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Leadership comes in many forms. It’s a cliche to say, but it’s true! From heading up a multi-million dollar company, to working as a manager, to taking the reigns of a project on your team, to even just showing up for your kids, friends, and community outside of your work, leadership can encompass acts big and small, professional and personal, and truly permeate every aspect of our life.

But for many people, great leadership isn’t something they really understand until they see it. Your boss handing you an assignment may be an act of management, but if they aren’t inspiring you to do your best or going out of their way to give you the support you need, are they really displaying true leadership?

We feel that the FISH! Philosophy goes hand-in-hand with a concept known as Servant Leadership, and believe that by following the 4 core pillars of FISH!, you can mold yourself into a true servant leader that strives to make their team the best they can be.

What is Servant Leadership? 

Fundamentally, Servant Leadership is the notion that a true leader works in the best interest of their team, not the other way around. A servant leader believes that a promotion into a management role should be treated as a responsibility to support their new reports, not as an opportunity to feed their own ego and sense of self-importance. To be a leader is to succeed and earn praise as a team, and to accept the responsibility of failure and missteps. At the end of the day, it’s right there in the name: Servant Leadership. Leading by serving.

Five Tips to Improve Your Leadership Skills: 

Contrary to what some people might believe or espouse, leadership styles are not innate and immutable. Just like any other skill, leadership can be learned, nurtured, and developed over time with attention and practice, and this is no less true for Servant Leadership specifically. So what are some ways to practice Servant Leadership in your own professional and personal life?

1. Hold yourself accountable to your values: We all hold our own values, and to be true to yourself, that means living in accordance with them. If you value responsibility, that means you need to take responsibility. If you value respect, you need to show respect to others and not consider anybody “beneath” you. By living honestly in alignment with your values, you show your team that win or lose, you’re acting with integrity and can be trusted as their leader.

1. Be open about your mistakes: As a leader, you’ll make mistakes, and it’s how you respond to those that define your leadership style. Servant Leadership means not hiding or minimizing your mistakes or failures, but taking accountability for them: Admit what happened and be clear and honest about how it affects others and what you’ll do differently going forward (and then of course, do it!).

1. Lose your ego: The crux of Servant Leadership means remembering always that you’re working in the best interest of your team, not yourself. We all want to succeed, but if you Choose Your Attitude every day in a way that supports your team and lifts all ships, you’ll find yourself in a better, more-respected position than if you were working to feed your own ego or your success at the expense of others.

1. Make Their Day: Everybody wants to be seen as a unique individual, and this is especially true in the workplace, where it’s unfortunately common to be viewed as an office drone or a mere cog in the machine. If you go out of your way to surprise and delight your team, make them feel admired and supported, and Make Their Day, you’ll show them that you respect their complete selves, not just their work output.

1. Build the culture you want to see: Leadership doesn’t just get work done, it also defines workplace culture. People follow the cues of their bosses, which means you want to make yourself an example of the type of behavior you want to see. That means you want to Be There for people emotionally when they’re going through hard times, and cultivate a sense of Play that ensures people feel comfortable exploring new ideas and concepts. Keep this up, and you’ll build a team culture that performs above and beyond all expectations.
   

 

Ideas to Reflect On:

• Have you ever worked for someone you felt was a Servant Leader? If so, what did they do that you admired?
• Think back to a time when you messed up as a manager. How did you respond? Did you admit your mistake? What did you do to resolve the issue?
• How do you work to practice your values in the workplace? What more can you do to build a culture that reflects and embraces those values?

Whether you work in business, education, or healthcare, FISH! offers accessible, intuitive solutions to empower your workers, bring your team together, and avoid the symptoms of impending burnout. We invite you to contact us today at 800.695.4534 or info@charthouse.com to speak with our cultural specialists, who will help you find the right FISH! Philosophy solutions that will nurture your organizational culture and motivate your team!

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Whether you work in business, education, or healthcare, FISH! offers accessible, intuitive solutions to empower your workers, bring your team together, and introduce Play into your organization. We invite you to contact us today at 800.695.4534 or info@charthouse.com to speak with our cultural specialists, who will help you find the right FISH! Philosophy solutions that will nurture your organizational culture and motivate your team!

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