Good morning, Leaders! It’s Friday!

As my colleagues and mentors start to retire, it becomes more clear than ever that they aren’t counting their money as they exit their last paying role, they’re counting the number of people they touched and they’re reflecting on the influence they’ve had on the industry they worked in.

I received a special invitation from an old buddy (who has bravely been fighting progressively worsening symptoms of Parkinson’s disease) to attend an industry meeting I first came to know more than twenty years ago. I questioned if I wanted to return because I’ve passed on this baton twice to others who have made their own mark at the conference but I was pleased to come back to see the progress, rub elbows with old friends, make new ones and catch up on the latest topics covered at this sixty year old conference.

My buddy shared stories of his exploits, his intern program, his direct involvement on multiple industry panels and scholarship programs, his discussions with thick headed board members, crotchety lineman who quantified their mistakes by an assigned number (representing how far the subject’s head was up their ass that day). He introduced me to one of his four talented, intelligent and motivated problem solving children, and in a quiet moment with the cane by his side, he shared how ready he was to hang up his spurs. He has led an incredibly interesting and fulfilling life and has an enormous amount to reflect on and be proud of!

Another leader at this meeting is also retiring who led his consulting firm to prominence, sparred at a legal level as an expert witness, wrote standards and passed on his latest roles to three managers who he’d been grooming for decades. He successfully helped define and defend the electric utility industry and continues to impart wisdom as a board member, national code committee member and industry scholarship supporter.

Yet another friend and leader prominent at this conference stepped back from the company he founded to focus on the thing he loves, clients. It is fairly rare to see a technically prone individual embrace business acumen and capitalize on the nexus. Even more rare is to have that same leader let go of well-earned titles and be so self-aware to focus on what he loves. I’m confident his bank account is substantial…but you’d never guess it by talking to him. Today, he counts his success by the number of grandchildren he has and the quantity of 8″ brook trout he catches.

In Patrick Lencioni’s latest fable released last month, “The Ideal Team Player”, he focuses on the cultural quality of teamwork. Great leaders build teams. Great leaders possess many positive qualities; they are hungry, humble and smart and those qualities manifest in behaviors like:
•Trust-a willingness to be vulnerable
•Conflict-a preference to face it realizing there is a solution once faced and dealt with respectfully
•Commitment-to the Team you are working on
•Accountability-to do what you said you would without expecting someone else to hold your feet to the fire
•Results-effort without accomplishment is rarely rewarded. Business respects results and if you expect to be competitive, you can’t go to your customer or client and say “sorry, we tried” and expect to stay in business.

I’m confident that although the three colleagues I cited left a legacy because they were great leaders, I believe they accomplished what they did because they were great Team builders and great Team members.

Remember,
It’s not what you get out of it…it’s what you contributed.

Have a blessed weekend!