Wearing the Mantle of Leadership

As we begin to wrap up this book on sales management, we’re obligated to spend some time on you. Are you the leader you would like to be? Do you have the necessary passion and competencies to become the leader you have the potential of being?

There are probably more books written on leadership each year than any other subject. They are written from a lot of different perspectives by a lot of different people who all seem to point out, consciously or unconsciously, that there is no single model of leadership. Compare a Mahatma Gandhi with a Jack Welch. Compare a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with a Sir Winston Churchill. Some of the great leaders we knowby name, while others we know by results. Consider the passionate leaders of such outstanding organizations as Fannie Mae, 3M, Nokia, Gillette, and Sony.

On outward appearance, they seem to have very little in common. But, as leaders, they all demonstrate some very important characteristics. As we consider these, let’s start by looking back at you.You have been put into this management position because you used intelligent thinking when making decisions. You weighted the objective facts, added in personal subjective beliefs, and took firm action on something in which you believed strongly. You thought about the values of the whole community of organizational members and recognized that this role is not just about you. It is about helping a large number of individuals achieve the things that are of value to them. Is leadership about being liked? No. Is leadership about personal gain? No. Is leadership about fame and glory? No. Leadership is about:

A Passion for the Job and the Team. You must be, or become, passionate about the value of your unique role and about the desire to develop your team into an outstanding sales group. This is not just a facade. You must believe it internally as well as live it externally. Wake up in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror, and consider how lucky you are to be in the position you are in and to have control over the destiny of a team of professionals that will have such a significant impact on the success of your company, association, or organization. Get passionate!

Implementing Transparent Honesty. If you are to succeed, not just survive, as a sales manager, you must always be clear, concise, and measurable to those around you—from your salespeople to your customers to your leadership to your peers. Pursue a behavior that is open and honest and demand the same of those around you. There can be no tolerance for fence-sitters and unethical vacillators. Business cannot succeed or excel in an environment of hidden agendas and secrecy. Open up!

Making Hard Decisions. Many times, these are decisions that others would prefer to avoid. Leadership is about living, and demonstrating, daily your commitment to the welfare of the entire organization through the decisions you make. Stand up and act!

Having Consistent Values. Don’t ask others to do what you would be unwilling to do. Don’t require a behavior from others that you don’t demand of yourself. Know your own value and belief systems and tell the world, but do not require others to have the same values. Recognize the importance of diverse values. Be predictable!

Leadership is about being the kind of person that others choose to follow because they feel that what the leader stands for will inspire and create a motivational environment in which they can meet their own, the team’s, and the organization’s wonderful goals.

If there is one thing I have learned in my career, it’s this: great leaders are not the ‘‘shiniest stars in the heavens.’’ They can be glamorous and charismatic or they can be conservative and quiet, but day in and day out, they are consistent and predictable. They have a passion for the organization, the team, and the people around them that is easily communicated to and absorbed by others. You may find this unglamourous, but it’s true. All those around you, from your management to your peers, from your customers to your sales personnel, must be consistently able to predict how you might respond to any situation. Of course, your response should strive for excellence, but it should always be based on the same clear, concise, and measurable decision-making process.

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Wearing the Mantle of Leadership

Wearing the Mantle of Leadership