Have you ever been asked to be responsible or been held accountable for something you didn’t have the authority to change? It happens all the time. Leaders will delegate a task to an employee with clear expectations of outcome and timeline but will retain the decision making authority. Usually, whatever that leader hoped to gain by delegating that task is lost because it winds up back on their plate for decisions. On top of that, the leader has created a frustrated employee. On the other hand, when leaders empower others, when they give both responsibility and authority, the reverse is true. That leader has actually streamlined their operation and are developing leaders around them.
Practice the law of empowerment
If you want to be a successful leader, you must know how to empower others.Theodore Roosevelt said, “The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and the self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”So, if you want to empower others:
- Turn people loose. Find strong leaders to empower. Build them up, give them resources, authority, and responsibility. Turn them loose to achieve.
- Help them to reach their potential. Be on their side, encourage them, give them power, and help them to succeed.
- Raise them up. To keep people down, you have to stay down with them. The more you raise people up, the more you go up too.
- Be willing to change. Effective leaders are not only willing to change; they become change agents.
- Develop a strong sense of self-worth. If you don’t believe in yourself, you will be threatened by the success of others, and you will eventually look for ways to undermine them. Believe in yourself, your mission, and your people.
If you take these steps you will be well on your way to developing leaders around you thus multiplying your influence.
Keep strong!