Speaker 1: Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of
Speaker 1: performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalachieving. This
Speaker 1: is the seven Minute Leadership Podcast with your host Paul Fellovaledo.
Speaker 1: Hello everyone, and welcome to the seven Minute Leadership Podcast.
Speaker 1: It's episode four h two and today I want to
Speaker 1: break down a quote that hits like a freight train. Week.
Speaker 1: Leaders protect their reputation. Strong leaders protect their team. You've
Speaker 1: probably seen both in action, and if we're being honest,
Speaker 1: most of us have at some point leaned toward protecting
Speaker 1: our own reputation. That's human nature. But leadership isn't about nature.
Speaker 1: It's about responsibility. And this quote draws a hard line
Speaker 1: between those who are in leadership for the image and
Speaker 1: those who are in it for the people. So let
Speaker 1: me break this down reputation management versus real leadership. Weak
Speaker 1: leaders are obsessed with how they look to upper management,
Speaker 1: to the board, to social media. Their every move is
Speaker 1: calculated not to serve the team, but to protect their
Speaker 1: own status. They'll shift blame, they'll dodge responsibility, they'll stay
Speaker 1: silent when the team needs them to speak up. And
Speaker 1: here's the problem. When you spend more energy guarding your
Speaker 1: own name. Than building up your own people, your name
Speaker 1: loses its value because real leadership isn't built in front
Speaker 1: of a mirror. It's built in the trenches. The second one,
Speaker 1: strong leaders take hits for the team. A strong leader
Speaker 1: steps in the way of incoming fire. They don't throw
Speaker 1: their team under the bus to save face. They're the
Speaker 1: ones who say things like, if there's a problem, that's
Speaker 1: on me. If a mistake was made, I'll own it.
Speaker 1: If someone needs to be held accountable, start with me.
Speaker 1: That doesn't mean they excuse failure or ignore bad behavior.
Speaker 1: It means they handle it inside the walls, not out
Speaker 1: in the open like a public spectacle. They protect the
Speaker 1: team from unnecessary embarrassment or fallout while still addressing what
Speaker 1: needs to be fixed. That's strength, that's character, that's leadership.
Speaker 1: The third one where this shows up in real life.
Speaker 1: Scenario one, a project goes sideways, deadlines are missed, the
Speaker 1: client's unhappy. The week leader points fingers at the team
Speaker 1: in front of senior executives. Strong leaders say we didn't
Speaker 1: hit the mark and I'll fix it. Scenario number two,
Speaker 1: an employee makes a mistake that costs the company money.
Speaker 1: Week leaders writes up the employees, sends an email to
Speaker 1: cover themselves in distances themselves from the situation. Strong leaders
Speaker 1: have a private conversation they coach them then says to leadership,
Speaker 1: I've handled it. One is driven by fear, the other
Speaker 1: driven by trust. Number four, how to be the strong
Speaker 1: leader in the room. Here's three tactical ways to lead
Speaker 1: with strength, not ego. Take the bullet first if something
Speaker 1: goes wrong. Protect your people. You can coach them later,
Speaker 1: but in the moment, stand between them and the fallout
Speaker 1: and share the wins. Shoulder the losses when things go right.
Speaker 1: Highlight your team when they go wrong. Take the hit.
Speaker 1: You'll gain respect that lasts far longer than your reputation
Speaker 1: ever will and stop managing up, start leading across and down.
Speaker 1: If your priority is impressing your boss more than empowering
Speaker 1: your team, you've got your compass pointed in the wrong direction.
Speaker 1: Trust me, when you take care of your team, they'll
Speaker 1: take care of everything else. So leadership is not a performance.
Speaker 1: It's not a pr campaign to be liked, followed, or praised.
Speaker 1: It's about being willing to put your ego in the
Speaker 1: line to protect the people who show up and do
Speaker 1: the hard work. Every day. The greatest leaders I've met
Speaker 1: in my life weren't the loudest in the boardroom or
Speaker 1: the ones with the flashiest bios. They were the ones
Speaker 1: who had their teams back every time, even when it
Speaker 1: cost them, even when no one saw it. So I'll
Speaker 1: leave you with this, do you want to be remembered
Speaker 1: as someone who protected their image or someone who protected
Speaker 1: their people? Because the answer to that question will define
Speaker 1: the legacy of your leadership. This has been the seven
Speaker 1: Minute Leadership Podcast, and I thank you for listening. For
Speaker 1: more Paul fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com.