True Leadership Feels Like Dragging People Kicking & Screaming

If you aren’t constantly dragging your employees or direct reports towards excellence, faster execution, and continuous improvement then you will notice that they will eventually default back to status quo, being average, and remaining in their comfort zone. It’s why there are very few true leaders in this world while the rest are just along for the ride, who buy things like lottery tickets, all because they truly want the easy path. Which is why as a leader, you have two choices. You either drag your people forward with high energy and push them into a constant state of continuous improvement, or watch them default back to their own, average, status quo. If you drag them forward, you will have a chance at achieving excellence in your company or department. But if you leave them to their own devices, you will achieve nothing more than their “average”.

But you aren’t doing this to be average, right? Exactly. So, as a leader you need to be very careful with words like “autonomy”. Like anything, “autonomy” given without this flavor of leadership can result in status quo performance.

Leaders are intrinsically motivated to work hard, pursue excellence, and completely reject the status quo. It’s who we are. But its equally as important to know that this is not who everyone else is. Therefore, when you are really leading it should feel like you are making people feel uncomfortable. They should feel like they are doing things and are being challenged in ways never experienced before. To you, it should feel like you are dragging them to a point of almost kicking and screaming.

If it doesn’t feel this way right now, then you aren’t setting the bar high enough. As such, you aren’t moving as fast as you could be and time is a wastin’. So go set it higher. Right now.