When you stand and up say, “let’s go!” do you expect people to follow?
Why would anyone follow you? Well, usually, it is because you know where you are going. Or rather, they hope you know where you are going. In a world of fast results and instant action, sometimes, people forget that it takes training, time and experience to gain skills.
If you want to be a leader in any group, you have to understand what it is that the group does. For example, within a group of plumbers, usually, the “leader” is a plumber. He or she would be a person that the other plumbers respect. But you know, if I were respected by them, and I am a baker, I might be able to lead them to the local pub, but I doubt if I will be acknowledged as a leader of the “plumbers”.
How often have you heard the lament that “… my boss has no idea what he is doing..”?
Or how about this one “Without me, my boss won’t know how to get those reports done…”?
Sure, that boss is the supervisor, he is the manager. But by any measure, he is not the leader. At the very least, we expect the leader to know what is going on. There is a certain level of implied skill and knowledge. Have you ever put a software project leader in place who has never coded a single line before?
If you find yourself falling back on the curve, it’s time to get training. Get skilled up. Sure, you as the leader will not the one doing the work, but the troops need to know that you can get in there and scrap with the best of them, or at least, that you enough know-how to give it a good shot.
Just because you are a successful sales manager in one company will not automatically make you a success in another. You need time to learn the products, learn the ropes and most importantly, learn your way around the new company. You need to be technically competent.
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