Last week, I had the fortune to enjoy the benefits of a
concierge lounge at a prestigious hotel.
As I was enjoying hors d’oeuvres, I initiated a game I like to play
called “observe the people”. As simple as
it sounds, it allows me to discern how people interact with each other and identify
any interesting traits. I noticed and talked to people who were travelling for
business, those that may be considered leaders in their respective industries. Most of those in the lounge could be
considered a bit privileged in their expectations of both service and amenities
of the lounge, not at all unreasonable in the context.
I noticed the host who was checking-in the guests into the
lounge at his desk. He was busy
registering people and providing information about the lounge. He was doing this continually for an hour as
I was working on my computer getting some odds and ends done. As guests were getting drinks and food, I saw
that the host had nothing to refresh his palette yet he was the busiest person
in the lounge. With that awareness, I
walked over to the host and offered to get him a drink and some food. He looked at me with surprise and said, “You
are the first guest in 5 years who has offered me a drink.” That caught me by
surprise. How could that be?
Have we gotten so invested in our privilege that we forget
that part of our responsibility as leaders is to serve those that help us? If you are reading this and thinking, “Why
should I serve those that I lead when they should be serving me?” you may have a
learning opportunity to help yourself and your team, group, division or
company. A major part of your job as a
leader is to help maintain and improve the health of your employees. This takes a page from the concept of Servant
Leadership.
Robert K. Greenleaf coined the term “servant leadership” in the
1970 essay, “The Servant as Leader”. Greenleaf takes the approach of “the
servant-first to make sure that other people’s highest priority needs are being
served. The best test, is: Do those served grow as persons? Do they, while
being served, become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely
themselves to become servants? And, what is the effect on the least privileged
in society? Will they benefit or at least not be further deprived.”
While there are various key servant leadership attributes,
the ones I find important are an ability to listen; capability to empathize
with people; aptitude to heal others (both mentally, physically, emotionally,
socially, and spiritually; an awareness of your surroundings, ability to
persuade and conceptualize, have foresight, be a steward to stakeholders,
customers, partners, and employees; a commitment to grow people encouraging
innovation, self-initiative, and learning; and a need to build community.
As a leader, your first response should be to greet your
employees (aka, those you serve) and then ask if there is anything we can do
for them and ask if you can remove any impediments in their way. Understand that by being that servant leader,
you make your employees feel known and important. You should also remove their
impediments helping them deliver products and services quicker, which has the
benefit of making you money earlier than later. Remember, employees or those
that are helping you. They are the
engine to your success. Serve them. Remove their impediments, listen to their
needs, and get them a drink. Is it time to get serious and sincere in helping
them?
