Be giving of your time and help others. While visiting my wife's family yesterday, I decided to help pick up downed branches from the recent ice storm. It ended up taking four hours to pick up sticks and large branches and put them in a burn pile in the garden. But what I learned by doing this is that by giving of your time and doing something for someone else without being asked, is an act of service that shows you care. In today's world where time is a commodity, giving of your time sacrificially is one of the best ways you can show you love and care about someone and it models the way for others.
Take your kids to school on your day off. It will show your kids that you love them by doing something outside the typical norm. Plus, it will give you an opportunity to experience your children's world from their own eyes and what they experience on a daily basis at school. Take every opportunity to get into your children's world so you can bond with them and get to know them. It's the right thing to do and it models the way for other fathers and/or mothers. "When a leader listens to malicious gossip, all the workers get infected with evil." -Proverbs 29:12 (The Message) Make sure to take time to celebrate successes. When others around you have big wins, take time to recognize them like my manager did yesterday. My manager, my top rep, and myself all won the YP CEO Winner's Circle trip and he took us out for lunch to celebrate. Little things like that make a difference and make the office a great place to work and him a great manager to work for and with. Celebrating successes models the way for others and is the right thing to do. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8New International Version (NIV) 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. When milestones or key events happen, celebrate with your co-workers. For example, when my wife delivered our children at the hospital, the next day my manager came by to congratulate us. Yesterday, one of my co-workers became a grandparent and I sent an email announcing the great event (with their prior approval first) so we can celebrate with them as an office. Building a winning team is comprised of many things, but taking time to celebrate with them milestones or key events brings encouragement and camaraderie amongst the team. After all it's the right thing to do and celebrating helps build a winning team and models the way for others. Make sure that you fully understand someone that works with you or for you before you have a conversation about something that you personally find destracting or unprofessional. It could just be their "thing," and without fully understanding that person, you could crush their spirit. I am constantly learning and several days ago, I think I may have just done this. Unbeknownst to me, I had a conversation with someone I like and respect that I work with and I told them that "their thing" was distracting and not professional. You may have heard me say or read my blog "seek to understand, before being understood." Well I failed to do that. I have had conversations with my mother about her being more opinionated and set in her ways as she gets older, but I didn't realize I was doing the same thing to a person from the next generation. In my own house, we have a rule...when we hurt someone, we have to confront the person we hurt, own up to what we did, look them in the eyes, and tell them: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you. Please forgive me." And that is what I will doing next time I see this person. I may not understand, I may think it's distracting (to me), but the fact that upon reflecting on the situation that I may have crushed someone's spirit goes against who I am and what I believe, more than anything else. Make sure that you don't crush anyone's "thing" or spirit and when you hurt someone, make sure to tell them you are sorry, that you didn't mean to hurt them, and ask them to forgive you. After all it's the right thing to do and it models the way for others. Don't ask for favors from your manager until you step up and do what's expected from your manager. Make sure you do your part and that you are giving it your all, otherwise your asking might just be an opportunity to review your situation and value to the organization, and you might not be pleased with the outcome. If you show up every day and work to excel in all that you do, then you shouldn't have to be concerned about conversations like this and you your value to the team. Make a difference and make an impact to the organization every day so that your value is never questioned and that your manager won't ever say they can do without you. That way when or if you ever need a favor, that it is done more based on who you are and your character than what you have done. After all having the right character models the way for others, and sets an example for those around you. Do you remember when some states in the U.S. had auto inspections where they test your car emissions, and maybe even checked for working lights, turn signals, and other key necessities when driving a motor vehicle safely and environmentally friendly. Some states may still do this, but the states I have lived in and currently live in have stopped. Inspecting what you expect is key and in today's fast paced, never enough time, driving for results today world, make sure to stop and inspect. Holding others accountable starts with a vision, a plan, and then inspecting the components of the plan that are non-negotiable. Hold others accountable and hold yourself accountable and watch the difference it will make. I believe it's a key component that is needed to win versus losing in the competitive world we live in. It's the right thing to do and it models the way to win for others. "Well done good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord." - Matthew 25:23 |
"Modeling the Way" BlogMark A. Watkins is a Region Sales Manager in the Midwest with Rollins, Inc. and strives to Model the Way as a Sales Leader, Teacher, Visionary, Innovator, Problem Solver, Coach and Mentor. Archives
August 2018
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