It’s no secret to those who know me that I am a Seth Godin fan. He’s written some great books, and his book “Tribes” really stirred me to think about how we organize our world today. This week, on Michael Hyatt’s blog (Michael Hyatt is the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers), he had an interview with Seth Godin about his latest book, Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? His comment on this book was that it was the most important book he has read in the past year, and he recommended it as a “must read” even though it wasn’t published by Thomas Nelson. The interview really made me want to look into it more as a “must read” for myself and others I know. I was not disappointed.

Our world of work has trained us to be compliant, follow the rules kind of workers. There’s a book, a map, a policy manual, and as long as you do that, you’re considered a “good worker.” And yet, what that really means is you end up being a cog in a wheel, and quite replaceable at that. It leads to people being commoditized. Not our work, but the people themselves. I come from an industry where there is a lot of talk about commoditization, and this book was an eye opener for me that it is really often the people that get commoditized, not just the work they do. We’re taught from the time we are in school the importance of fitting in, being sure that we are “average,” and when we step outside that box, there is always someone there to pull us back in line and make sure we are compliant. What is sad to me is that we build that in people when they have so much more to offer.

Companies sometimes even look for that in a person. I had an opportunity this week, while reading this book, to speak with an employer about someone they were considering hiring. Their comment was “we don’t want someone who thinks they know how to do something better than the boss, we need a person who can follow OUR way of doing things.” That comment would have saddened me before reading this book, however, since I was in the middle of reading it, it really was almost heartbreaking. It’s all around us. A friend recently told me she was told by a supervisor, “If your boss tells you to do something, you just do it, no questions, no thinking, just do what the boss wants, that is how you survive here.” She is a brilliant, talented woman with so much to offer and yet is being trained into submission. I recently heard, as well, from someone dear to me, “I just want someone to tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” Again, a very talented, creative person who has been taught that compliance to the rule book is the way to success. The examples could go on and on.

Godin defines linchpins as ones who invent, lead (regardless of title), connect others, make things happen, and create order out of chaos. A linchpin doesn’t care that there is no map or rule book, they just figure out what to do. He calls what they creating art. Each day becomes a work of art for them because they love what they do and put their best selves forward. Each day becomes a work of art for them.

He also speaks of the “lizard brain,” that part of us that is afraid to not fit in. So many times the lizard brain gets in our way and we end up listening to it instead of doing what we can to really make a difference. It is our culture that has engrained this into us, from the time we were kids, being taught that you need to fit into someone else’s view of what “normal” is. Sadly, because we are afraid of being ridiculed, the lizard brain often wins. In addition, I think that today’s economy creates such a fear of one losing their job that often the lizard brain wins because we get in a mindset of “this is better than nothing.” How sad.

The challenge is to really take a bold step to look at who you are and what you want to do to create your own art. What can you do to connect with others and really make a difference? Sometimes you can make that difference right where you are. Create a work of art. Don’t ask permission, just do it. And, yes, sometimes it may mean stepping away from the place where we are and going in a completely different direction, away from the familiar and routine. Yet, in doing that, we find true freedom and the ability to truly make a difference. That, in my opinion, is amazing.

I do believe this book has the power to change lives, IF you read and apply it. If you are ready for something different in your life, something that reinvents you, this is a must read. I challenge you to get it and read it. I would love the discussion we could have about what we all see along the way. You can purchase the book with the link above, which is an Amazon affiliate link.

Who are the linchpins you have met in your life? Someone who really made a difference. Someone who didn’t do things just because it was the thing to do. Someone who gave to the community in ways that impacted people. Leave a comment and tell me your linchpin story.

In our study of the ABCs of Leadership, C is for communication. Without communication, we really have no basis for common ground. Communication, by the very nature of its definition (The exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, signals, writing, or behavior), is a two-way process. Yes, there is such a thing as one-way communication, but is that really communication? Isn’t it really about the “exchange” of ideas and information? I think so.

Every one of us has a different style of communication. How many times have you had a misunderstanding and felt like responding with “You didn’t hear what I meant to say.” We see this in all areas of life. In our personal lives with spouses, family, friends, and in our professional lives with colleagues, peers, and others in our business.

A few years ago, I was introduced to a great tool for improving communication. It is the book The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman. It speaks to each person having a primary love language, or the way that we internalize whether someone really cares about us. While the subtitle of the book talks about ways to communicate with your mate, the principles work in both our personal and professional lives.

The book talks about five love languages–quality time, acts of service, physical touch, words of affirmation, and gifts. While we may operate with all of them, every person has a primary love language, the one that counts the most. The book has a short quiz you can take to figure out what your primary language is. What we tend to do is express our care and concern for others in our own language, instead of figuring out what theirs is and doing it that way. That leads to misunderstandings and others feeling we really don’t care about them. For example, my primary love language is quality time. In my first marriage, my ex’s primary language was clearly gifts; it was how he expressed he cared about someone, and it was how he saw that others cared about him. On the other hand, his idea of quality time was going to a movie. That didn’t equate to quality time for me, and I often had a hard time really appreciating the gifts he would bring me. Today, in hindsight, I realize that it was just his way of showing he cared. I would much more appreciate an hour of someone’s time sitting at a Starbucks talking than an expensive gift. This is probably also why I enjoyed my last boss so much. We could spend hours at a Starbucks brainstorming about business ideas. My husband now has a primary love language of acts of service. He simply loves to do for others. He cooks for me all the time. It is how he shows his love, and I have learned to love that about him. I have also had to learn to accept his way of showing that love and giving.

In the workplace, it’s the same thing. If you know the primary love language of the people you lead, then you can learn to really express your appreciation of what they do and who they are. For example, it won’t do a lot of good to send someone a gift if their primary love language is words of affirmation; on the other hand, telling them, privately or publicly, what a great job they did on a project goes a long way to showing them you care. Be careful, though, to be sure that your communication is genuine. People can spot a fake compliment fast and it negates the words.

My friend has a saying when working with people that goes like this: “Meet them where they are.” I love that saying because it really speaks to leaders understanding that they have to go to the people, not the other way around. Leaders have a responsibility to be sure that what they communicate is clear and authentic. Do this and avoid having to say “You didn’t hear what I meant.”

One of my favorite quotes about communication comes from Anthony Robbins: “To effectively communicate, we must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.”

What challenges do you face with communication? What will you do today to improve your communication in the areas of your life where you are a leader? I look forward to your comments.

Have you ever had a leader whose idea seemed impossible, and yet you really wanted to follow them and make it happen? Have you had a leader who was always willing to jump in and try something new or different?

Leaders are bold. They act on things that may seem impossible to do. Opportunities are abundant, and if you don’t jump on them and take a chance, you may find that they have passed you by. Having the boldness to do that requires courage and a willingness to fail, and it is worth it to take the chance.

Be bold in your thinking and actions today! Try something new. See where it takes you.

My quote for the day is this:

“The indecision brings its own delays, and days are lost lamenting o’er lost days. Are you in earnest? Seize this very minute; What you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.” – Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

What will you be bold at today? What is stopping you from taking that bold step to something you know you need to do?

This is not an ABC post, but one I felt important to share with you today. I have several blogs that I follow, and this morning, I saw a post with the movie below in it. It is called The Butterfly Circus. I hope you will take the time to watch this. It is 20 minutes long, but well worth the watch.

As leaders, our perception of ourselves and others have a huge impact on the world around us. What were your thoughts as you watched the movie?

The dictionary defines the word authenticity as “the quality or condition of being authentic, trustworthy, or genuine.” When we are authentic, we are our “true selves.” The masks come off and we stop trying to be someone we aren’t. Sometimes in our lives, it seems we are pushed into a corner and expected to be something else. I’ve had those times in my life. In the end, however, I struggle with it. I tend to be a “WYSIWYG” type of person. There’s nothing to hide, it is what it is.

In leadership, being authentic is important. It is what builds relationships. It is was creates a connection where people want to be a part of what you are doing. I remember once having a boss who was perhaps one of the most authentic people I had ever met. When he spoke, people listened. He never tried to be someone other than who he was, and it worked. In that instance, it allowed him to build a remarkable business because people love working with someone who is real. I learned a lot in that job.

Then there are those times when we’re asked to not show our authentic self. Can you recall a time like that in your life? It’s not a comfortable place to be, and in the end, I believe it costs us. It impacts how others view us because people can easily spot a phony. It costs us in how we feel about ourself because we don’t like being someone other than the person we were created to be. And in the end, it costs us the relationships and trust we may have built.

Sometimes I think we try to stifle our authentic self by simply trying to tell people what they want to hear. In the end, though, leaders do others a disservice in doing this. Even if it’s bad news, it’s better to be authentic. It builds trust.

One of my favorite quotes about authenticity comes from Andrew Cohen: “The authentic self is the best part of a human being. It’s the part of you that already cares, that is already passionate about evolution. When your authentic self miraculously awakens and becomes stronger than your ego, then you will truly begin to make a difference in this world. You will literally enter into a partnership with the creative principle.”

Think about that. Isn’t leadership about really making a difference? When you tap into that authenticity that is you, there is no limit to what you can accomplish. What will you do to be sure you are applying authenticity to your leadership today?

Over the next few weeks, I am going to be talking about the ABC’s of Leadership. This will be a series of posts, each one beginning with a word from the alphabet. We will start with A and go to Z. You can expect at least three posts per week, which means it will take us about two months or so to cover the alphabet. It is my hope that through your comments we will have some great discussion.

For today, I would like to know what qualities you look for in a leader. We all have a notion in our minds of what a great leader looks like. Perhaps they are visionary, perhaps they are kind, able to inspire. Put your thinking caps on now and start thinking about what it is that says to you “that’s a great leader.”

For me, it begins with integrity. I want a leader who says what they mean and means what they say, and will do what they say they are going to do. I don’t tend to be a “sugar coat” kind of person so just tell me the facts, even if it’s bad news. I happen to believe that people would rather hear bad news than try to make up in their heads what is really happening. I will expand on what I think integrity is when we get to “I” in the alphabet!

What about you? What’s the number one quality in a leader? I look forward to your comments.

Today marks the day that the world celebrates Martin Luther King Day, a recognition of a man who had major impact on the world. If you haven’t watched it lately, I urge you to take a minute and watch his “I Have a Dream” speech below.

My niece, who is 9 years old, was telling me the other day about their studies about Dr. King. I asked her what he did and her response was with the simplicity of a child: “He made it so blacks and whites can be together. Aunt Kathy, without that, you and Henderson might never have met.” All she sees is that she has an uncle that she loves very much and who is special to her. The lesson she learned in school actually just reinforced what she already knew.

I think Martin Luther King taught us some great lessons in leadership and the blogs today are already full of those leaders. For us today, I simply want to encourage you to watch the video (it’s 17 minutes) and reflect on what this man taught us about leadership.

What lessons do you take from Martin Luther King’s life about leadership? How can we apply those to our own lives today? I look forward to your comments.