What is servant leadership?
Are you someone who is in a position of leadership? What is your style? Many of us may have heard the term servant leadership, but what does it really mean? What does it entail? We recently chatted with Lieutenant Colonel Oak McCulloch on our podcast about leadership, so I wanted to use the #CJJblog this week to get into being a servant leader. Enjoy.
- Define it. What does being a servant leader mean to you?
- Me: Flipping the traditional leadership pyramid (with the leader at the top) to the leader being on the bottom and leading upwards toward their team. The leader embraces the mindset of serving others first
- Oak: When the leader puts their people first
- Actions.
- Be intentional with your actions toward your people. Get to know them and take care of them first.
- Get out of the office, get your own cup of coffee, and say hello to team members every day.
- Be the Chief Question Asker (CQA) and ask your team members how the team can improve.
- Make others feel safe to provide feedback and be open to their suggestions.
- Ask two questions: 1) How can I be a better leader? And 2) How can I best support you?
- Lead by example. Consistently align your words and actions.
- Build trust. Create a team of accountability and support your team members however you can.
Did You Know? You can listen to the full podcast episode with Lieutenant Oak McCulloch HERE.
Life Tip #7: Treat each person you meet like a million dollar customer
Deckard & Company