Become the Leader You Want to Follow

Do you want or need to change the way your people perceive you? Of course it goes without saying that the way you think and act on a daily basis determines whether and how your people respect you, listen to you, and follow you. As a leader, you create an abundance of experiences for your people every single day. Those experiences create beliefs, beliefs determine actions, and actions produce results—either desired or undesired results.

If you want to change the way your people perceive you as a leader, here’s how it works. Whenever you receive feedback that what you are doing or saying is creating experiences for your people that are inconsistent with the way you want them to think and act, apply the Methodology for Changing Beliefs. Five simple steps will immediately get your people looking for evidence of your sincere desire to exemplify the way you want people to think and act. Both team and organization leaders can use this methodology to stimulate robust dialogue around desired beliefs, actions, and results.

1. Identify the belief (evidenced by the way people are thinking and acting) you need or want to change, then say, “That’s not a belief I want you to hold.”
2. Specify the belief you want them to hold, by saying, “The belief I want you to hold is … ”
3. Describe the experience you are going to create for them, say, “Here’s what I’m going to do to shift your belief about me … ”
4. Ask them for feedback on the new experiences you are going to create, by saying, “Will that be enough to shift your belief; is there something else I need to do?”
5. Enroll them in giving you feedback on your progress, say, “Will you give me feedback along the way?”

When leaders honestly execute each of the above steps, they launch the same thought process in those they are leading. Their people will quickly get the message that “I ought to be doing the same thing.” The result? Everyone on the team begins looking for the “new belief” behavior, thinking about that behavior, and seeking that behavior in themselves and their fellow workers.

To learn more about becoming the leader you want to become, join our Accountability Community at www.partnersinleadership.com, where you can review more accounts of leaders who have actually done it.

Methodology for Changing Beliefs and Accountability Community are registered trademarks of Partners In Leadership, Inc. All other trademarks and registered trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners.