The ABC’s of Leadership (Day 16): Plant

Plant roots where you can be fertile and prosperous.

Plants do not grow merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions. They thrive because someone expended effort on them. A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; he who sows courtesy reaps friendship, and he who plants kindness gathers love. (Unknown)

Day 16 – ‘P’

ABC’s of Leadership (Plant)

You should be very worried.  Your people have options, and they’re likely going to use them.  In their March 2016 article, ‘Employees Leave Good Bosses Nearly as Often as Bad Ones’, Recent research cited by the Harvard Business Review, Ravi S. Gajendran and Deepak Somaya noted that employees leave good bosses and bad ones at nearly the same rate.

Additional research in the Harvard Business Review‘s ‘Why People Quit their Jobs’ indicates that, in addition to the traditional reasons job seekers, leave they area also driven by their sense of accomplishment.  “[W]hat really affects people is their sense of how they’re doing compared with other people in their peer group, or with where they thought they would be at a certain point in life.”

So what does this mean for you? It means that your  focus needs to be on addressing your team’s needs.  It’s critical that each, and every interaction with your team be deliberate.  Speak words of life, and encouragement to them.  Be personal.  And, even more important, treat each person like their mind is soil: plant seeds in them that will grow; plant seeds bearing fruit outside of your immediate organization – and that pollinate across the organization.

Want more on leadership? Check out my partner Dale Richardson’s thoughts in his Live the Goals podcast here!

“The ABC’s of Leadership” is a web series highlighting principles of leadership.

Each day, we’ll highlight a new focus area and concept.  Done in partnership with Dale Richardson, a Podcast Host and John Maxwell Team certified speaker, trainer and coach, we’ll also offer a podcast exploring each idea further.

Tune in daily!