Lead
LEADERSHIP STARTS BEFORE ANYONE GIVES YOU THE TITLE.
One of the biggest misconceptions about leadership is that you have to be put in charge before you can lead.
You don't.
Some of the best leaders I've worked with weren't always the highest-ranking person in the room.
They were the people others could count on.
They showed up prepared.
They helped when something needed to be done.
They took responsibility instead of looking for someone to blame.
They shared what they knew.
And when things got difficult, they didn't disappear.
I've also seen the opposite.
People with impressive titles who struggled to earn the trust of the people they were supposed to lead.
A title can give you authority.
It can't give you influence, respect or trust.
Those have to be earned.
That's one of the reasons I've become increasingly interested in the idea of leadership beyond job titles.
You can lead from the field.
You can lead from the office.
You can lead at home.
You can lead in your community.
You can lead simply by being the person who consistently does the right thing when nobody is keeping score.
Leadership doesn't begin when somebody changes the title underneath your name.
It begins with how you show up.
That's what LEAD means to me.
Lead | Listen | Deliver
Who is someone you've worked with who led without needing the title?
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