Most people want to become better leaders, but we often disagree about what good leadership looks like.
Some people picture a strong, decisive leader who drives hard and refuses to compromise. Other people picture a supportive leader who encourages and cheers on the team. Because our views of leadership are shaped by our experiences, the natural question becomes: which qualities should a growing leader focus on first? Servant leadership offers a helpful starting point. Its most basic practices can strengthen a leader’s influence, vision, humility, and care for the team. While leadership growth includes a variety of characteristics and competencies, these three foundational skills can help set a leader up for lasting success.
These three practices are not advanced leadership techniques; they are foundational habits that shape the kind of person a leader is becoming.
1. Follow well before you lead.
Here’s a leadership truth: you will never be a better leader than you were a follower. That’s your ceiling. If one has never developed the ability to follow others well as a team member they will not possess the abilities needed to have sustained leadership success.
Why is this important? Being a good follower involves developing trust in others, seeing oneself as a continuing learner, and basic exercises in humility. If someone as a team member is always in the mindset they know more than the leader then they will never develop the trust needed to someday grow team members they will lead. This will come back to bite them hard the first bad decision they make as a leader because they have not taken the time to develop the trust they need with their team. They will end up with a team that does tasks because they are told to do them, not because they are trusted and empowered to do them. That delineation alone is what separates a flourishing team from a floundering one.
2. Cultivate the characteristic of being servant minded.
Our actions flow from our mindset and instincts. Professional sports teams spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on basic skills. Why is this? It’s because coaches want players’ reactions to stem from something that they don’t even have to think about, it’s their natural reaction. It’s the same with the servant leadership orientation. It begins with the mindset of what can I do for others instead of what can others do for me. Navigating this distinction well is what will be one of the defining features of a servant leader.
Is the leader in their role because they enjoy power and authority or is it because they enjoy serving the mission of the organization along with the people with whom they work. Reframing our minds around finding our joy in serving others will help to develop one of the most critical skills of servant leadership.
3. Success is measured in the victories of others.
This skill is the high watermark and possibly the best definition of a servant leader. It reflects the highest level of character when a leader finds more joy and satisfaction in their team members to succeed over having the credit for themselves. It’s a mistake when a leader assumes that they need to get all of the credit for a team’s victory. The best leaders in any organization will recognize where a team is consistently succeeding and look to see who is leading them. A steady demonstration of this is one of the most powerful opportunities to grow one’s influence and career. As one matures as a leader, this mindset also serves to be a flywheel that continues to create energy and enthusiasm for one’s work. Studies consistently show that as we get further along in our career we move more toward a reflective view of our work and questions around what legacy we leave behind.
What better legacy is there for one to have then a steady stream of helping others to succeed and grow as professionals?
There are many other avenues to explore within servant leadership, but these three areas offer a strong place to begin. Learning to follow well, cultivating a servant-minded posture, and measuring success by the victories of others will build root skills and competencies that serve you well as you grow your influence without compromising your integrity or your witness for Christ.