Our next subject in the study of leadership skills involves a simple story from the Bible. Being an amateur on the Bible, I (Jim Rohn) am going to tell this story in my own way. Though my parents made sure that by the time I was nineteen I was a pretty good scholar, I’m still not an expert on all subjects. So here is my interpretation of the parable of the sower.
The sower in ancient days was the person who planted the crops. Very simply, he got the ground ready, and with a bag of seed he would walk across the ground and sow the seed. This is how he got the crops going. And it’s a very fascinating story that has a lot to say about the qualities of a true leader.
Here’s the first leadership quality demonstrated by the sower: he was a wise man. That’s a great advantage, isn’t it? You don’t want to send a stupid man out to plant. If you do, we’d all starve.
An interesting story says that the day the Christian church was formed, a magnificent sermon was preached. It was a great presentation. In fact, it was one of the classic presentations of all time.
According to the story, this presentation was given to a multitude of people. When the sermon was finished, there were a variety of reactions from those onlookers. I (Jim Rohn) find that fascinating since they were all listening to the same sermon.
Some who heard this presentation were perplexed. I read the presentation, and it sounded pretty straightforward to me. Why would somebody be perplexed with a good, sincere, straightforward presentation? The best answer I’ve got is that they are chronically perplexed people. It doesn’t matter who’s preaching, these people are going to be perplexed.
Leadership is quite often an exercise in facing reality. I (Jim Rohn) used to say, “Liars shouldn’t lie.” What I’ve since learned, and what you need to know, is that pronouncements like that are a waste of energy. Liars are supposed to lie. That’s why we call them liars. You wouldn’t expect them to do anything else. If you did, we’d call you naive. And you would be especially naive if you let it upset you.
Somebody cuts you off on the freeway, so you go chasing after him shaking your fist. You don’t think he should have cut you off on the freeway? That’s what he’s supposed to do. He is known as a “cutter-offer” on the freeway. And if you say, “Those people shouldn’t cut me off,” we’d call you naive. Come on!
Once you’ve set a goal for yourself as a leader–whether it is to create your own enterprise, energize your organization, build a church, or excel in sports–the challenge is to find good people to help you accomplish that goal. Gathering a successful team of people is not only helpful, it’s necessary.
So to guide you in this daunting task of picking the right people, I (Jim Rohn) am going to share with you a four-part checklist. Number one: check each candidate’s history. Seek out available information regarding the individual’s qualifications to do the job. That’s the most obvious step.
If you want to be a leader who attracts quality people, the key is to become a person of quality yourself. Leadership is the ability to attract someone to the gifts, skills, and opportunities you offer as an owner, as a manger, as a parent. I (Jim Rohn) call leadership the great challenge of life.
What’s important in leadership is refining your skills. All great leaders keep working on themselves until they become effective. Here are some specifics:
Learn to be strong but not impolite. It is an extra step you must take to become a powerful, capable leader with a wide range of reach. Some people mistake rudeness for strength. It’s not even a good substitute.
George Leonard, in his book Mastery, talks about “enjoying the plateau.” This is an important point. So often, we find ourselves racing to get ahead, thinking so much about our next achievement that we can’t appreciate the time in between. We find ourselves losing our motivation.
Happiness is not in the getting. Happiness is in the becoming. Happiness is a universal quest. Happiness is a joy that comes as a result of positive activity. It has a wide variety of meanings, a wide variety of interpretations. Happiness is both the joy of discovery and the joy of knowing. It’s the result of an awareness of the full range of life. It’s opening yourself to experiences, sounds, harmonies, dreams, and goals. It’s the joy that comes from designing a life that practices the fine art of living well.
Some people have plenty of beautiful possessions and activities filling their days, but they get little happiness from them. Some people have money, but they have trouble finding joy in their lives. Imagine a father who wads up a five-dollar bill and throws it at his son saying, “Here, if you need the darn stuff that badly, take it.” He may have money, but he has no style.
It’s not the amount that counts, it’s the style that counts.Mr. Shoaff taught me about lifestyle in those early days, starting with small doses. He said, “Image that you are getting your shoes shined, and the shoeshine boy has done a fabulous job. You have one of the world’s all-time great shines, so you pay him for the shine. Now, you consider from the change in your hand what kind of tip to give him, and the question pops into your mind, ‘Shall I give him one quarter or two quarters for my neat shine?’ If two different amounts for a tip ever come to your mind, always go for the higher amount. Become a two-quarter person.”
A life lived in style is also a balanced life. Make sure you pay attention to all the values and dimensions of your life. One is family. If you have someone you care about, there is nothing to match that. One person caring for another is life at its best. Protect that relationship with a vengeance. If a chair gets in the way, I (Jim Rohn) suggest you destroy the chair.
It was wisely said long ago, but is still true today: “There are many treasures, but the greatest of these is love.” It is better to have a love affair while living in a tent on the beach than to live in a mansion by yourself. Ask me, I know. Family must be cultivated like an enterprise, like a garden. Time, effort, imagination, creativity, and genius must be summoned constantly to keep your family relationships flourishing and growing.
