Leaders and Identity 11/23/16

Leaders and Identity* Before people will follow you they first must identify with you. Marketers understand the power of identity and leverage, the psychological power of branding. Indeed, every school where USACC has a program has a distinct identity that the students, faculty and alumni own, perpetuate and jealously guard (Does the term Blue Nation mean anything). In the same way the team you lead, big or small, must form an identity to truly become a team, and you as their leader must model that identity. People will follow a person who is genuine, consistent and caring; someone they trust. People will also strive for excellence if they believe in the mission and the leadership. But they must sense that their effort has value and that you as the leader value their effort. Creating an identity (brand) is difficult, and in the case of livestock even painful, but it does not matter if the organization you lead is big like the United States, the Army or a small section people (even your own family) if they feel that they are on a great team with leaders they can trust they will accomplish great things.** *This is a personal reflection on chapter 3 of the book, The Way of the Shepherd: 7 Ancient Secrets to Managing Productive People by Leman and Pentak – The main points of chapter are: -Build trust by modeling authenticity, integrity and compassion -Set high standards -Relentlessly communicate your values/mission -Tell followers where they fit -Leadership isn’t just professional it’s personal ** For a spiritual thought on this reflection you may consider John 10: 14-18