[Applause]
for 30 years I've been teaching this and
I've taught this for West Point and
Microsoft and Lily and Delta and and the
largest organizations and companies in
the world come and say John teach the
five levels of leadership because they
understand they understand that if you
and I today in these few minutes can
understand how leadership works and by
the way leadership is not a noun it's a
verb it's action it's moving and if we
can understand how to go from level one
to level two to level three to level
four to up to up to level five in our
leadership we expand our leadership we
expand our influence and we expand our
effectiveness so I'm ready to go I know
you're ready to go okay here we go
level one we're gonna start at the very
bottom level this is where you start
this is where we all start the bottom
level is the position level at level
number one that this is where we all
start we all start with the title we all
start with a job description we all
start with a position okay and the key
word at level number word and that level
number one the key word is right righ T
s rights in other words people at level
number one follow you because they have
to in other words you're the boss or you
have a title or you're the supervisor
and anybody that's under that person
they just basically follow that person
now this is the beginning of all of our
leadership journey we we get a
leadership position in fact people come
to me all the time they'll say Johnny I
just became a leader last week and and
when they tell me they became a leader
last week I know what they meant they
really didn't become a leader last week
what they really did is they got a
leadership position last week and by the
way the position doesn't make you a
leader I know a lot of people have a
position of leadership but they're not a
good leader you know that too you
probably worked with them before so the
position doesn't make you a leader but
if you're a good leader you can really
make the position but it's where we all
begin now the upside of level 1 is
simple it's a place where you and I get
to shape and define our leadership we
get a leadership job we've become a
supervisor and now we begin to work on
ourselves as a leader and we begin to
define who we are that's kind of the
upside now let me give you the downside
of level number one
the downside of level number one is the
people who follow you will give you the
least amount of their energy and effort
in other words chip if they're following
you because they have to follow you if
they're following you because that
that's what they've got to do to get
their paycheck if they're following you
because that you know that's you have
the position over them if that's the
case they will always give you the very
least of their time and of their ability
and of their effort and of their mind
people don't like to have to follow
people because they have to follow
people and this is their great mistake
that people that have positional
leadership make they think well I've got
the title I've got the position so now
everybody will follow me well they're
following you but they're only following
you many times if you're not a good
leader because they have to it's the
only way that they can get paid just
think of this level number one is where
you're going to get the very least a
people's energy effort and mine let them
let me tell you I've seen it many times
when I've gone to to work with companies
on leadership you can always tell a
level one leadership company or level
number one leadership culture you can
always tell it because let's say
quitting time is that it's putting times
at five o'clock in level one positional
type companies if quitting time is at 5
o'clock guess what at 4:30 everybody is
clearing the desk oh yeah they're
they're moving stuff out of the way
because because it's only 30 minutes
until the highlight of their day and so
they're they're already starting the
countdown so they're they're clearing
their desks because they want nothing to
impede their progress when they leave
the building so they've got that at 4:30
the desk starts getting cleared at 4:45
they get away from the desk and they go
around and they go to the different
cubicles and then and they're saying
their goodbyes and they're saying what
was great to be with you today and had a
good time and see you tomorrow and
they're doing all that kind of stuff
because again at 5 o'clock the big time
at 5 o'clock they don't want to have to
be encumbered bye-bye
doing relationship stuff they would they
want to do that on company time you
understand that at 4:50 they're going to
the restroom of course you want to be
sure to pee on company time
of course so so they're over there and
they're just ok Dallin they've got that
done at 4:55 they're back at their desk
and they're changing shoes they're
changing they're they're getting on
track shoes they're getting on they got
to get something because at 4:57 they
are in a they are in a starting position
they are they are counting down they are
and at 5 o'clock everybody's gone I mean
every but you say what do you mean
everybody's but everybody's got it five
o'clock they're all gone I mean if you
look around the office and they're gone
in fact they're gone so fast it startles
you and you go run over you right over
to the window to look out in the parking
lot and you're now you're you're totally
shocked all the cars are gone and you
ask yourself how could people leave a
building so fast without a fire drill
let me explain in positional companies
when people come and park in the morning
they're very careful how they park they
back their car
they back there Korea yeah because
because they know at quitting time they
want to be able to get a fast escape
because now they're on their time and I
can promise you you show me a positional
company a positional culture you show me
leaders that are positional in their
thinking and I will promise you every
time not all the time
every time those people will constantly
wonder why am I not getting the best out
of my people you're not getting the best
out of your people because the only
reason that people are following you is
because you got a title and they're
going to give you very little energy now
the good news is you don't have to stay
at level number one you can go to level
number two so let's go to that level of
number two as quickly as we can the
first level is the positional level the
key word there is right side get certain
rights so you've got to follow me level
number two is the permission level and
at the permission level the key word is
relationships and at this level people
now begin to follow you because they
want to now there's a world of
difference between following somebody
because you have to and following
somebody because you want to now what
happened between levels 1 & 2 well
what's happened is you have connected
you've connected with your people you've
not only connected with them but but
relationally they like you and you like
them and you've got to know each other
and so now in this work environment that
they're not following you just because
you are a supervisor they're following
you because you do have a position you
are a supervisor but you are a
supervisor that people like and I'm
always amazed aren't you amazed I am
always amazed at people that have
leadership positions or responsibilities
and they're not they're not likeable do
you know what I mean they're just not
likeable people don't
care for them it's it's tough being in
the people business and not having
people like you it's tough and in fact
sometimes I see them but I just want to
I just want to I just want to sit down
with them and and say my name is John
and and I'm your friend
and I just want you to know people don't
like you how many oh come on let's let's
just have some fun
how many of you have ever had somebody
you had how many of you ever had
somebody you work for that you just that
you just didn't like wait wait wait wait
wait wait oh ho ho that was close
but let me qualify this for you not in
your present job situation you
understand no no no no no no no I know
that it's not happening where you are
now you are happy but how many of you in
another job at another time on another
planet come on coin
alright come on how many of you ever had
somebody you had to follow and they just
weren't like let's see the hands come on
let's get those hands AHA yeah
absolutely all right there you all right
let me ask the real question how many of
your CDs beside that person right now
relationships relationships with people
are the foundation of leadership you
build your leadership offer
relationships why because leadership is
influence and you cannot influence
somebody that you antagonize and every
one of us know what it's like to have
somebody every one of us know what it's
like to have somebody that we that's
hard to like well let me ask it this way
how many of you how many of you have
ever how many of you ever been in a
grocery store and and you looked over
about three hours and you saw somebody
you didn't want to see how many of you
ever done and the good news is the bad
news you just saw somebody didn't wanna
see the good news is they didn't see you
how many of you ever done this number
hid from somebody now in this on level
number two what happens is you begin to
develop relationship skills and let me
just let me describe the leader on level
two the leader on level two they have
three things that they do extremely well
to be a relational leader one is they
listen well in fact they take all of
their leadership cues from walking
slowly through the crowd and listening
they listen well
secondly they observe their conscious
about where their people are and what
their people are doing and they're
constantly observing them and thirdly
they're learning they're learning and
then in the process of listening
observing and learning they have an
attitude of servanthood they know how to
serve and they not only know how to
serve but they do serve and they not
only do serve but they love the shirt
one of the things that I love about
chick-fil-a I live in Florida now and so
when I went down there I I begin to talk
to chick-fil-a be able said come on you
got to get to know but your chick Flay's
down in my area because they lived in
Atlanta and I need my chick-fil-a fix
and they're starting to come down it's
wonderful but can I tell you what I love
about chick-fil-a they have a a surfing
culture level number two they got that
wire they've got this relationship stuff
wired it's my pleasure how can I serve
you it's it's it's a mindset it's a
culture and and if you're going to grow
as a leader you have to grow beyond your
position beyond your title yes you have
a position that's level one but the
second level is relationships and the
ability to get along with people that's
level two let's go to level number three
there's another level higher the third
level is the production level the key
word there is results and at this level
you're starting to help the bottom line
of the company you're starting to quote
bring home the bacon you're at this
level you become effective as a leader
and you become effective as a leader on
level number three because you produce
and the characteristics of leaders at
level number three are very common one
is that they they produce by example in
other words they are the example for the
other people that followed them how to
be effective and how to be how to be
productive you see the greatest
motivational principle in the world the
greatest motivational principle in the
world is that people do what people see
and too many too many travel agents too
many travel agents they're like or too
many leaders too many leaders are like
they're like travel agents they're
sending people where they've never been
themselves and you want to be a tour
guide you want to take people with you
you want to say this is the area where
I've been this is where I live this is
the area where I lead come along and
follow me and at level number three your
leadership begins to gain credibility
because now you are fleshing out for the
people around you and you're modeling
for them things that they want to see
and you are starting to produce which
something else happens because you're
becoming productive in your own life
you've been to attract people that begin
to be productive also in the 21
irrefutable laws of leadership that I
wrote one of the laws is the law of
magnetism and the law of magnetism just
says we attract who we are not who we
want so when I talk to leaders often
when we talk about recruiting then I'll
say well what kind of people do you want
in your company what kind of people do
you
in your department as a supervisor and
they'll give me a list though right
things you know I want somebody that's I
want somebody this self-discipline and I
want somebody that is service oriented
and they'll give me a uh you know a list
of four five qualities and since they
give me the list Knight I look at those
qualities in and then I ask him a very
simple question I say okay uh do you
possess those qualities because he on
level number three basically who you are
as a leader is who you attract on your
team and at level number two or level
number three what is wonderful is that
that at level number three when you
start to produce when you start to
really develop and when you really start
to grow things you begin to get momentum
and momentum is a leaders best friend
because momentum is the great
exaggerator and once you have momentum
all of a sudden things begin to look in
such a better way and it becomes easier
to grow and it becomes easier to leave
it's a wonderful thing
in fact level number three is where a
lot of the problem-solving is taken care
of
you see managers they try to solve
problems where leaders try to create
momentum because leaders know that if
they create momentum they'll solve 80%
of their problems with momentum you see
momentum is a problem solver lack of
momentum is a problem stopper every time
a train going 55 miles an hour on a
track if you had a five foot thick
concrete steel reinforced wall on the
track in front that train because that
train is going in has momentum going 55
miles an hour that train would smash
through that wall and would just keep on
going why because it has momentum
momentum allowed it to get through a
five-foot thick concrete steel
reinforced problem that's what momentum
does that same train not moving at all
stopped dead on the track no momentum if
you put a one-inch block in front of the
driving wheels of that train just one
it's blocked that train can't even get
started now isn't it interesting same
train that the smashed through a five
foot thick concrete steel reinforced
wall because of the head momentum that
same train without momentum can't even
get going with a one inch block can't
even get going
it has no momentum in fact that's why
so I tell people many times when they
look at the problems they have in their
organization your problems not your
problem the problem is they think the
problem is the problem and and so
therefore they they concentrate on a
problem that's not a problem and now
that the problem it is and the problem
has become a problem not because it was
a problem but the problem was they
didn't know it wasn't a problem and so
now they're concentrating on a problem
that wasn't a problem and now they've
got a problem not because they had a
problem but the problem has become a
problem because they didn't know that it
wasn't a problem and so they got a
problem and momentum and level three
leadership will take care of 80% of all
the problems in an organization it
happens for sports it happens for
business it happens in government
momentum is a leaders best friend it
happens at level number three you got to
get to level number three to get that
MOU going okay let's go to level number
four let me go it may ask you question
before we go level before are you
learning something are you learning
something okay okay look at your
neighbor and say I'm learning something
go ahead and tell them that go tell me
I'm learning sit look look back look
back at your look back at your look back
at your neighbor and look back to your
neighbor and say not an F yet you still
got two levels to go you're you're not
there yet you're not there level number
four is the people development level
this is what I live for this is what I
strive for this is what excites me
something magical happens when you begin
to understand the most appreciable
assets you have in any organization is
the people of that organization and you
begin to commit yourself to develop the
people than that organization because
how do you grow a company you grow a
company by growing people and when you
grow them they increase their capacity
when they can increase their capacity
they begin to increase the capacity of
what you can do and what you can
accomplish let me just share with you
quickly
three thoughts on developing people just
very quickly number one is the key to
developing leaders and if it the key to
developing good people is in recruitment
the better person you bring in the door
the higher odds you can do well with
them
I remember having lunch one time with
Lou Holtz and Lou Holtz said Johnny I've
had bad players on my football team and
I've had good players on my football
team he said just to be honest with you
I I'm a better coach with good players
of course he is of course it's good let
me let me say something 80% of your
success of equipping people to be
successful is in the front door on who
you bring in I wish I had time to
develop that for you because what
happens is unless you and I have a clear
picture of what we're looking for we
don't know when we see it happens all
the time people come to me and say John
I'm looking for some leaders for my
company what do you suggest the first
question I ask is what what does the
leader look like give me the
characteristics give me the qualities
set up please please paint a picture for
me what does that leader look like
because you've got to have that clear
picture so that when you see that person
you know that they're one that you want
recruitment is key number two is
positioning the ability not only to
bring the right person in the right in
the in the front door but also to put
him in the right place as comments would
say get him on the bus get them on the
right seat and position is huge and what
I've discovered is that successful
people have always positioned them well
themselves well when you see a
successful person they're successful
because what they have done is they've
found their strengths on him they found
their niche and they stay right in that
sweet spot and they just worked that
sweet spot you've never heard anybody be
an interview that was successful that
you came up in the you interviewed him
they said well the secret of my success
is that I've never discovered what I was
good at or the seeder my successes I've
always worked on I've just I've just
worked in my weaknesses no no they're
always in their strengths they always
they've already discovered what they're
good at now successful people have
discovered what they're good at
successful leaders discover what other
people are good at successful people
position themselves well successful
leader position that other people well
and at level number four that's exactly
what happened the leader is always
looking at the people observing watching
just like last week I went back to my my
first school I graduate I graduated from
a higher Christian University and in the
little town in circle Ohio and and it's
a little school I go back every year and
I give them a day to just speak and they
get all the proceeds and keep the money
and and so because I grew up in that
town I told one of my friends that
played ball with me tear I said Tim let
the ballplayers let the team know let's
earn my high school kids no thumb we'll
be in town and let's have a dinner
afterwards and we had over 50 people
came together
I hadn't seen many of these had seen
many of my high school mates since I
graduated from high school clear back in
1965 and we had a wonderful time we
laughed and talked and told stories for
two hours and coach Neff our basketball
coach he came back I hadn't seen him for
years and when I saw him I thought of
myself and I thought of a packet in
those scrimmages in basketball because
the first scrimmage every year coach
Neff would take the first team and he'd
say now I'm going to let you play the
second team but there's one condition
the first team is not going to play
their position and he'd take Doug Roth
who was six foot eight and put him out a
point guard I remember he stacked me one
year under the under center and and he
put all the first-team players out of
position on offense but he left the
second team play in their position and
the second team always beat us and the
scrimmage why'd they always beat us
because and then he would stop and he'd
say let me just explain something to you
no matter how talented you are if you're
out of position you'll never reach your
potential what was coach Neff teaches he
was coaching us and he was teaching us
that it's key to get positionally
correct and it's also as a leader key to
get your people in the right position in
a level number four that's what happens
at level number four you recruit well
you position well and then you equip
well now you take them and say okay I
understand what their strengths own is I
understand what their giftedness is now
I'm going I'm going to equip them I'm
going to come alongside of them and I'm
going to develop them and I'm going to
train them and I use a very simple four
years for many many years a simple
five-step equipping process it really
works step one I do it it's that simple
you can't teach somebody what you can't
do yourself yeah we may teach what we
know but we reproduce while we are so if
you're gonna reproduce yourself you've
got to be it yourself so the first step
is is I do it step two as I do it and
you're with me I take you with me now
we're gonna spend together I'm gonna be
your mentor I'm going to be your coach
you're gonna watch me you're gonna
observe me you're gonna see me in
different situations we're gonna make
sure that it works we're gonna make sure
you're gonna be able to ask me questions
step three is that now we turn it and I
had I hand the ball off to you now on
step three you do it you do it and I'm
with you now I'm watching you and I'm
tweaking you and I'm getting I'm helping
you to get better and I I'm I'm I'm just
really fine-tuning you step four is you
do it
you just do it you don't need me anymore
you know how to do it you do it you do
it well and many times people think that
equipping stops at Step four but it
doesn't there's one more step that's
absolutely essential Step five is is if
you do it in somebody's with you you've
never really trained and equipped
somebody until they can multiply
themselves that's where all compounding
is that's where all compound at a time
money influence the whole process
compound he begins when you can train
somebody who has trained somebody I know
that well because 14 years ago I started
a nonprofit organization called equip
that is now the largest leadership
organization in the world and we've
trained and equipped over three million
people in 154 countries and the key to
that is we don't train anybody unless
they make a commitment to train somebody
else it has to continue to go on that's
level number four
it's a beautiful level to be on it's the
level where you develop people now
there's one more level that's level
number five the pinnacle level the
pinnacle level the key word there is
respect you've done it so well with so
many for so long
the people just absolutely follow you
they follow you because of who you are
the qualities you have any like they
follow you because of what you have done
and there's a great amount of respect
and it takes a long time to get to level
number five most of us aren't there all
of us would probably like to be there
but it's a lifelong journey and what I
want you to understand about the five
levels is that's exactly what leadership
is leadership is of always ongoing
always learning growing process okay let
me ask you a question you've got the
five levels there and you can see them
and you can see how each one kind of
leads into the next one and probably the
question you've asked yourself now by
this time because you're a sharp crowd
you've asked yourself wonder what level
I'm on in my own level one or my own
level three am i on level four you've
already done that I know you have that's
what I would be doing if I'd be sitting
there I'd be say okay we're you Maxwell
and if you ask that question and you
kind of go deep in that question you're
going to get a little frustrated because
you know what you're going to discover
you're going to discover your that
you're not on the same level with
everybody there was somebody or maybe on
level two with somebody else you may be
on level four in that true if somebody
new came in to come to your on level one
with them and what you're going to
discover is that you're on different
levels with different people now I wish
I had an hour to teach this whole
process but here's what I want you to
understand here's your assignment very
simple take the people that you lead put
their names down and ask yourself a
simple question what level am I on with
that person do your best to kind of put
a number there and I know it can kind of
bleed together so it's not quite the
exact science but but do your best shot
because after you know what level you're
on with each one of your people then
you're going to know specifically how to
lead them now here's the key whenever
you try to cast vision with people in
your organization in your department
they don't see you based upon who you
are as a person or as a leader they see
you
the five levels grid and a person on
level one when you talk about a vision a
person on level one sees you entirely
different than a person on level number
four the commitment level is much higher
the higher you go with your people so
therefore when you cast a vision or when
you lay it out for your people and say
this is where we want to go just
understand it's maybe the same company
may be in the same building it may be
the same time it may be the same speech
but the reactions are going to be
different and the reactions are going to
be different because they're on
different levels with you so take the
notes study them apply them to your life
begin to be a student of the five levels
of leadership and I wish you well
because leadership is influence always
has been always will be
and within you you have the power to
increase that influence god bless thank
you very much have a great day
[Applause]
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