There are ten fundamental principles that John covers in Developing the Leader Within You 2.0.

The three principles that we will briefly cover here are:

The definition of Leadership: Influence

The key to Leadership: Priorities

The foundation of Leadership: Character.
These three principles are foundational aspects for your leadership growth. Let’s begin…

The first principle is the Definition of Leadership: Influence

I would like you to take a moment and think about what leadership means to you. How would you define leadership? Most people don’t consider themselves as leaders unless they have a title and a position, however, I’m sure we’ve all seen a lot of people over the years, who have a title and a position and are not very good leaders. They may have some authority in an area, but when it comes to true leadership, they are really just managers managing a process. A real leader knows that leadership is all about people. Another assumption that people make is that they are not a “born leader”. No one is a born leader, but everyone has the potential to become a leader. If you dedicate yourself to learning and applying sound leadership principles, then you can grow as a leader. Another argument I hear is “I don’t know where to start”. My answer is always the same, start right where you are today, and you can become a better leader by intentionally developing the leader that already lies within you.

The most important concept of leadership is Influence. John states that, “Leadership is Influence, Nothing More, Nothing Less”. So let’s look deeper at this statement. Anyone – for better or worse – who can get others to follow is a leader, because leadership is all about influence. The question you have to ask is whether your influence is positive or negative. Hitler was a leader, because he was able to influence so many people. Now look at the opposite of that type of influence and you see great leaders like Jesus of Nazareth and Martin Luther King Jr. Everyone influences someone. Every day we influence someone, and someone influences us. It’s been said that even the most reserved person will influence at least ten thousand people in their lifetime, so just imagine how many you would influence if you are working in the public or are more outgoing? And this influence can either be positive or negative. Therefore, I believe the best investment you can make in your future is to start developing your influence today.

Now that you understand the importance of influence, let’s talk about the levels of influence.

There are five levels of influence referenced in Developing the Leader within You.

The basic entry level of leadership is The Positional level.

This is the lowest level of leadership because at this level people follow because they have to, not because they want to. Take away the pay check or let them clock out and at this level your influence goes from a four to a one, or maybe even zero in a heartbeat. Position is a good place to start in leadership, but it’s a terrible place to stay.

1. Three things you need to understand about Positional Leaders are:
   They look for security based on title more than talent.
2. They rely on their leaders influence more than their own.
3. They can’t get people to follow them beyond their defined authority.

The second level of leadership is The Permission level.

Here people follow the leader because they want to. Permission is characterized by good relationships. The motto on this level is “people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”. People who are unwilling or unable to build solid, lasting relationships soon discover that they are also unable to sustain lasting, effective leadership.

On level 3 people get things done and this level is called The Production level.

People follow you because of the results you have achieved for the organization and for the way you help the members of the team get things done. And a lot of really great things start happening at level 3; productivity starts to go up, people reach their goals, profit increases, morale becomes high, staff turnover becomes low, and team loyalty increases. I think any business owner would get excited about that.

A Level 4 leader is able to develop other people and people will follow because of what you have done for them. Here the leader becomes great not because of their power, but because of their ability to empower others. You win people’s hearts and minds by helping them grow personally. Here are a few questions you can ask yourself to see if you are a Level 4 leader:

1. Am I Passionate about my personal growth?
2. Does my growth journey have credibility?
   
3. Are people attracted to me because of my growth?
   
4. Am I successful in the areas where I want to develop others?
   
5. Have I crossed the “spend time” to the “invest time” line?
   
6. Do I have a teachable way of life?
   
7. Am I willing to be a vulnerable role model and coach?
   
8. Do the people I develop succeed?

The last level is Level 5, The Pinnacle. Here people follow you because of who you are and what you represent. Only a few people reach this level. Those who do, have led well, and proven their leadership over a lifetime. They have invested in other’s leadership and raised them to a Level 4 leader. They have also developed influence not only in their own organizations, but beyond them. One of the greatest challenges of applying the 5 levels of leadership is that you must earn each level of influence with every person in your life.

Now that you have a better understanding of the importance of influence, think of the people that you can start to influence to a greater level from today.

The second principle is the Key to Leadership: Priorities

How many would say that you have all the time you need in a day to accomplish everything you want to accomplish? Almost everyone wishes they can get more things done in their day. This is a common problem, and the same topic always comes up, “No one seems to have enough time in their day.” People always want to talk about ways to manage their time better. However, managing something means to control it, to change it. But when it comes to time there is nothing to manage. Everyone gets the same twenty-four hours in a day. I heard a good saying a long time ago that goes:

“Money is not your wealth; time is your wealth.” Let me repeat that, “Money is not your wealth, time is your wealth.” I used to get so frustrated when I didn’t get everything done that I wanted to get done each day. I found it hard to relax and enjoy life until I discovered this simple basic truth. You see, we can always do something to make more money. We can think of many ways to make more money. But we can never make more time. It is what it is, and we all have the same amount on it.

For everyone who leads, (and remember, a mother in the home is a leader, a teacher in the classroom is a leader), the question is never “Will my calendar be full?” but the question is always “Who and what will fill my calendar?” When we don’t feel like we have enough time, we need to examine ourselves – our choices, our calendars……our priorities. And I love what John once said, “You can’t manage your time, but you CAN manage your priorities.” That is a great quote to remember.

No one escapes the pressures of demands, deadlines and difficulties, but we can get confused when it comes to our priorities. Here are a few simple truths about priorities.

1. Most people over estimate the importance of things.
We can all make a long list everyday of all the things we would like to do, but not
all of them are important. Psychologist William James said, “The art of being wise is knowing what to overlook.”

2. Having too many priorities paralyzes people.
If you’ve ever noticed, when lion tamers enter a lion’s cage, they carry a stool or chair into the cage with them. The trainer holds the chair so that the four legs are facing the lion. The lion tries to focus on all four legs at once and this divided focus by the lion overwhelms it and causes it to become paralyzed by indecision.
The same type of thing can happen to us when we try to make everything a priority.

3. When small demands are given too much attention, big problems arise.
Often we let the little things in life trip us up. Most people like to do the easy things on the to-do list first. But I have learned that most of the time, the easy tasks are not the most important tasks. We can use the 80/20 rule to help us here. If you have a list of ten things on your to-do list, and if you
prioritize them in order of importance from 1-10, you’ll usually find that the first two in priority will give you 80 percent of the results.

4. Making everything a priority means nothing is a priority.
Making everything a high priority, means that you are unwilling or unable to make a decision, which means you probably won’t get anything done. We need to become proactive when it comes to the process of setting our priorities. Let me cover a few priority principles.

Making everything a high priority, means that you are unwilling or unable to make a decision, which means you probably won’t get anything done. We need to become proactive when it comes to the process of setting our priorities. Let me cover a few priority principles.

5. Working smarter has a higher return that working harder.
How many times have you seen people complain about their life and that they want to change? However, day after day, they go through the process of getting up, going to work, eating dinner, watching TV and going to bed. The same thing day in and day out. What is the definition of insanity? It’s doing the same things over and over and expecting different results. I heard a great football coach say, “There is the pain of discipline and there is the pain of regret”. We have to have the discipline to learn and grow every day if we want our lives to change and get better.

6. You can’t have it all.
If you want to have anything, you have to know what you want. If you want to be successful, you have to make choices. You have to prioritize. We have to prioritize our personal growth and development if we want to grow our influence as leaders.

7. The good is always the enemy of the best.
Most people can prioritize between the good and the bad or between right and wrong. The real challenge is when we are faced with two good choices. Which one should we choose? The key to remember here is that sometimes the good has to be sacrificed for the best. Most people can prioritize between the good and the bad or between right and wrong. The real challenge is when we are faced with two good choices. Which one should we choose? The key to remember here is that sometimes the good has to be sacrificed for the best.

8. Proactive beats reactive.
Remember, the question isn’t ever “will I have things to do”? But, “will I do the things that make a difference?” To be effective, you have to be proactive. Here are some differences between proactive and reactive:

Prepare/ Repair
Plan ahead/ Live in the moment
Anticipate problems/ React to Problems
Seize the moment/ Wait for the right moment
a) Instead of always focusing on efficiency, we need to think about effectiveness.
Instead of always focusing on doing things right, we need to focus on doing the right things, and doing them right.
b) The important needs to take precedence over the urgent.
Here is a simple but effective way to classify tasks that can help you quickly prioritize.

Most people jump on an urgent task without thinking.
Effective people weigh both factors for each task and act accordingly. Here is how:

High Importance/High Urgency: Tackle these first.
High Importance/Low Urgency: Set deadlines for completion and fit these into your daily routine.
Low Importance/High Urgency: Find quick, effective ways to get these tasks done with minimal resources. If possible, delegate these.
Low Importance/Low Urgency: If these can be eliminated, then get rid of them. If they can be delegated, then find someone to do them. If you must do them, then schedule a small block of time each week to chip away at them, but never schedule them during your prime time.

I want to end this discussion on priorities by talking about making room for margin. Once I learned that I needed to create margin in every area of my life, I not only started enjoying life more, I also became a better leader and much more pleasant to be around. Richard Swenson wrote “Margin is the space that exists between our load and our limit; it is the amount that is allowed beyond that which is needed. It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations. Margin is the gap between rest and exhaustion, the space between breathing freely and suffocating. Margin is the opposite of overload.” If you have a strong desire to grow and reach your full potential, then you need to create margin in your life. Here’s why:

1. Margin Improves self-awareness.
2. Margin gives you needed time to think.
3. Margin provides you with energy renewal.

So how can we create margin? Constantly be on the lookout for ways to simplify your life. Use the 80/20 principle we discussed earlier to look for ways to simplify your life.

• What are the 20 percent of my possessions that I get the most value out of?
• What are the 20 percent of the clothes that I wear 80 percent of the time?
• What do I spend 20 percent of my leisure time doing which gives me 80 percent of my pleasure?
• Who are the 20 percent of the people I am closest to who give me 80 percent of my happiness?
• The goal here is to reduce the complexity of your life. Just like margin in your bank account is important for financial peace, margin in your life is just as important.

The third principle is the Foundation of Leadership: Character