10 Leadership Lessons: Part 4
Build Before You Lead: Why growing your leadership influence starts with delivering results
This is Part 4 of a series sharing the top 10 leadership lessons I've learned over the past 30 years. Read the introduction here: Building a Bridge.
"Leadership is not about titles, positions, or flowcharts. It is about one life influencing another." - John C. Maxwell
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"Tarek, what's the path for me to become a people leader as fast as possible?"
I occasionally hear a variation of this question from engineers in our rotational program, which I’ve led for the past decade. These are high achievers in college, student organization leaders, and top performers with high GPAs. They're used to being recognized as top talent.
The unspoken assumption is that past performance will fast-track you to leadership. The truth, however, is that working in the corporate space means learning new rules.
What got you here won’t get you there.
I get it. Any high achiever wants to make an impact early. I did. The problem? You don't know what you're doing. And leadership isn't a promotion you earn by getting a letter grade—it's a responsibility you grow into over time.
Two Different Paths
Over the last decade, we've hired more than 100 engineers into our rotational program. I've watched two distinct paths emerge.
Path 1: Chris - Sharp engineer. Driven. He almost immediately started asking about leadership opportunities. He was so focused on getting promoted that he never asked about the skills needed to be a leader. He didn’t realize that you can't make the leap from school to leadership by skipping the learning in between.
Path 2: Liz - She built a strong foundation as an individual contributor. She added value to stakeholders in tangible ways. A couple of years after graduating from the program, she was given the opportunity to lead a team. The leader that her team serves recently caught me in the hall to brag about the value Liz's team creates.
The difference? Liz learned that effective leadership starts with leading yourself first.
Lesson #9: Don't be in a rush to become a people leader
You must be patient with yourself. How can you help others succeed if you haven't figured out what success looks like in a new environment?
When new engineers ask about a people leadership path, my advice is simple:
Make yourself indispensable as an individual contributor.
Here's what that looks like:
Master your craft. Become the person others come to for answers. This takes time.
Build relationships across the organization. Understand how your work connects to the bigger picture by always being curious.
Learn to communicate up, down, and across. Practice simply explaining complex ideas to others.
Ask for mentoring from leaders you admire. When they give you the gift of advice, never miss following up with them on how you put it into practice.
I would have been a terrible leader early in my career. I needed the seasoning that came with making mistakes and learning from them.
When you are an excellent individual contributor, opportunities will naturally come your way because you have established a reputation as someone who consistently delivers results.
Lesson #10: There is no prize for just doing what is asked
I'm not a poker player, but I often tell people that doing what's asked is only table stakes. It's the minimum requirement. People who only follow instructions may be counted on to get a job done, but they're also the ones who later wonder why their career has stalled out.
Remember, leadership is influence. Nothing more and nothing less. To grow your influence exponentially, get curious about what keeps your manager up at night.
Example: Twice a year, our rotational engineers present to leadership. Our leadership team wants to ensure they are prepared. Kelly, a program graduate, asked if she and other graduates could offer feedback on presentations to the new engineers. My answer was a resounding…YES! This group now acts as a sounding board to provide coaching and ensure great presentations.
This is a perfect example of Kelly expanding her influence without being asked. As advancement opportunities arise, her name will be one of the first I think of.
Here are some ideas on how to anticipate needs:
Ask what pressures your manager is currently facing from their leadership
Ask your manager what success looks like for your team over the next few weeks
Look for problems that need solving, even if they're not your job
Don’t just point out problems for someone else: proactively develop solutions on your own
This approach will help you stand out, enhance your influence, and open up career opportunities for the future.
The Foundation
I've watched too many talented people try to skip steps. They want the title before they've built the skills. They want the recognition before they've earned the respect of their boss and their peers.
Leadership isn't about you—it's about the people you serve. And you can't serve others effectively until you've proven that you can deliver results beyond what you’re asked.
- Build your foundation
- Anticipate needs
- Serve without being asked
- Become the go-to person
The leadership opportunities you want will naturally follow.
Next week: A bonus blog - "The Secret." Because everything we've talked about over the last 5 weeks comes down to one thing: being comfortable in your own skin.
Having good mentors early in my career was so helpful. Having good mentoring in my 70s is also helpful. 😉
good one!