Are You at Your Best?
By: Randy Wolken, President & CEO

Most of what a leader does is witnessed, not heard.  We go to meetings.  We interact with our teams.  We serve our customers.  We are just present – not saying a word.  However, we are communicating volumes.  I have heard it said that 90% of communication is nonverbal. If so – and I believe it is – we are saying a lot whenever we show up.

How I show up to anything is what people are hearing from me.  Do I show up alert?  Am I prepared for the encounter?  Am I distracted or engaged?  Do I ask questions like I care or is my mind on to the next appointment on my calendar?  Do I pull a colleague aside when I see they are struggling or just rush off to my next meeting?  These are questions we need to ask ourselves.

Our teams desire our best as leaders.  Just as our families and communities deserve all of us when we are with them, so does our team. Showing up as our best self is one of the most important things we can do for our organizations.

Over the years, I have encountered truly amazing professionals.  In my role, I get to see a lot of them.  I get to witness how they show up, what they say, and what their teams do.  I can see the electricity of high performing teams.  It’s these interactions that most tell me how their bottom line is.  It all starts with teams giving their best.  Leaders need to lead in this effort.

Leaders who lead like this get more than productive teams. They get the respect and support they need to do the tough things.  Leadership can be lonely.  Leaders do need to make difficult decisions that are sometimes unpopular, but when your teams know you are all in they can get behind these decisions and roll-up their sleeves and get the job done.

Think back to the leaders you have worked with who inspired you.  Did you feel they gave you their best?  I bet they did!  You judged them on their effort and presence as much as by their results.  They earned your respect.  It’s something we must all do.  The best leaders I have had the blessing of working with gave me their best.  They were all in.  Sure, they were human.  They made mistakes and got it wrong.  But, I always got their best—and I’ll remember that.

Let’s commit to giving others our very best – today and every day.  It’s not always easy – but the results will speak for themselves.

Looking for more? Download my Amazon Bestseller, Present-Future Leader:  How to Thrive in Today’s Economy.