One of the biggest hindrances to your leadership is not looking far enough down the road.
New drivers, as they learn how to drive a car, often make a big mistake by trying to stay in the middle of their lane by micro-steering when driving a car. They watch the lines on the road and try to stay within them. You can’t do it and it’s dangerous to drive that way. You need to be looking much further down the road when driving a car. The car will go where your eyes are looking.
Leaders need to look further down the road than anyone else. It is imperative that the leader keeps their eye on the destination and minimize the short-sighted steering that can end in a crash.
Keeping your eye on the destination:
1. Ensures that decisions are made with the end in mind. Instead of being reactionary in our decision making to every situation that presents itself, we are able to discern what is the wisest course of action that will move us toward the end we intend.
2. Smooths out the journey for those who are being led. Micro-steering provides a jerky ride for the passengers. The frequent adjustments to the left and right can be uncomfortable. When the leader is looking far enough down the road, the adjustments can still be made, but they are much smoother. They are also more subtle.
3. Helps provide perspective. It’s been said that we over-estimate what we can accomplish in the short-run and under-estimate what we can accomplish in the long-run. Change and success happens over the course of time and patience.
4. Keeps the proper priorities in the mind of the leader. When we take our eye of the goal we suffer from distraction. There are a great many things that compete for our time and attention. Focusing on the end goal is the best antidote to: “Squirrel!”
Leaders, for the sake of those you are leading, keep your vision clear and in front of everything you do!
Is there an area of life that you’ve been micro-steering in? How can you start looking further down the road?
