Lead On Level Ground

How does it feel to be stuck in the middle?

Maybe you know what I'm talking about -- stuck in the middle of your organization with tough customers above you, tough team members below you, and fascinatingly frustrating peers beside you. The life of a supervisor is one surrounded on every level by challenges. It may be the toughest spot in the organization.

Supervisor may be the toughest job because you can always be over ruled from above, undermined from below, and ignored from your peers. What's the solution?

Lead on level ground.

Find ways to leave everyone's title at the door. Think of people as peers -- no matter where they sit in the organization. Your boss is a person with needs and dreams. Your direct-reports imagine themselves as critically important (and they are). Your peers want and need your help in more ways than they can express. It's all much more easy once you believe -- and behave -- as if titles are must less important than goals.

People at every level want to achieve their goals. When you're stuck in the middle, you're in the perfect position to help them all -- while also achieving your own goals.

Maybe you're not stuck at all. Maybe you're really strategically positioned for success.

-- Douglas Brent Smith

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High Performance Leadership

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