To The Tired & Weary Leader

Dear Leader,

I trust this meets you in good health.

In June, I set out to write a 5 part series of letters addressing certain fundamentals for early stage leadership growth. Today’s letter is the last part of the series, and it is about young people who have led and are tired of leading.

When I was serving in FECA Nigeria, every now and then we had young leaders who got tired of leading and wanted to resign their offices. It was something I was used to hearing and because I had an interest in leadership, I was curious to learn about symptoms, causes and effects of leadership passion decline.

In my leadership journey, I have coached many young leaders who had passion to lead and took responsibility but along the line they fizzled out, got tired and weary, got uninspired and didn’t feel like leading any more. It happens everywhere – in churches, workplaces and politics.

As often as I coach young leaders, I realise the gap called the expectation gap. Many young leaders get frustrated because they initially thought leading would be easy because they had passion for it. They assumed passion was enough. In between having passion and actually leading effectively and continually, there is a gap that cannot be left in a vacuum. It must be filled else on your leadership journey you may get frustrated and eventually give up.

You must realise that you cannot lead beyond where you stand per time. We can only go as far as our fuel can carry us. So if you are on your leadership journey and you suddenly feel like you’re tired and burnt out, the solution is not to quit but to rethink and refuel.

As a way to help create a foundation for this letter, you need to address this first gap – leadership in any endeavor is never easy. I don’t think I know any successful person who thinks leadership comes easy. Enough said.

Now, Last month I was asked the same question twice in different ways by different people about what keeps leaders going. The first question was asked by one of my mentees when he learnt about how I worked in an organisation for 10 years across different levels. He wanted to know what motivated me to keep going in the midst of the tough challenges. The second question was naked by an audience at a startup founders event I was invited to speak at – she asked “what are the things that keep founders going in the midst of the turbulent times doing business in Nigeria”

I gave almost the same answer which I’ll share below:

1. What are you looking at? Whether you are a startup founder or an early stage leader anywhere, you need a clear “WHY” for doing what you do, and you need to keep that “WHY” in front of you always. Because on your leadership journey, you are going to face a lot of challenging times and it is your “WHY” that will keep you going if your “WHY” is strong enough.
   
   Why did you start the company? Why do you serve? Why do you lead? WHY?
   You cannot lead effectively and continually without a strong “WHY” else you will fizzle out in the face of challenges. If you faint in the days of adversity, your strength is small. A clear “WHY” strengthens you in the days of adversity.
   
2. Who are you looking at?
   
   P.S. I didn’t add this and the last point below to my response but it’s useful to this letter
   
   At some point in your leadership journey, It is hard to continue when you have no one to follow but yourself. Every leader must be a follower. Most people start out leading and have no one they’re accountable to and no one above them to inspire them. Suddenly, they expire and quit.
   
   This is one of my biggest hacks. I always have someone I’m looking up to because personal leadership without the benefit of personal mentors will only take you a small distance. If you want to become the leader you desire to be, you need to find models who are ahead of you to learn from and be inspired.
   
   I have learnt a lot from people I have never met physically. Most of my role models teach me from their books and I draw a lot of inspiration from their challenges and lessons shared, and those inspiration become like the fuel for my leadership journey. Suddenly, you know your challenges are not unique to you, someone has solved them at a level higher than you, look at them and live. If your first mentors/models are in the pages of a book, it is a good place to start but as you grow, find personal models that you can relate with because if you only follow yourself you will find yourself going in circles and become frustrated.
   
   As I look back over my life, I recognise that the greatest assets of my leadership journey were the people who helped me grow. The people you follow, the models you draw inspiration from, the mentors you take advice from help to shape you and your leadership.
   
   If you are only spending time leading people and not filling your own tank, it’s only a little while, you will get tired of leading and want to quit. Find wise leaders, good role models and positive people to draw inspiration from and enjoy speed in your leadership journey.
   
3. What kind of systems do you have in place? One of the greatest secrets to leadership and personal growth is that I use systems for almost everything.
   
   Most of the things we accomplish in life comes easily through strategies and systems. If you are someone who does things haphazardly, you will rarely accomplish much and get tired easily.
   
   I have systems created to become better at leading myself. For example, I have a time set everyday that I must wake up. I don’t sleep and wake up any time I like. I wake at a specific time of the day, every single day and I have created a list of 4-5 things I must get done every day to make that day well spent. I create systems for everything in my life – sleeping, eating, reading, thinking, planning, working, etc. System helps me save time.
   
   Michael Gerber says “Systems permit ordinary people to achieve extraordinary results predictably” I totally agree!
   
   Systems have improved my performance greatly. If you want to improve your leadership and not get tired of leading ultimately, then develop systems that work for you. It is a personal thing and I can only share what works for me but everyone needs a system. Every leader needs one!
   
   I’ll teach a bit about this in the July Edition of Early Stage Leadership Series – our monthly leadership webinar for young leaders. Register FREE here.

As I wrap up this series, here is what you should remember:

• A leadership title doesn’t make you a leader.
• Leadership can be learnt. Improve your ability to lead.
• Our world needs better leaders. There is no perfect time to accept the responsibility to lead. Stop waiting!
• Never compare your leadership journey with another. You are on a unique assignment.
• Surround Yourself with role models, mentors and positive people as you run your leadership race, and leverage systems.

I believe in your leadership, and I’m here to support you.

If you will like to be a part of July Edition of Early Stage Leadership Series – Becoming Better at Leading Yourself, register here – bit.ly/earlyleader

Until next time,
Great