Part 1 (2/2)

Positional leaders usually have difficulty working with volunteers, younger people, and the highly educated. Why? Because positional leaders have no influence, and these types of people tend to be more independent.

Position is the only level that does not require ability and effort to achieve. Anyone can be appointed to a position.

Level 2-Permission People follow you because they want to.

Level 2 is based entirely on relations.h.i.+ps. On the Permission level, people follow because they want to. When you like people and treat them as individuals who have value, you begin to develop influence with them. You develop trust. The environment becomes much more positive-whether at home, on the job, at play, or while volunteering.

The agenda for leaders on Level 2 isn't preserving their position. It's getting to know their people and figuring out how to get along with them. Leaders find out who their people are. Followers find out who their leaders are. People build solid, lasting relations.h.i.+ps.

You can like people without leading them, but you cannot lead people well without liking them. That's what Level 2 is about.

Level 3-Production People follow you because of what you have

done for the organization.

One of the dangers of getting to the Permission level is that a leader may be tempted to stop there. But good leaders don't just create a pleasant working environment. They get things done! That's why they must move up to Level 3, which is based on results. On the Production level, leaders gain influence and credibility, and people begin to follow them because of what they have done for the organization.

Many positive things begin happening when leaders get to Level 3. Work gets done, morale improves, profits go up, turnover goes down, and goals are achieved. It is also on Level 3 that momentum kicks in.

Leading and influencing others becomes fun on this level. Success and productivity have been known to solve a lot of problems.

On Level 3, leaders can become change agents. They can tackle tough problems and face th.o.r.n.y issues. They can make the difficult decisions that will make a difference. They can take their people to another level of effectiveness.

Level 4-People Development People follow you because of what you have done for them.

Leaders become great not because of their power but because of their ability to empower others. That is what leaders do on Level 4. They use their position, relations.h.i.+ps, and productivity to invest in their followers and develop them until those followers become leaders in their own right. The result is reproduction; Level 4 leaders reproduce themselves.

Production may win games, but People Development wins champions.h.i.+ps. Two things always happen on Level 4. First, teamwork goes to a very high level because the high investment in people deepens relations.h.i.+ps, helps people to know one another better, and strengthens loyalty. Second, performance increases because there are more leaders on the team, and they help to improve everybody's performance.

Level 4 leaders change the lives of the people they lead, and the people follow them because of that. Their relations.h.i.+ps are often lifelong.

Level 5-Pinnacle People follow you because of who you are

and what you represent.

The highest and most difficult level of leaders.h.i.+p is the Pinnacle. While most people can learn to climb to Levels 1 through 4, Level 5 requires not only effort, skill, and intentionality but also a high level of talent. Only naturally gifted leaders ever make it to this highest level. Level 5 leaders develop people to become Level 4 leaders.

Developing leaders to the point where they are able and willing to develop other leaders is the most difficult leaders.h.i.+p task of all. But here are the payoffs: Level 5 leaders develop Level 5 organizations. They create opportunities that other leaders don't. Their leaders.h.i.+p gains a positive reputation. They create legacy in what they do. As a result, Level 5 leaders often transcend their position, their organization, and sometimes their industry.

Insights on Leading from the Levels

If you want to become an effective leader and lead the way successful people do, then you must master the 5 Levels of Leaders.h.i.+p. You must learn to recognize where you stand with each person in regard to the Levels, work to establish your credibility and gain influence where you are, and earn your way up to higher levels. If you learn this and live it day after day, you will be able to lead the way successful people do.

Now that you are acquainted with the Levels and how influence is gained on each, I want to share some insights that will help you to understand how the Levels relate to one another.

1. You Can Move Up a Level but You Never

Leave the Previous One Behind

You may a.s.sume that a leader climbs the Levels, leaving one to arrive at the next, the way a person moves up a staircase. But the truth is that you never leave a level behind after you've achieved it. Instead, you simply build upon it. If you think about it for a moment, you'll agree that it makes sense. If you start out with a leaders.h.i.+p position and you build relations.h.i.+ps with the people you oversee, do you resign your position to do so? No. You don't leave your position to advance, but if you win Level 2 correctly, you never need to rely on your position again.

Once you've built relations.h.i.+ps with people and move to a higher level of productivity, do you abandon or neglect those relations.h.i.+ps? You had better not! If you do, you'll find yourself back down at Level 1 again.

Leaders don't trade one level for another. They add a new level to the previous one. It is a building process.

2. You Are Not on the Same Level

with Every Person

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