The Art of Being Omnipresent #54

“A competent leader can get efficient service from poor troops, while on the contrary an incapable leader can demoralize the best of troops.” —General of the Armies John J. Pershing

As I was writing this article, I realized that even though I can’t physically be with my team 24 / 7, it is possible to have a presence on every sales call they make, or in their office or cubicle as they work on their projects. This is called omnipresence. Having omnipresence means being present everywhere with your team.

The best and only way to develop omnipresence is to get to know and be known by your team. I think when people know you are sincerely interested in them; they become sincerely interested in you. It takes time and effort but the investment pays big dividends.

Start by getting out of your office and learning about each of your teammates. Take to heart the insightful statement from John Le Carré, “A desk is a dangerous place from which to view the world.” To really know someone requires one-on-one contact. You get real information on their turf—whether that is their cubicle, their territory or route, their delivery truck or their customer’s office.

I think leaders must clearly convey the importance of these one-on-one meetings and the three guiding principles: 1. There are no rules; 2. There are no repercussions; 3. The information gained is input for helping the employee, you and the organization achieve their potential.

The first step to being omnipresent with your team is being present when you are with them. Presence is more than physical. It is also emotional. People need to know that they are important; that they really matter; that they are more than just employee #758. You want people to know you are present no matter where they are, no matter what they are doing, right? It begins with trust.

Trust has an amazing effect on performance. When a person is confident you trust them and have their best interest at heart they will perform whether or not you are with them.

So, where to begin? Here are five suggestions for obtaining trust:

1. Take on the risk of being vulnerable. People need to know who you are. Spend time working with them. Let them get to know you. Forget the old saying that familiarity breeds contempt. Choose to be present with them as you make them your top priority. Focus on the person.
2. Reach out. People need to know your care before they will care.
3. Understand who they are, their strengths and weaknesses. Help them discover the possibilities within themselves.
4. Share your wisdom. Though book learning is important, real world experience is what people value most.
5. Teach them to execute. Teach by example. Teach through stories, analogies and personal experience. Teach them to implement, to execute, and to get the results that change the market. Success depends on execution not plans. Plans determine the road to the goal. Execution is the travel along the road.

When the leader trains his or her people to be successful, challenges and tasks become expressions of co-ownership. The leader provides the training, expertise, and wisdom, the individual executes as they have been trained.

Leaders must accept that the members of their team are looking at them. Do they trust and respect you? Do they feel good about you and know you have their best interest at heart? Now is the time to leverage those emotional ties and prove to them that you have their back

People need to connect. They want to connect with a leader they trust. If you want the team to follow you then, you must walk your talk. People imitate action rather than rhetoric. As you help prepare them, they help prepare you just as a great leader is as much a student as a teacher.
Managers sometimes find excuses for not spending time with the people they lead or manage. The number one excuse is most likely, “I don’t have time.” But if you want to stay in touch, you must be in touch. Modern electronics can help bridge the separation gap: a phone call, an email, a text message or a video conference. But nothing beats personal one-on-one contact.

Communications is a two way exercise. Don’t wait for others to contact you. Take the initiative, no matter what your title. Pick up your phone today and call a couple of team member and tell them you were thinking about them and wanted to know how you can help.

The question isn’t how do you carve out more time to be with your team. The question is, are you omnipresent? Are you with each team member as they go about their assigned tasks?

Through your mentoring you provide a blueprint or guide to help your team make best decisions under all circumstances. You are sharing success DNA not creating clones.

HOG THOUGHT: Make a sincere commitment to contribute to the members of your team in a positive, encouraging way. Knowing that you believe in them enables them to believe in themselves and produce amazing results.

HOG QUOTE: “The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say "I." And that's not because they have trained themselves not to say "I." They don't think "I." They think "we"; they think "team." They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don't sidestep it, but "we" gets the credit. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.” — Peter Drucker

HOG ACTION: Leaders don’t seek credit. Their reward is in knowing they made a positive difference on the members of their team. Develop trust and be a difference maker.