A thought on leadership

Team Blue Thunder, but are they well-lead?
Team Blue Thunder, rally in progress

I’m coaching my son’s youth baseball team. I’ve found that leading a group of 11-year-old boys is pretty much the same as leading a group of adult professionals.

In both cases, the job involves:

  • keeping them focused
  • keeping them motivated
  • removing roadblocks to allow them to remain productive
  • assigning each individual a role that benefits the entire team while complementing that person’s skills, interests and style.

Finally, here’s a quote on leadership, with which I wholeheartedly agree, that’s attributed to the book, The Four Agreements: A practical guide to personal freedom:

“The primal responsibility of leadership is to prime good feeling in the people we lead.”

How does one do that other than by helping them fill a role they enjoy, and then helping them to stay motivated, focused and productive?

OK, there may be one difference between adults and kids: Adults aren’t as motivated by the promise of pretzels and a juice pouch.