Self-Leadership and the One-Minute Manager

I would like to give an immediate shout out to the book that I will be referencing in this blog: Ken Blanchard’s “Self-Leadership and the One Minute Manager.” Although he has authored a series of the “One Minute Manager” books, this one sticks out to me because of the path that I’m walking through. I’ll be posting some quotes and thoughts from this book that I just finished; I would urge you to make this an addition to your personal library.

Leadership is a buzzword in our culture today, but anyone who wants to be a leader of others must first learn to lead themselves. Blanchard says, “You are ready for self-leadership when you take responsibility for your own success.” Many people wonder why they have been held back or why they haven’t climbed as high in their company as they thought they should. I would propose that Blanchard’s statement is most likely the number one reason.

Here’s a thought: if I were to ask you the top 10 issues that you have had in your company over the last year, what would be the ratio of those taking responsibility vs those giving blame? Whose fault is it that you weren’t as productive as you could have been? Who is to blame for your lack of being where you want to be? If your answer is anything other than “Mine,” then there’s a good chance that there are some preliminary steps of self-leadership that you still need to learn.

Blanchard says, “Empowerment is something someone gives you. Self-Leadership is what you do to make it work.” Many people want to be empowered – and this is a good thing to seek. Good managers and leaders should seek to empower the people who they are responsible for. But I would propose that if their empowerment doesn’t work for you, then it probably isn’t their fault – maybe you haven’t learned the skills to implement the empowerment. Now, this isn’t the end of the world; every one of us have time and energy to learn new skills (whether we admit that or not). The simple question is are you willing to invest the time and energy to learning new skills, that will create a positive change in your life? Each of us must make that decision for ourselves.

Blanchard says that there are three “tricks” to Self-Leadership that we should all learn. This will not be a comprehensive explanation; if you would like a deeper conversation about these topics, feel free to join the conversation in the comments – and buy the book.

Trick #1 to Self-Leadership: Challenge Assumed Constraints

What constraints have you come to believe that are, in reality, not even true? Entirely too many people love using the excuse of “Well, that’s just the way I am.” I would ask the same question every time: “Who said?” It’s worth taking the time to answer that question. Who taught you that you were constrained to the limits that you’ve accepted for yourself? Who created those limits and who defined those limits? Each one of us should take some thought-time and challenge our assumed limits and constraints, to determine why they are there and to challenge if they deserve to be there.

Trick #2 to Self-Leadership: Celebrate your Points of Power

I won’t go too deep into this, but Blanchard suggests that each of us has power in certain areas – and this power isn’t evil, unless it’s used for that purpose. The 5 points of power discussed in the book are Positional Power, Knowledge Power, Personal Power, Relationships Power, and Task Power. As an example, I am a blogger, a speaker, and an author. In those fields, I have some knowledge power and some task power. However I am not well known enough to have positional power, but I’m working on my skills to increase my Personal Power (people skills) and Relationship Power (circle of friends/influencers). A simple suggestion is to understand which power you have and utilize it for the good of others and for the advancement of your purpose. When you do this, you are practicing Self-Leadership.

Trick #3 to Self-Leadership: Collaborate for Success!

Nothing you accomplish that matters in the long-term will be accomplished alone. Collaborating with a group of people to accomplish a goal brings wisdom and insights that you are not capable of producing by yourself. The common saying of “Two minds are better than one” is very true – unlock the power of community and as Napoleon Hill calls a “MasterMind Group.” Find people who have strengths that you do not have and surround yourself with their wisdom.

Self-Leadership is a requirement before we can become leaders of others. Practice these traits – and buy the book!

Just a thought…