Leadership is Not Just About Leaders

In the next few months Cypress is focusing its attention on the workforce – folks who are on the front lines, working on community issues and serving us all every day. Educators, people building our homes, health professionals, first responders, those staffing our community based and faith-based organizations, the folks growing our food – all of us who get out of bed each day, go to work and try to make a difference. 

When I think of them the first word thing that comes to mind is – leadership. They are leaders no matter their role. Each of them, leading by example and through their actions showing up.    

A lot of times it can be easy to think that talking about and leaning into leadership is just about those who have the titles. And it’s not wrong to say that leaders matter – they do. I’m not naïve about that – leaders have tremendous positive or negative impact on everyone around them. We have all worked for the “best boss” and the “worst boss” ever, and we know the difference!

But it is also true that we find leaders in every level, every department, and in every office of an organization or company.  Each person holds a sphere of influence where people respect what they say, watch what they do and pay attention to how they react. Our leaders may be teachers in a classroom, a nurse in a clinic or a person handing out food at the food bank.  They may be the person delivering a package or operating their small business down the block.   

So what did that “best boss” ever do for us?  Why do we remember them that way?  How did they make us feel?  What worked about their leadership?  Typically when I ask questions like that in workshops folks will say things like “They made me feel seen” or “They didn’t assume the worst.”  Some say “I could trust them. They felt predictable.” Others say “They were transparent. We knew what was happening and why.” Or “They checked in on us. They made us feel valuable.”

When things feel uncertain, that means each of us – no matter our role or title – has an opportunity to embrace our own, unique brand of leadership. We each have a role to play and each role on a team is important. So what are we going to bring to the table in our workplace? What gifts do we have to offer our friends and colleagues that can help them this week? What are we doing in our own sphere of influence to further advance our goals and values? 

It's time to remember that leadership is not just about the leaders.  It’s about each of us deciding to lead where we are.