On The Front Lines

Dave Rife, Owner/Executive Board Member of White Castle

“(These false leaders) make loads that are hard to carry and lay them on the shoulders of the people. However, they are not willing to lift a finger to move them. But don’t be like them. The person who is greatest among you will be your servant.” Matthew 23

One sign of a good leader is the ability and willingness to do a job that they are asking others to do.

I love the TV show, “Undercover Boss.” The idea is that the CEO of a major company would spend a few days undercover, working the front lines of their organization to see, first, if they could handle it and second, to get a better glimpse of the people who are their hands and feet. At the end of the show, the workers are flown to the company’s headquarters and they meet the CEO in his “natural habitat.” The workers are changed. The CEO’s are changed. All because, the leader was willing to do the job that they impose on others.

If you’re a leader and you have people who follow, ask yourself, “Am I willing to do a task that I impose on others?”

Peace,