By Peter Jeff
The Leadership Mints Guy

Here’s an idea to help you more fully appreciate your staff. Reading time 3:55

Carefully positioned for optimum view, the plaque beamed a critical message for all leaders: “MAKE SOMEONE FEEL IMPORTANT TODAY.”

Hung strategically in a far corner of the office, the motivational plaque served as a visual reminder to the leader: pay attention to the feelings as much as to the facts in coaching and in reprimanding.

Hanging “mistletoe” in the office seemed to be just as effective in influencing behavior as in hanging mistletoe at home at Christmas time, albeit prompting only verbal “kissing” of course.

But at least the office version of mistletoe helped the leader slow down to focus as much on the person as on the problem.

After all, it’s too easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the office -just like it’s too easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas time at home. Until you step under mistletoe hung strategically over a doorway.

Then you pause, look into your partner’s eyes, kiss and make each other feel important. No matter how busy you are. No matter how mad you are. No matter how exhausted you are.

Leaders do whatever they can to pause as often as possible and verbally kiss others while solving problems together. The mistletoe in the office is especially welcomed especially when the problems can quickly overwhelm the people involved.

That’s why The Make-Someone-Feel-Important-Today plaque was situated so the leader could maintain eye contact with their visitor and simultaneously maintain a clear view of the message on the plaque behind and over the head of his visitor: Make Someone Feel Important Today.

In fact, the most effective leaders make people feel important particularly when they feel they screwed up. Read previous post on how a CEO reacted when his corporate pilot ditched the company’s helicopter into a lake.

In good and bad times, the most effective leaders make someone feel important. They acknowledge their personhood. Embrace their humanity. Stir their dreams.

And kiss their souls. Completely. Compassionately. Consistently.

Make Someone Feel Important Today

In professionally kissing another person’s self worth, the most effective leader fosters a relationship where there’s more clarity in understanding each other, more dignity in their response to each other, and more vitality in feeding off of each other.

In professionally kissing another person’s essence with all their attention, focus and discipline, the most effective leader inspires others to feel more clearly REGARDED not recycled; more clearly valued not merely reviewed, more clearly understood not overlooked.

In professionally kissing another person’s essence, the most effective leader engages others more than simply encounters them.

Make someone feel important today. That’s what famed Green Bay Packers football coach Vince Lombardi did, according to Willie Davis, one of his star players

As soon Davis found out that Lombardi was dying, the former defensive end who played on two Lombardi-coached, Super Bowls winning teams, took the next flight from Los Angeles to Washington. The media asked Davis why he would fly across the country just for a few minutes with Lombardi in the hospital.

“He always made me feel so very important, so very valued, so good about myself,” Davis said. “I just had to see him one more time before he died.”

Maybe Vince Lombardi had hung his own version of mistletoe in his office. At any rate Lombardi like all great leaders got the message: “Make Someone Feel Important Today.”

Today’s ImproveMINT

Appreciate others to keep your leadership thinking in mint condition.

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