Not long ago, or so they say,
Lived a young man, told to lead one day.
Technical skills he had a plenty,
So his bosses said “Well done, you can now lead twenty.”
“What training will I get to lead the right way?”
His bosses just laughed and walked away.
So each night, awful sleep, dreadful dream,
How to get the best from his new team.
But one night he awoke with a wonderful start,
A smile on his face and joy in his heart,
He remembered those that led him, they had,
The good and the great and the downright bad.
He recalled what they did, how they made him feel,
And he developed a plan to make it all real.
The first day with his team he began with hope,
He wished as a leader that he would cope.
He spent most of his day walking around,
Talking to people, keeping his ear to the ground.
Because he’d seen those with so called “Power”
Lead badly, alone in their Ivory Tower.
So once he finds out what the team do,
They created a vision so others knew.
Their vision was clear for all to see,
What was expected and to what quality.
He had strength in some things, in others was weak,
So complimentary skills in his team he did seek.
Progress was made against goals, short and long,
With tweaks being made when things did go wrong.
Feedback was given, he mentored and coached,
Regularly, not just when year-end approached.
His team members grew in confidence and skill,
They worked proudly together with fun and goodwill.
Learning from mistakes and celebrating success they’d achieved,
They accomplished things that you would not have believed.
The result of this all was win-win,
As he trusted them and they trusted him.
He eventually moved on to pastures new,
Succeeded by one of his team and he knew,
That his legacy would continue in the way things were done,
With openness, honesty, trust and some fun.
So transformational leaders can be anyone,
Some have degrees and others have none,
The key to success, I hope you agree,
Is as plain as the end of your nose you see.
Treat people as individuals who work as a team,
Help them grow and achieve their vision or dream,
Agree standards required, expect nothing less,
And coach them individually to achieve collective success.
Who was this young leader? I hear you say,
None other than me in my youthful day,
The lessons I learnt have served me well,
And I hope you have valued the story I tell.
I wish you success down your leadership road,
And hope you use lessons from this little ode,
So the one thing that remains for me to say,
Is be yourself and have a great day.
Yours behaviourally, Nick Fewings
