Leading by Example
Hello Readers! Connected Accountants new post provides an encouraging article on how you can be an effective leader .
During the late 1800s, John Wanamaker’s department stores in Philadelphia and New York made him the king of retail. He pioneered fixed prices and money-back guarantees. And he learned two principles:
1. Never take the customer for granted.
2. Lead by example.
One day when walking through his Philadelphia store, he spotted a customer waiting for assistance while the clerks huddled together in conversation, oblivious to her presence. Many employers would have chastised the workers. Some would have fired them. Wanamaker simply waited on the customer himself, handed the merchandise to the astonished clerks to wrap — and quietly walked away.
“I learned 30 years ago that it is foolish to scold,” he said later. “I have enough trouble overcoming my own limitations without fretting over the fact that God has not seen fit to distribute evenly the gift of intelligence.”
These two principles of John Wanamaker’s shouldn’t be ignored.
Great leaders always set good example to their subordinates and Wanamaker is a proof of a dynamic leader. By walking your talk, you now turn out to be a person which others want to follow. However, if you say one thing, but your action is doing another, then it erodes trust which is a critical element of productive leadership. Truthfulness is an accurate representation that shows your honesty as a leader. At the end of the day, leading by example inspires greatness in your company.
In some businesses with fewer competition or those that has long-standing contracts, executives and managers are with no trouble duped into a mind-set that they have confined customers. Well, at some point they might be right. Most clients use their services without protest and take the automatic deductions flowing out in their accounts.
That is, after a major disturbing movement breaks this fantasy and it always happens. Your client will look elsewhere for value when your business fails to meet their expectations. Even if you consider your clients have no substitute to your services, their loyalty matters a lot. It is important to take note on the dangers of taking customers for granted. Nevertheless, just don’t take your customer for granted because doing this is something your business cannot afford.
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