Leadership is About Fundamentals

For leaders to be productive and satisfied professionally, they have to know what their fundamental responsibilities are. 

Peter Drucker says one of the more critical problems in the workforce today is the need for more understanding between the employer and the employees as to what the employee or emerging leader is to do. 

Ask yourself this question, have you ever been made to feel that you are vaguely responsible for everything? What this does to the person who is feeling responsible for everything is paralyze them. 

A great leader will always ensure that we are clear on what they are and are not responsible for. When we do so, they will be able to focus their attention and efforts on what is desired and they will succeed. 

Let’s take a moment and look at leadership like a game of basketball. Whether you have played basketball or not, doesn’t matter. 

A basketball team has five players. Each of them has a particular job to do on the team. There is a shooting guard and their job is to score points. The other guard is a point guard. Their job is to pass the ball to people who can score. Another player is the power forward who is expected to get rebounds. The small forward’s job is the score. The center is supposed to rebound, block shots, and score. Each person on the team knows what their job is. They know their unique contribution to the team. It is only when each member of the team focuses on their job that the team can win. 

Now let’s look at someone who doesn’t know what their job is on the team. It might appear as if there are 5 people on the court of life just running around, looking for small windows of opportunity to do the right things. Though some make it look effortless in achieving goals, really they just know the part they play on the team. 

Great leaders help their teams master the fundamentals. This starts with knowing exactly the role they are playing at the moment. 

Best, 

Manal