When you look at this photo what do you feel? For many of you, you may feel angst, while others may feel exhilaration, still others feel guilty at not seeing one of these in years much less picking one up, but we each face these instruments every single day in our lives.
Recently I was doing some online learning from one of my favorite mentors, John C. Maxwell and he was talking about the items leaders have on their desks and as he gave example after example, I started thinking about the leaders I personally knew and what was on their desks and walls and in their reception areas which gave a glimpse into who they are as a leader and as a company that they lead. John went on to comment about asking after he finished one of his typical sessions with his inner circle asking this: “..what am I missing?”, now that is humbling for a leader to put himself in the position of opening himself up to asking this question. I stopped the online video and started to think about how a leader does most of the heavy lifting; hence the pictorial representation.
I spoke later that day to a leader who leads a company and offered up a challenge and I will present it to you here. At your next staff meeting, board meeting, or sales meeting or at any meeting where you the leader are facilitating, bring in a set of various sizes of dumb bell weights and place them in the center of the table. Have weights from pink one ponders all the way up to some hefty 50 ponders. Begin your meeting and as your team begins to step up and take responsibility for results, outcomes, projects, visions, tasks, failures, successes, sales figures or whatever it is that you are measuring, ask each team member to assess what amount of lifting they are doing for the team ie the company. Yes, this is a value proposition between perception and reality, but what a great lesson in value.
As a leader we each must be on the lookout for new ways to teach and model what leadership looks and feels like and what a great way to do so than with bar bells! How else could you model this?
You know you are a leader even if you do not have a title after your name. There is always someone below you looking up and watching everything you do and they are using you as their role model in the office. How are you leading?
President Ronald Regan, had a plaque in the oval office that read: “It Can Be Done!” Now that is a great inspirational message for a president, a basketball coach, a mom, a CEO, a carpenter, teachers, taxi drivers, the dishwasher in your favorite restaurant, the mayor of your town, the owner of the gas station where you fill your tank, a single father, a small business owner, an techie, a blogger, an author, a pilot, a corn farmer in Kansas, a president of a college, the owner of your favorite coffee place, hair stylist, anyone of us!
I am curious as to what is on your office wall or what is sitting on your desk that reminds you that you are the leader in your place of work and inspires you? 
