BE WILLING TO DO WHAT OTHERS WON’T

It’s said that an aid group in South Africa once wrote to missionary and explorer David Livingstone, “Have you found a good road to where you are? If so, we want to know how to send other men to join you.”

Livingstone replied, “If you have men who will come only if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come even if there is no road at all.” That’s what  top leaders want from the people working for them: they want individuals who are willing to do what others won’t.

Few things gain the appreciation of a top leader more quickly than an employee with a whatever-it-takes attitude. They must be willing and able to think outside of their job description, to be willing to tackle the kinds of jobs that others are too proud or too frightened to take on.

Few things are more frustrating for a leader than having someone refuse to do a task because it is “not his job.” (In moments like those, most of the top leaders I know are tempted to invite such people to be without a job altogether!) Good leaders don’t think in those terms. They understand the Law of the Big Picture from The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: “The goals is more important than the role.”

A 360-Degree Leader’s goal is to get the job done, to fulfill the vision of the organization and its leader. That often means doing whatever it takes. As a leader “moves up,” that more often takes the form of hiring someone to get it done, but leaders in the middle often don’t have that option. So instead, they jump in and get it done themselves.

Cultivate a whatever-it-takes attitude.

Reference:

Maxwell, J. C. (2007). Maximize your day: 365 days of insights to develop the leader within you and influence those around you. Manila, Philippines: OMF Literature Inc.