While spending several days traveling to visit with friends and family during the holidays, I realized that many people have more than a few balls in their court. Everyone, including myself, has many different things they personally juggle on a daily basis, and this is important to remember when you’re thinking about Taking Ownership.
Think about a large ball pit with several colors mixed throughout. Each color represents a different aspect of your life. When sorting through these balls some of the colors will be important things that fall in line with your goals, and others will not. Deciphering which ones will help you towards success, and others that can get tossed, is the first step to taking ownership.
One ball that I choose to juggle is writing my blogs every week. For me it is a great way to share my experiences with others, while also allowing me to examine my own leadership walk on a weekly basis. It isn’t something I have to do, but it helps me reach my personal goals.
There are other things that are forced into our pit. As the CEO of a small consulting firm, I have to handle taxes, an accountant, insurance and other things that I’ve never before been involved in. These are all different balls I would love to chuck, but are necessary evils for my success.
The next set of colors are those that I see as the most important in terms of Taking Ownership of your own life. These are things we engage in that are not necessary, and provide no help in the achievement of our goals. The best example for me may sound ridiculous, but it is 100% true. Most of you receive varying degrees of calls from telemarketers. These can be a nuisance and a real time waste. My intention of being polite, led me to waste upwards of 15 minutes at a time when receiving these calls. I would answer, and not wanting to be rude, would listen to their pitch, and try to politely decline. By the time I got off of the phone I wasted several minutes of my already busy day. This was something I needed to stop immediately, and now I quickly say no thank you and end the call, or don’t answer at all. One less mindless thing to juggle.
Now let’s apply this concept to Taking Ownership as a leader. I often see others trying to sort things out for themselves. In order to lead others, you have to be willing to show them the way. I always do my best to help them first set their goals, and then throw the balls out of their pit that they don’t need. Making others around you successful is more important than your own success. Take Ownership of leading the group, and not just yourself.
The next step towards Taking Ownership is leading by example. One philosophy I apply is ‘taking hold and letting go.’ This means grabbing a hold of the situation, and letting go of all fear and reservations. Some things are necessary, and you need to jump in head first to show your team you are willing to do it. Don’t pass off responsibility to someone else, or hide in the background, lead from the front!
For me this is best described through a football analogy. You have to want the ball in your hands with the game on the line. Make sure you’re prepared. That preparation will get you to the fourth quarter with a chance to win. When you step into that huddle with your team looking for you to lead, keep your wits and show them the way. As you start to run and get to the goal line, you have to push and twist through the tackles and show them your desire to win. If they see that fire in your eyes and in your actions they will follow suit. That is Taking Ownership.
I hope that this has helped you understand what it means to Take Ownership in your life and as a leader. Clean out your own ball pit, and help others to do the same. Grab the ball with the game on the line and fight like your life depended on it. Taking Ownership is what leaders do!