Are you a leader or a puppet master?  Do you know the difference and if you do, do you know which one you are?

Things to ponder for discovery!

• Are you creating circumstances around which your ‘power’ moves people to comply out of fear or obligation…or are you leaving people better for having been mentored by you?
• Does your team bend to meet your every whim based on your personal schedule… or do you discuss options and opportunity with them, giving them fair notice to prepare?
• Do your employees feel like indentured servants…or do you pay them fairly for the responsibility with which they are entrusted?
• Do you joke and lament at the country club that your industry is here and can’t be outsourced to a third world country…or do you truly value the passion and heart used by your staff as they work hard on the front line to reach success for your business?
• Do you give a large amount of money occasionally to a charity in order to maintain PR that doesn’t make you appear greedy and selfish… or do you give something of yourself, with heartfelt caring and knowledge of the people affected by the contribution you make?
• When you die and your obituary is read, is it more important that it says you made more money than anyone else in the world…or do you want it to mention who you were in your heart of hearts, how you made a difference for others and why you were loved by  many?
• Do you expect complete compliance from everyone around you and refuse to open your ears, mind, heart or door to any criticism…or do you choose to respect the lives, knowledge, opinion and expertise of the people you selected on your team?

This is not a comprehensive and studied either/or list of what leaders are or are not.  This is a question posed with a basis that lives very close to home for me.  If you recognize yourself in any of the above, take a look in the mirror and decide if that is how you want to be remembered.

I personally choose never to allow myself to feel trapped or confined to working for a puppet master, that is why I do what I do.

Here is what I believe:

• I believe in creating an atmosphere of trust, where trust has been earned by offering reasons for people to trust me.
• I believe in fairness, in people, in human strength and talent.
• I believe in allowing people to shine at what they do best and to treat them fairly.
• I believe a leader, a business owner and the person at the ‘top’ of the rung deserves success and the financial reward that accompanies it, so long as it is not on the weary backs of others.
• I believe in dynamic and open teams of individuals who care deeply about WHY they do what they do.
• I believe in people who collaborate, value and honour the folks who work with/for them.
• I believe it is counterproductive in life to seek a single, solid and lonely road to funds without respect, ~ respect must be earned but trust comes first.
• I believe in a company where when someone enters a building that lives and families do not take second or third priority to a boss’s ridiculous whims (when they are out of line) simply to keep their jobs.
• I believe in a company where when someone says “I have made other commitments” an alternate option is selected to accommodate the employee’s life.
• I believe in sustainable job positions where succession planning allows flexibility and honours humanity.
• I believe in fair pay, where people can earn a living wage that allows them to move forward and take care of their families.
• I believe in paying respect to experience and expertise, drawing on those individuals who are the experts in their field to give advice on efficiency and key decisions in the business.
• I believe that companies can obtain profit that does not come at the expense of employees, but rather arrives because the employees were respected enough to WANT to make it happen.
• I believe in companies that know how to engage their employees and rally them with enthusiasm to reach the kind of results that the competitors envy.

I do not and will not ever work for a puppet master.   It is my wish, no one would ever have to – for they and their families will forever be altered.  I wish for anyone who does work for a puppet master that they understand their talent and abilities are welcome at places that develop leaders.  There are other gigs out there – be open to looking for them.

Patti is a strategic advisor in Leadership, Customer Service and Small business. You can book her to speak at her Speakers Page.

Need Strategic Sense for your business? – hire us only if you prefer to rise above the status-quo, care deeply about employee and customer experiences and truly believe in living and performing with excellence.