We Not Me: Thoughts on Servant Leadership

Yesterday (April 27) I had the opportunity to participate in an AWTC Salon; if you are not familiar with the Salon concept, it’s when people get together to discuss an idea or a concept. The topic was Servant Leadership and our facilitators that kicked off the conversation were Juan Sanchez, Amreetha Nagaraj, and Rhoni Rakos.

The conversation was wide ranging from definitions of leadership to communication, and the role of Board members in nonprofit leadership. However, the BIG takeaway for me was something that Juan framed out at the beginning: We, not ME.

This mindset makes a huge difference in how a person moves things forward and helps others find success. If a “leader” thinks ME, then the only person who benefits from decisions is that one person. But if a leader thinks WE, everyone moves forward and benefits. If we look back through history and examine the tribes still existing today on the Asian steppes, we find that common thread: the leader of a tribe is the BEST PERSON for the job no matter who they are (man or woman, young or old).

The Best Person to lead a tribe is the one who will keep the tribe alive and support its survival. I can’t think of a better example of “we not me.”

Another takeaway from the discussion was the difference between a Manager (aka A Boss) and a Leader. A Manager tells people what to do. A Leader inspires people to achieve. Managers tend to be narrow in their focus while Leaders are broad in their view and implementing the group or organization’s vision.

Dear Readers: If you have the word “manager” in your title, this does not mean you are not a leader. Titles are different from roles so please: save the angry postcards.

I shared my own definition of a Leader during the conversation which is: A Leader creates a safe space for people to do what they need to do with confidence and security. Leaders look out for everyone, not just themselves. A leader must project confidence even if things aren’t going very well; we didn’t specifically discuss that point yesterday but we did discuss the importance of strong communication skills for leaders. One participant noted that a leader must be aware of how messages are received – sensitivity to the people on your team is key for successful communication.

The point I wrote down in my notes that really excited me was this: Leaders lift people up! I love this point because going back to the comparison of Managers v. Leaders, a manager tends to hold people down because they aren’t leading. Managers tend to control things rather than make things happen.

My view is this: all Leaders are practicing servant leadership because if you are doing it right, you are putting others first.