Nine Principles for Leading Up

Recently, I was in search for something new to read. I came across a book a former superintendent had given all principals and assistant principals about ten years ago. The book is entitled, The 360 Degree Leader, by John C. Maxwell. I must confess that I didn't take the time to read it 10 years ago, but I'm enjoying it now. One particular portion of the book really spoke to me, the nine principles to follow in order to lead others in any organization. Here are those nine principles in a nut shell.

1. Lead yourself exceptionally well. Nothing will make a better impression on your leader than your ability to manage yourself. If your leader must continually expend energy managing you, then you will be perceived as someone who drains time and energy.
2. Lighten your leaders load. We can lift people up or take people down in our relationships. If you help lift the load, then you help your leader succeed. If you continually help others, then others will eventually want to help you. Even if the leader you work for never turns around to lift you up in return, someone who has seen you doing that lifting will extend a hand to you.
3. Be willing to do what others won't. You learn resiliency and tenacity during tough assignments, not easy ones. When tough choices have to be made and results are difficult to achieve, leaders are forged.
4. Do more than manage- Lead! Managers work with processes- leaders work with people. People do the work and manage the processes, and people don't function like machines. They have feelings. They think. They have problems, hopes, and dreams. Though people can be managed, they would much rather be led. And when they are led, they perform at a much higher level.
5. Invest in relational chemistry. All good leadership is based on relationships. People won't go along with you if they can't get along with you. That's true whether you are leading up, across, or down.They key to developing chemistry with your leaders is to develop relationships with them.
6. Be prepared every time you take your leader's time. Prepare for every minute that you will spend with your leader. Five minutes of thinking can often save an hour of work. The less relational connection you have with your leaders, the more time you ought to put in on the front end preparing. The less your leaders know about you, the smaller the window of time you have to prove yourself.
7. Know when to push and when to back off. Timing is critically important to leadership. It's wise to wait for the right moment to speak up. A great idea at the wrong time will be received just the same as a bad idea. Here are some questions to ask yourself. Do I know something my boss doesn't but needs to? Is time running out? Are my responsibilities at risk? Can I help my boss win? Here are few questions you need to ask yourself if you feel as though you may be pushing to hard. Am I promoting my own agenda? Have I already made my point? Must everyone but me take the risk? Does the atmosphere say "no"? Is the timing right only for me? Does my request exceed our relationship?
8. Become a Go-To player. Winning teams have players that make things happen. Those team members who can make things happen are their go-to players. They demonstrate consistent competence, responsibility, and dependability. Go-To players produce when the pressure is on, when the resources are few, when the momentum is low, when the load is heavy, when the leader is absent, and when the time is limited.
9. Be better tomorrow than you are today. The better you are, the more people listen.So how to you become better tomorrow? Learn you craft today. On a wall in the office of a huge tree farm hangs a sign. It says, "The best time to plant a tree is twenty-five years ago. The second best time is today." There is no time like the present to become an expert at your craft.

I hope that you use these nine principles. I recommend that you buy John C. Maxwell's book, The 360 Degree Leader.