ones. Yet the thousands of small things can seem unimportant in themselves and can be dismissed as having no long term importance. These are our moment by moment CHOICES of environment (what we watch, listen to, read, where we go, how we invest time and money) and relationships (who we chose to spend our time with). You don’t notice the trajectory up or down because it is so slow and steady but it is powerful.
He who is faithful in the small things, the hidden things (character is who we are when no one is looking), the unnoticed things, will be entrusted with the great things.
Hi Dan,
All are dead on. I vibe with 1. I see myself more as everybody, and being everywhere, so yep, I really do matter as does everyone and everything in this world. See yourself as you really are and you can’t be anything BUT unstoppable. Fab post, keep on inspiring.
Ryan
Excellent post Dan. Really enjoyed this one. In particular I liked your initial quote from Kouzes/Posner in #1. I recently re-read their book and it is absolutely true. I’m also a huge believe in the servant oriented nature of leadership (#5) and your comment about action (I view it as execution and outcomes).
I also think there’s an aspect of positive thinking and optimism that goes along with the most successful leaders. It’s not a matter of “hoping” things go well, but rather an expectation of success and corresponding actions to increase the probability things will turn out for the best.
Best,
Mark G