When my brother Chad got the call about a job with the Dallas Cowboys, he needed a way for the Jones family to quickly understand what he was all about. He brought two documents. "The 30 Steps" and his "Leadership Family Tree".
The family tree included all the people who had worked for him, many of them having been promoted into key leadership roles across the sports industry. At a glance it told a story about selection, development, culture, mentorship, impact and the most important part of all - relationships.
As somebody who's been a revenue leader for most of my career, the most meaningful and fulfilling part of my journey isn't the fact that I did a deal with a Fortune 500 company or delivered a sales record. It's the impact I've had on the people I've worked with.
You don't have to wait until the end of your career to leave a legacy. It starts the moment your work touches someone else's life.
What Is a Leadership Family Tree?
A network is the people you know. A leadership family tree is the people you've helped grow, the ones who worked for you and went on to lead.
Your family can scatter around. They can go out into the world and become who they're supposed to be. The people you've come in contact with go out into their lives, have great experiences and take other jobs.
Revenue and headcount tell you what a team produced and how big it was. A leadership family tree shows you the kind of people those team members became.
3 Practices That Grow a Leadership Family Tree
Your leadership family tree grows out of how you lead people while they work for you, and a leadership development plan puts that work on paper.
Meet Them Where They Are
Ask what they want their career — and their life — to look like into the future. Work and life are integrated for the people you're leading; they always have been. Some will tell you flat out they just want to make as much money as they can. Some are perfectly happy staying exactly where they are. Some people want to live by the beach and surf all weekend (I see you David). Awesome! Leadership is about investing to help people maximize their potential.
Coach, Don't Manage
Managing organizes the team you have today. Coaching means asking the right questions, creating the right conditions for growth, modeling the standards, and upholding them consistently. This helps people develop and take responsibility for what they actually want to achieve.
Be a coach, be a mentor. Point them in the right direction. It helps when the person wants to be pushed. The best teammates do, and coachability is one of the 10 traits of a great teammate.
Let go
It's natural to want to hold on. The best leaders don't hold people back. They prepare them for what is next in work and life.
My rule is simple: Leave them better than I found them. Some will stay. Most, eventually, won't. Either way, they're still part of your story — and if you do it right, you will always be a part of theirs.
I recently received a text message from the best boss I ever worked for, John Stepien.
"I visited your YouTube page to track the latest stories and clients you are consulting with and wanted to again reiterate what a special professional you are and how proud I am of you and your accomplishments. What a great life you have created. I look forward to seeing what's next!"
I have not reported to John for 17 years. His impact and our relationship transcended that moment in time. The life he referenced would not have been possible without his leadership.
Leadership isn't a job, it's a responsibility. And one extraordinary privilege.
