Developing leaders fits into a category that is similar to fitness and athletic performance. On one hand, nearly anyone can tie on a pair of shoes and shuffle jog around the block. Anyone can walk into a gym and pick stuff up and put it back down. Fitness is easy.

Right?

Anyone can lead. Tie on a title. Shuffle through meetings. Pick up a good leadership book. Set it back down. Leadership is easy. You just do it.

Right?

I own a side business in the fitness world. I’ve been involved in fitness and athletics most of my life. Little known fact: The fitness industry is primarily geared towards people who aren’t fit and aren’t likely to become fit. That’s the majority of the market. That’s where the easy money is at.

The leadership world isn’t too dissimilar.

The truth is, leaders need to be more than “fit.” They actually need to be “athletic.” They need to be able to perform. “Fitness” is merely a base requirement. It is merely a foundation for performance.

To create an athlete requires someone who has a high tolerance for self-generated, intense effort and a willingness to be uncomfortable. To build leadership, the same requirements are true. Years on the job, a promotion, P&L responsibilities, being an owner, whatever – just means someone is in the race. It doesn’t make them a true competitor. A true leader.

The process of building high performing athletes and leaders is similar. Below is a guide to the critical capacities for leadership. You can use it to identify readiness and build leadership in others. You can also use it to identify your own strengths and gaps.

The Building Blocks: Nutrition

In athletic performance, nutrition is critical. Most athletes that I know like to enjoy a beer now and then or have cake and ice cream at the birthday party. They typically aren’t going nuts around nutrition.

But as a lifestyle, they eat well. They stay hydrated. They get enough sleep. They take care of what goes into their bodies.

Leaders need to do the same. They need to pay attention to the Relationships they surround themselves with. Excellent leaders spend a lot of time around people who are positive influences. People who challenge them. People who encourage them.

Excellent leaders pay attention to their media consumption. They are aware of the general news. They might be on Facebook. But these things are intellectual and emotional versions of candy and soda. Calorie dense but nutrition lite.

Instead, they curate the material they expose themselves to. Ensuring that much of their time and attention is given to content that encourages them emotionally, that helps reinforce an optimistic and positive mindset, that provides new tools and skills or helps them gain insight to act.

Primarily, they recognize they only have so much time in the day. They focus that time on what will build them and help them build others. Effective leaders actively cultivate a healthy sense of who they are, a healthy way of seeing and relating to others and a healthy way of viewing the world around them.

Preparation: Conditioning

In athletics, conditioning is the time that you take to prepare yourself for intense effort. It is what allows you push into a new training without injury.

In leadership, conditioning is re-focusing on relevant skills and mindsets. It is a refocus on the basics. I’ve found that many, highly effective and entrepreneurial leaders who’ve led stable companies for many years get deconditioned when it comes to leading change processes. Like the weekend warrior basketball player, because they used to do this well they believe they still have the moves.

They often don’t. Not that they can’t get them back. But they often need to review the basics. These include:

• The Ability to Set Good Goals: What do goal setting and accountability look like in this new context?
• The Ability to Persevere: What if we don’t achieve results as easily or as quickly as we thought? What if we meet obstacles that we aren’t used to? What if everyone isn’t excited about the change? What if this takes work?
• The Ability to Listen to and Engage Others: Many leaders default to “bossing.” When you “boss” you rely on all your strength and ability. It’s about you pushing. About your authority. About your power. When you lead, you engage other people’s motivations. You harness their vision, their energy. It’s about the leader guiding and leveraging.

The Foundation: Core Leadership Strengths

Strength is the basis for all athletic performance. If you are an endurance athlete, unless you are strong you are only enduring in weakness. If you are a power athlete, power is just the speed at which you can engage your strength. If you are a skilled athlete, strength gives you control and expands your capacity.

For leaders, the core leadership strengths are the following[1]:

• The Ability to Communicate an Inspiring Vision: People need to see what everything they are doing adds up to. If it all adds up to is something they really care about, and they can see how they are contributing to this, you’ll get great things from them.
• The Ability to Grow and Empower Others: The best leaders compulsively grow other people and challenge them towards growth. They coach, mentor, challenge, train and invest in others naturally.
• The Ability to Model Ideal Behavior: Ideal leaders have integrity. There is consistency between organizational values and expectations and their own behavior. They understand the power of their example and they use it intentionally.
• The Ability to Constructively Challenge “How Things Are Done.”: Ideal leaders know that what got them, their organization or others here may not be what will get them where they need to go. They are willing to challenge and be challenged regarding the status quo and sacred cows.
• The Ability to Encourage Others Well: Ideal leaders know that both building up other people as well and putting courage into people is critical for organizational success. Fear, as in: “What if I fail?”, “What if no one likes my idea?”, “What if I’m rejected?”, “What if this succeeds and creates too much work?” are the major inhibitors of success. Ideal leaders address these fears and put courage into people.

Dynamic Action: Leadership Power

In athletics, power is the ability to engage strength very quickly and dynamically.

In leadership, “power moves” are often most clearly seen in these three areas:

• Leading Change. Change is normal. But neither the process or outcomes are always predictable. Being able to summon all the leadership strengths that are needed when they are needed is critical.
• Continual Growth: Growth is just another form of change. Many people, many organizations hit a point where they feel like they are doing, “good enough.” When this happens, organizations become very “now focused.” They forget to look ahead and prepare for the future – whether the future includes challenges or opportunities.
• Healthy Conflict: Conflict is a natural part of healthy organizations. Addressing and managing conflicts well, so that respect is maintained and resolution is achieved is a skill cultivated by ideal leaders.

The Long Haul: Endurance

In athletics, endurance is primarily a mindset. Endurance athletes train their bodies but their biggest battles are in their mind. Other athletes must endure through long practice sessions, relearning of skills, plateaus or injuries. No athlete performs well without being able to endure.

Athletes accept that results are earned through focused effort over time.

It’s the same for leaders.

• Follow Through: It’s easy to plan. Difficult to implement. Leaders love to plan. They get bored of the follow through. Ideal leaders know how to see something through to the end.
• Setting up Systems and Structures: The non-sexy side of enduring organizations. There was a leader, somewhere, who saw the need to stop reinventing the wheel. They set up systems and structures so the same results could be achieved by more people with less effort.
• Accountability: Many people become leaders specifically out of a desire to avoid accountability. Ideal and high performing leaders know how to create accountability for themselves. They transparently set goals, monitor progress and adjust as needed.
• Renewing Vision: Leaders need to renew and reconnect to their own vision periodically. Ideal leaders know how to do this and take time for it. They also accept that “people leak” and that vision, purpose, values, and passion need to be communicated through the whole organization continually.

For most organizations, leadership development is not about building leaders but about teaching the technical skills related to the service and administration of the company. Important and relevant topics.

But not leadership.

To build leaders, build them like you would build an athlete. It takes time, it takes focus and effort. You’ll get great results.

Take good care,

Christian

[1] Derived from the extensive research done by Jim Kouzes and Larry Posner.

Would You Like Help Building Your Leaders?

I’ve worked with hundreds of leaders to help them tangibly transform their leadership performance. If you would like to grow as a leader or would like help in quickly building your leaders, you can contact me at 907 522-7200 or Christian@vantageconsulting.org.

Special July Offer!

During the month of July, I’m celebrating the volunteerism that is unique in America. I know that many of my readers lead non-profits as executives or board directors. So, this is for you.

During this month, I’m making a special, free, offer to a limited number of non-profit boards. The offer is my services for a one-day board retreat that can include:

• Board training on board best practices.
• Strategic planning.
• Board development and recruitment planning.
• Executive Director succession planning.
• Mentoring for board president, chair or executive director.
• Or…any other topic relevant to improving the performance of your organization through your board.

This retreat can be scheduled for any mutually convenient date in 2017.

To Apply:

• Email a Letter of Interest: I need to receive a one-page letter signed by both the executive director and board president expressing interest. Please e-mail a copy of this letter to me. In it address the topics below.
  • Describe your board’s current practice and willingness to fully step into their board roles. Preference will be given to active boards.
  • Describe your mission and primary opportunities and challenges.
  • Provide a thumbnail sketch of your organization: # of staff, # of board directors, years in operation, website, etc.
  • Communicate how you intend to use this investment of your time to further the mission of the organization.

I’m looking for motivated boards and leaders to support. If you feel like that describes you or your board, please respond.

I will receive applications through the month of July and announce recipients in August. Contact me at christian@vantageconsulting.org