How to manage

- When people ask me, "Well, how do you really become a servant leader?" I say you have to understand that there's two parts of servant leadership. One is the vision, direction, and goals part of servant leadership. Because leadership's about going somewhere, isn't it? People don't know where you want 'em to go, how are they going to get there, you know? And it's really what some people call the strategic part of servant leadership. And I think it's important that every organization have a compelling vision. You need to know what business we're in, what are we trying to accomplish, where are we going, which is your picture of the future. If we do a great job, what are we going to accomplish? What are the values which'll drive your behavior? And then you set goals and objectives. And that's the responsibility of the traditional hierarchy. You philosophically have to turn that pyramid upside down because now you work for your people who eventually work for their people who eventually work for their customer, and symbolically what you're really moving is when the traditional hierarchy is there is you're responsible and you want the people to be responsive to what you've agreed upon. When you turn the pyramid upside down, you're making them responsible, which is able to respond, and your job is to be responsive to them. Praise their progress. Redirect 'em if they're off. Cheer 'em on. Do all kinds of other things. But your job is to help them win. Now, we always can tell a self-serving organization run by leaders who think it's all about them because they want to keep that traditional pyramid alive and well. And so as a customer, if you got a problem and you talk to a front line person, you're talking to a duck, not an eagle, and they're going, "Quack quack, it's our policy. "Quack quack, I just work here. "Quack quack, I didn't make the freakin' rules. "You want to talk to my supervisor, "quack quack quack quack quack." You know why? Because their loyalty's got to be up the hierarchy, you know? And so they're serving that. Where if you go work to an organization where they turn the pyramid upside down, now you're talking to an eagle. You know, like in Nordstrom's. What do they say? No problem. A friend of mine went in to get perfume for his wife and this woman at Nordstrom said, "We don't sell that brand here, "but I know where I can find it in one of the other stores. "How long are you going to be in the store?" He said about 30 minutes. She said, "Good, I'll go get it in the other store "and I'll come back "and I'll have it gift wrapped and ready when you leave." And he came and she had it all ready for him, charged him the same price that she had paid in the other store, so Nordstrom's didn't make any money. What did they make? They made a raving fan customer. You're in charge of the area where you are in, you know? And what can you do to make a difference where you're planted? You know, so often when people hear a concept like servant leadership and they say, "I can't do it in my org-" They go and talk to the top manager and they say, "This is what you want to do and all." I said you're crazy, because they got position power, and all you got is personal power. They're going to throw you out of your office. You first got to get some points. You got to get something in your bank before people are going to listen to you. So start doing it where you're planted. Make a difference with your people. Let people ask questions, say what are you doing, and then you can start to tell them. Boy, that's really powerful. Stop complaining. Go out there and make a difference where you're planted. And if you can't do it in your organization, do it at home.