The Five Levels of (Servant) Leadership Tim Hirner - Flagship Speakers March 6, 2014

No Shortage of Leadership Philosophies 2

Leadership Condensed “Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less.” – John Maxwell, The 5 Levels of Leadership (2011) “But just what do we mean by leadership? It would appear to be the capacity to look ahead, think ahead, plan ahead, and then influence other people to go ahead on the plan.” – Ralph C. Smedley 3

Why Leadership (Influence) Matters There may be no better way to increase your positive impact on the world Example: Impact of absent fathers on incarceration rate in maximum security prisons (Marcus and Gray, Violence and Victims study, 1998) People are the most appreciable asset of any organization! Thus, we all should strive to grow as leaders (actually, servants of others) through conscious learning and effort. 4

Maxwell’s Leadership Philosophy 5

Level 1 – Position People follow you because they have to Rights are granted only by your title People will usually do only what is required of them If you care about morale, you care about moving out of this level Morale is basically “faith in the leader” – not achievable at this level This is the only level that doesn’t require ability and effort to achieve (anyone can be appointed to a “position”) Position is a poor substitute for influence. SO…DON’T STAY AT THIS LEVEL! 6

Level 2 – Permission People follow you because they want to The first level of positive influence When you treat people as individuals with value, you begin to develop trust, which leads to influence It may take time to develop people skills, but it takes no time to let others know that you value them “Golden Rule” applies to all cultures! By getting to know your people and vice versa, solid, lasting relationships are formed “You can like people without leading them, but you cannot lead people without liking them.” – Maxwell But…creating a positive working environment is usually not enough 7

Level 3 – Productivity People follow you because of what you’ve done for the organization This is the level where you gain credibility Someone who can produce can attain some level of influence First level where you can become a true change agent Builds off of level 2 to allow a vision to be established Can link vision of organization to everyday production of the team Team development/chemistry begins to thrive at this level Thus, first level where results “greater than sum of parts” begins People recognize they can accomplish more than first realized Level where leading by example plays a major role Opinion Research Corporation study indicated the 2 most important leadership traits to be: 1) leading by example, 2) strong morals/ethics Danger of this level is that most leaders stop here 8

Level 4 – People Development People follow you because of what you’ve done for them Level where position, relationships, and productivity (previous levels) are focused on the development of others The level where followers become leaders Teamwork goes to a very high level under a level 4 leader Relationships are deepened, loyalty strengthened, performance increases More team leaders are produced to benefit others! At this level, the lives of people you lead (and thus your own) are changed Relationships developed are often lifelong Level where you help others to actually “do life well” (transcend work) We should all strive to reach this level 9

Level 5 – Pinnacle People follow you because of who you are and what you represent Level 5 leaders produce other Level 4 leaders Requires a high level of natural talent Developing others to level 4 requires significant investment in time Payoff? Level 5 leaders create level 5 organizations Level 5 leaders often transcend their position, their organization, and their industry – they can become “larger than life” 10

In Summary… We all have a valid reason, regardless of our personal strengths, to improve our leadership ability With effort and time, we should strive for level 4, the level at which no “special leadership talent” is required Of course, Level 5 can be a goal too! Why? Because positive leadership (influence) may be the single best way we can have a positive impact on our world! 11