The Team is Everything - Schneider on Leadership

What is good leadership?  It seems to be one of those ideas that falls into the realm. . . “you know it when you see it” . . .or in my case when you feel it.

My version of bad leadership includes the word “Me” or “I” verses “We” or “Team”.  I think bad leadership equals not being responsive to your team’s feedback. 

Good leadership will allow you to build a culture that tells you when you have a problem. A good leader is someone who is consistent, non-biased, responsive, selfless, and sets an example in all that they do.   

Unfortunately in our world we have too many leaders who send inconsistent messages. 

I am not sure that I am a good leader, but I tried to always be fair and most importantly, I never asked anyone to do something for the company that I was not willing to do myself.   It is my belief that a leader is not afraid to listen and to learn.  I often tell people,  “I was smart enough to figure out a way to recruit you…now it is your turn to teach me what you learn everyday.” 

A good leader understands that the TEAM is everything!  

There was a moment when I was speaking to my sales team at Data Domain during an annual kickoff meeting.  I looked out at the team of individuals and reflected on what we had accomplished the last 12 months (I think at the time we went from 50M to 150M)…Here I am, a 40yr. old executive, a 6’4” 250lb man, and I just started to cry.  God, I felt like such an incredible wimp…but what I saw was just awesome.  A group of people who thought more of each other than themselves – a group of people that answered my challenge of growth and exceeded my expectations.  Specific stories of individuals ripped through my head – I noticed a rep. that I had worked with personally during his first 6 months at the company and had sold nothing -- and now he was our rep. of the year and whose income was over a million dollars (imagine how much he sold)…and felt the stories, the passion, the trust and the power of the team. I often look back at that moment with a sense of pride…not in me, but in my feelings for the team.  I recognized that this team was a reflection of me…and I of them.  Is that a good leader? – I don’t know.  But I can tell you…most of the people in the room that day cried also.  What a moment!  I still think I am a wimp – but when I stop feeling - I stop being an effective leader. 

In the end I believe a good leader needs to be proud of his / her team…and in turn, the team needs to have the same pride in their leader.   

As I consider my role, these are some of the questions I ask myself everyday:

-       Would I want to work with / for me?

-       Would my mother be proud of me for doing “x” or “y”?

-       Am I fair?

-       Am I doing this for me, or the team? (Ok to answer yes to both…)

Your answers may vary on a situation to situation basis, but in general they served as my touch stone in reminding me of who I am, and who I want to be, as a person and as a leader.