Influence, nothing more nothing less

I have had a lot of great conversations over the years with a close colleague of mine who frequently asked what I wanted to do with my career. My response was pretty much always "I want to do new, interesting work, and I want to have a meaningful, positive influence on the people I am working with."

John Maxwell said:

The true measure of leadership is INFLUENCE, nothing more nothing less.

I have held a number of "leadership" positions, and I have always judged the value of that title by my level of influence on the environment. I have at least twice in my career left jobs that offered me the title of "Leader" but either removed or reduced my actual influence over the direction of the company or team. I don't have any need for a title, but I crave influence and I can't really be happy working in a position where I don't have it.

If you want to make a difference in your organization and the lives of the people in it, there are some things you can do to help. People who do these things are leaders, and will attract followers, regardless of the title they are given.

1. Assume good intentions - It is rarely wrong to assume that the people you are working with have anything other than the best of intentions, regardless of how they behave. This one is especially hard for me. I will tend to see malicious intent in places where it does not really exist. The reality is that most people want to do good work, and to make a difference.
2. Look for the things you can learn from them - Assuming that people know things that you don't know yet makes it easier to ascribe real value you to your interactions with them.
3. Be genuinely grateful for any help you get or hope to get - Gratitude is free, and it goes a long way in building credibility and rapport.
4. Ask real and good questions - See #2 above. People will really only cooperate with you if they believe that you value your knowledge, experiences, and input. You can't just roll up to someone and say "I value your knowledge, experiences, and input". You have to *show* them that, and there is no more effective way to do that than to swallow your pride and ask open-ended questions. I spent some time in China, and I learned the most Mandarin when I accepted that I was going to look dumb and just asked a lot of questions. People are usually delighted to answer questions, especially if their input is not regularly sought.
5. Smile and have fun - This one can be tough for some folks. Maintaining a positive outlook can seem disingenuous, especially when you are on the ropes. People will tend to view it as "spin" and people are extremely sensitive to it. I love the story of Jim Stockdale and his take on maintaining optimism in the face of difficult circumstances. Beyond that, though, you have to look for the fun in those circumstances, call it out, and revel in it (even if just for a few seconds).

A great teacher I studied under for a while said that that my highest and best use for my time was to identify and develop the leaders in my team. The best development for leadership I found was just to do it wherever you are, and keep trying to learn from other leaders. What are some of the things you have learned from the leaders and influencers in your life?