Leadership Turn

DOing in the moment

by Miki Saxon on November 13th, 2007

Steady readers know that I’m a big fan of “leaders in the instance” and I found confirmation of the idea in a comment by Michele Goins, chief information officer for Hewlett-Packard’s Imaging and Printing Group.

“Leadership opportunities are presented to everyone, what makes the difference between being a leader or not is how you respond in the moment.”

Call it instant vision—the ability to see what needs to be done and then spearhead the effort to do it.

Everybody has multiple opportunities to lead every day, a few large, but most are small; a few that will attract wide notice, but most will not.

Some people pick and choose—expending effort only when they believe it will pay off; DOing only when they’re sure their actions will be noticed by the powers-that-be. What they don’t seem to realize is that all those small efforts add up, often bringing more value than the big, splashy ones.

Choosing when to lead often indicates a narrower, self-focused MAP (mindset, attitude, philosophy)^™ that doesn’t bode well for the team or for accomplishing the company’s goals.

Sure, everybody’s interested in “what’s in it or me,” but when that mindset becomes the filter through which all decisions are run the individual’s value to the organization plummets.

The more you practice leading in the moment the more value you bring to the table. Eventually it will be noticed and rewarded—and if your own bosses aren’t smart enough to see it, be assured that others will.

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POSTED IN: About leadership, Personal Development, What leaders DO