5 Ways You Can Shift the Collateral Impact of Your Leadership

What if, by simply doing an amazing job at work, you had a profound impact on the lives of the people you lead, above and beyond work results? Have you ever considered how wide your influence really is?

Being in the workplace for more than 25 years, I’ve experienced good and bad leadership. I’ve had a few incredible leaders who cared for, equipped, and elevated me, and under their leadership I came alive.

And there were also times when I’ve had bad leaders. I felt undermined, sabotaged, undervalued, criticized… I experienced such an elevated level of stress that it was almost hard to breathe. All I could talk and think about at home was how awful I felt at work. I could not sleep; I was physically exhausted, emotionally drained, and psychologically weak.

I thought to myself, This is the place where I am supposed to find meaning – where I am supposed to contribute with my talents and gifts… where I’m supposed to create, grow, and innovate, and earn a living. How could this place be so toxic? And what is its true impact?

THE DREAM

I immigrated to the United States from Romania in 2001 with a big dream of living in freedom, creating a life, and developing a career where I could build my purpose. Bordering on idealism, brimming with positivity, I have always believed that there is more to things than what meets the eye. There is more to work than just work. There are more possibilities than the current circumstances. There is more potential than what I can do today. And when I came to the US, I had a deep desire to make a difference and grow.

THE TRAGEDY

As I was growing through all my challenges, I was presented with the opportunity to lead people myself. But nobody really told me how to lead. So naturally, I led by John Maxwell’s Law of the Picture and I followed the models of leaders who had gone before me. And soon, my life was overtaken by work. I worked late into the evenings to get results and make up gaps. I thought that if I wanted anything done right, I had to do it myself. I had become the managers I resented.

THE DIRECT IMPACT

A leader’s direct impact is felt and seen by the team, the customers, the company’s culture and performance, its suppliers and partners, the shareholders, the environment. John Maxwell said that “everything rises and falls on leadership” and if we dissect success and failure, we can get all the way back to a leadership responsibility either well executed or poorly performed.

Good leaders have the profound ability to influence teams to achieve the highest level of success. They dedicate countless hours to listening with care, coaching and developing the team, and helping their people reach their potential. Bad leaders create internal competition, aggravate conflict, and often use fear tactics to achieve results. 

THE COLLATERAL IMPACT

In the Law of Buy-In, John Maxwell shares that people buy into the leader before they buy into the vision. With that in mind, consider the next two scenarios…

Imagine that you go to work for a company. Your manager is mistreating you and you do not feel valued. The only feedback you ever hear is when you do something wrong; you never have a constructive one-on-one; and things change constantly with little to no communication or consideration. You try to share ideas for improvement, and you are shut down or not even acknowledged. There is internal gossip; there is a general state of fear; and most days, your manager takes credit for your work.

At the end of the day, you go home feeling undervalued, unseen, and sad. You are impatient, sick, and tired. You yell if someone cuts you off on the road; you think everyone is out to get you. You are not physically, emotionally, and psychologically available for your loved ones. You end up wondering if you really matter. Bad leaders create a bitter world.

In contrast, imagine going to work for a company where leaders are kind, professional, and caring. From the C-suite down, people value each other, they are celebrated, and mistakes are treated like collective lessons. There is an invitation for everyone to share their unique points of view, and they are encouraged to think outside of the box – to create, innovate, and grow. There is accountability and frequent and constructive one-on-one conversations that set you up with experiences to continue to progress in your career.

At the end of the day, you go home feeling fulfilled, valued, and happy. You are positive, patient, and encouraging to all the people on your path. You see fortune in differences, and you encourage your loved ones to experiment and work hard. You are present, and you bring a positive energy to every space you enter. And you want to pay it forward.

WHAT IS COLLATERAL IMPACT?

Collateral impact is an unintentional effect, be it positive or negative, from an activity, usually of a much grander size than the original direct impact.

Without a doubt, the collateral impact of leadership is much grander than its direct impact. The collateral impact of leadership does not just define a company’s success – it defines families, generations, and potentially, the entire world. Research by OSHA has said that your leaders are more important to your health than your doctor.

THERE IS HOPE!

The great news is that all leaders can grow. “Bad” leaders are just leaders who have not been developed yet, and that responsibility falls on the leaders themselves. Accepting a promotion should come with a commitment to grow personally to effectively lead oneself and others to success.

Here are 5 things you can to do grow to shift the collateral impact of your leadership: 

1. Read leadership books and apply the content in your day-to-day job. Experiment with different topics from coaching to emotional intelligence, accountability to delegation, gratitude and celebration. As Maxwell Leadership Certified Team President Chris Robinson says, “Learn a little, do a little.” And in the process, you are growing and transforming every day. People will even start telling you that you are “different.” You could consider starting with The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership and Developing the Leader Within You 2.0 by John C. Maxwell. These two books are foundational for leaders regardless of how long they have been in their roles.

2. Seek mentorship from leaders you admire. Commit to a structured mentorship program and do the required work to develop your communication, relational, strategic, and decision-making skills. Leaders who have gone before you on the same path to success can guide and equip you with tools and techniques that will expedite your growth more than you could imagine. Who should mentor you? Build courage to ask big!

3. Schedule weekly one-on-ones and get real feedback from your own team. And really listen, without defending yourself, reflecting on the impact you have on them. Do they feel heard and valued, supported and equipped? Do they trust you? If the culture you are building is not elevating everyone on the team, your best team members will leave for better opportunities. Marcus Buckingham once said, “People leave managers, not companies,” and according to Gallup, 75% of people voluntarily leave their jobs for this reason.

4. Teach, delegate, and empower. You may be the leader, but you do not have to make all the decisions. You just must make sure the right decisions are made. According to the Harvard Business Review, leaders who don’t delegate spend 60% of their time on tasks suited for others. You hire smart people. Don’t tell them what and how to do what you’ve hired them to do – give them challenges that will activate their creativity to solve problems and transform the organization in the process of growing themselves.

5. Invest in formal leadership training for yourself and your high-potential employees. You must continue to grow and actively work on your succession program. If your high-performing team members feel that they reached the ceiling, they will either take their high results somewhere else or they will begin to feel disengaged and lose momentum. To lift you and your team’s “leadership lid,” you can sign up for annual training programs or leadership retreats, or attend leadership conferences. As William Burroughs said, “When you stop growing, you are dying.”

The reality is that we all have the potential of becoming the type of leaders that elevate the human spirit. When leaders commit to growth, they can build the type of companies that create not just success for their shareholders, but a direct and collateral impact that has the force to change the world for the better.

And if you’re looking for a growth resource that meets you where you are…

We have designed the Maxwell Leadership Growth Plan to make growth as easy as possible to fit into your daily schedule. Curated courses taught by leadership development experts like John Maxwell and weekly coaching calls will fuel your personal development journey and empower your example to others.

Ana Sasmiresan is a Romanian-American executive leader, speaker, and business coach, dedicated to helping individuals and organizations achieve their fullest potential through strong leadership, strategic insight, and community engagement. As a Vice President at Randstad, she leads a team that supports business growth by connecting companies to key talent in South and North Florida. She is the Founder and CLO of Transformation Through Conversations, a Pompano Beach-based personal and leadership development company, and she hosts The Values Room podcast. As an Executive Program Leader with Maxwell Leadership, she organizes the Live2Lead Pompano Beach conference, and she is committed to promoting caring leadership, values alignment, and dignity. Ana served as Vice Chair of Services for the South Florida Manufacturers Association for more than ten years and she is currently a Director of the HabCenter of Boca Raton Board. She has been a community partner to the Broward County Public Schools’ “Project Magic School Bus” for the last eleven years. Ana’s mission is to raise the leadership level in the world through personal growth by unlocking potential and building purpose. Her guiding belief is, “We all have a diamond inside, but it only shines if we are willing to polish it.” In her spare time, Ana enjoys reading, playing with her two Doberman rescues, and cooking. She is fluent in English, Romanian, Spanish, and Italian. She lives in Pompano Beach with her significant other, Marcel.