Leaders And Relationships

As far as I am concerned, every leader needs to be a people person. How can a person be a leader and not be able to communicate and connect with people? This, to me is the most important aspect of being a leader. I would like to share a few quotes from the book entitled "The Servant." The book, written by Jim Hunter, is a simple story about the true essence of leadership. It is powerful, and it has been translated into 9 languages.

"Nature shows us clearly that you are either alive and growing or you are dying, dead, or decaying. Labor unrest, turnover, strikes, low morale, low trust, and low commitment are merely symptoms of a relationship problem. Simply put, leadership is about getting things done through people. When working with and getting things done through people, there will always be two dynamics involved---the task and the relationship. If we focus only on tasks and not on the relationship, we may experience turnover, rebellion, poor quality, low commitment, low trust, and other undesirable symptoms. To lead, you must serve, is the great paradox. Trust me now, understand me later. Management is not something you do to other people. You manage your inventory, your checkbook and your resources. You can even manage yourself. But you do not manage other human beings. You manage things, you lead people."

Reality shows us that the ability to connect with people is a vital ingredient in being a successful leader. I am not saying that the other factors are unimportant. I am saying that leadership demands skill, and the essence of that skill, is being a people person.