Looking at your back end

What does your back end look like?  By the end of my post today, you’ll be able to take a quick assessment of it, and provide yourself with an answer.  In a previous post, I discussed how leadership can be exercised at any level.  You don’t have to be in an official position of leadership to be a leader.  You can be a leader of your family; you can be a leader in charge of students if you are a teacher; you can be a leader of the tasks and communications you are responsible for carrying out on a daily basis.  Leadership occurs at any level.

In the book The Leadership Test: Will You Pass, written by Timothy Clark, there is an exchange between a man and his former teacher and current mentor.  The man has been offered a leadership position within his company, and he is unsure how to proceed, thus prompting the discussion with his mentor.

The mentor offered, “Leadership has a front end and a back end. Persuasion is the front end. Accountability is the back end. Don’t confuse the two. Persuasion includes all legitimate forms of influence, such as creating a vision, setting goals, using logic, data, and creativity, and demonstrating interest and concern for people. Not least is the power of your personal example. These are your tools. But here’s the catch—if you lead through persuasion and fail to hold people accountable, you’re just a fun guy to be around. You’re not a leader.“

What I got out of this exchange was this – it’s very easy to provide either yourself or those you encounter on a daily basis a stunning vision of what you hope to accomplish or how you envision your leadership, however you need to back up your vision with real results.  You cannot only talk the talk – you have to walk the walk; otherwise, your backside, in essence, will have about as much credibility as a donkey's.

You cannot only talk the talk – you have to
walk the walk; otherwise, your backside,
in essence, will have about as much
credibility as a donkey's.
Photo:flickr.com/photos/pmarkham

So moving forward, take some time to look at your back end.  Are you following through on all of your promises?  Are you holding yourself accountable for meeting the expectations you placed upon yourself?  Do you honor your commitments, both to yourself and to those around you?

If your back end is loaded with accountable practices, you are well on your way to being a great leader.

Best wishes,

-Victor