Servant Leadership Workplace-Resolutions

7 New Year’s Resolutions for Servant-Leaders at Work

Have you made any New Year’s resolutions?

Even if you have, 2016 is still new enough to add more.

Here are 7 New Year’s resolutions for servant-leaders at work. Of course, this is just a sample for your consideration. I am sure you can to this list:

  1. Create a personal purpose statement. In a single sentence, answer this question: what is my personal purpose at work? Consider sharing your statement with others. Revisit and revise it regularly if needed. Your personal purpose statement will help keep you focused on what motivates your servant leadership.
  1. Withdraw and reflect. Block time on your calendar every day and take a few take yourself out of the daily rush of activities. Center yourself. During that time, ask yourself, “how am I using myself best to serve?” Use the quiet time to cultivate mindfulness. Look beyond the here-and-now and into the future.
  1. Know yourself. Take a self assessment (there are plenty to choose from) and learn more about yourself. Ask others for feedback, formally or informally, to help you increase self-awareness. Focus on knowing your strengths, what you do best and what you are most passionate about.
  1. Know your colleagues. Take colleagues out for a meal or a drink (hot or cold, you decide) regularly, get to know them personally and learn more about what they aspire to achieve professionally. Understand their needs, as they define them, and explore ways those needs can be met.
  1. Mentor and be mentored. Offer to mentor one junior colleague who you believe desires to serve and aspires to lead. Ask to be mentored by one colleague who you have identified as a servant-leader. Do both formally and methodically.
  1. Cultivate foresight. Consider some of the suggestions in my blog on this topic: diversify intentionally, listen deeply, read widely, think systemically, predict habitually, network constantly and live technologically. (To read more, click here: Servant Leadership – 7 Ways to Cultivate Foresight).
  1. Monitor your progress. Keep a “servant leadership journal.” Record your successes, setbacks and aspirations. Use the journal as a professional development and personal reflective tool. Remember the saying, “what gets measured gets done.”

What do you think? Are there resolutions you would add or subtract?

Let us know.

As always, we appreciate your views. Thanks!

Joe

And don’t forget to download our latest ebook, Servant Leadership in the Workplace: A Brief Introduction. It’s free!