Quiet Leadership Makes A Difference
Those people who shy away from the limelight can also be those who are making a huge difference and contribute to the communities they are a part of. This has been happening during the pandemic and will continue afterward.
Let me make the case for the quiet leaders who don’t go out for adulation and recognition, but champion efforts for the benefit of others.
I make no apologies for using local examples to where I live. I get to see more closely what they do and even speak to them. Some people have the services of a PR company behind them constantly drip-feeding to us, whilst so many people do not.
The first example is my beloved Larder House restaurant and its owner James Fowler. The hospitality sector has taken a heavy beating. Even with the grants and furlough, there is still a big gap between money coming in and the running costs.
One approach for James could have been to hunker down, do nothing, apply for all the morsels of financial assistance to his sector and ride it down. Aside from the first few weeks of lockdown, when we all were figuring out what it meant, James has always sought to keep as many of the team as busy, engaged and trained as possible for their wellbeing. There was always a willing and supportive customer base too.
In short, Sunday roasts and other takeaway options became available. Beaujolais, oyster, Burn’s night themes were created for their customer base and friends to be a part of.
They also had the restaurant’s 10th birthday at the end of January. Within the midst of a national lockdown, they set themselves a very challenging target of raising £10,000 for their house charity of Action Against Hunger. That was way more than in previous pandemic-free fundraising events.
They raised over £11,000 with seven days of events and menus. Their ability to manage Zoom calls, Facebook Live streams, prize draws and everything else in between was comical at times but always loveable.
That ability to corral the team around an aim to help others, whilst they were suffering themselves, and to eke out a performance that left the team exhausted and jubilant, came from quiet leadership. They didn’t shout, they solved problems in their own way and connected the world they are a part of.
Another example is the case of a chap called Stewart Britton, from Southbourne. From his own need to use a food bank when Stewart was young, he raised as much money as possible for the local food bank, through all sorts of merchandising such as tote bags, facemasks and keyrings. A landscape gardener who knows nothing about marketing or PR stepped forward, walked the high street speaking to shop owners getting them to stock the products.
Through social media, it built up its momentum and is an ongoing success for the Southbourne food bank.
A recent request by local schools, to support families struggling with homeschooling and lack of IT was met by many individuals and small businesses that contributed by collecting used laptops and tablets or even buying a new device. No PR opportunities sought, just quietly doing.
In writing this I have a few conflicting issues. Whilst I’m not a prolific PR warrior with a presence, I am vocal and represent the place I call home and the people who are a part of it. I am more present than I was a few years ago.
How can I say I am one of the shy, quiet businesspeople getting on and doing things, but constantly posting on social media, using it to my advantage, to make some noise and shine a spotlight on others? A big aspect is patience, self-reflection and finding momentum, without the aid of being overly vocal with a group. People can still make a difference without the influence of a megaphone and using social media reach.
In my first venture onto Club House, the audio social media network, Mark Schaefer, an international bestselling author/speaker on marketing said out loud that I am a legend and that he is learning things from me. That meant a lot and being recognised by others ensures that the work we do, matters.
Those that know me will have an image of me cringing over my laptop, but I will forgo the embarrassment to say sometimes to champion the quiet ones, you have to make your own noise, but it’s not about shouting and certainly not about bragging, being boastful and firing a PR machine into battle.
Stepping out of our comfort zones is something we introverts can find difficult to do, but it needs to be made. Some situations need to be expressed and people who are making a difference that deserves to be recognised. Many people have quietly made a mark on the world in the past year that has made a benefit for so many people.
