Lead By Example

Everyone leads by example. It’s not something good players or certain leaders choose to do. By definition, everyone does it. Leading by example is going about your business a certain way, and having an impact on those around you. Everyone has a certain way of doing things, and they don’t choose the impact it has on the people around them.

Leading by example isn’t always a positive influence. The teammate with the wrong attitude or bad work habits is leading by example just as much as anyone. Everyone sees how he operates. Some may look at him in disgust as a bad teammate and say they’ll never act that way, but others may look at him and realize they can get away with some shortcuts. No one is telling that kid to lead by example, but he’s doing it. Everyone does it.

I’m not a big fan of using leadership by example as an example of great leadership. To me, it’s the most basic form of leadership. It’s going about your business every day, regardless of those who are around you. When I hear the first thing a coach says about a player as a leader is that he “really leads by example,” I think to myself maybe he’s a great player and a hard worker, but he’s not that great of a leader.

Great leadership is more than just what you do. Now, I’m not saying leadership by example can’t be impactful - it can be very powerful. The Mom or Dad who gets up at 6 am and works two jobs to take care of their family every day, they are setting a great example for their kids and having a huge impact. But on teams, we don’t have 25 years of growing up to really understand the impact of seeing something like that every day. High-performing teams need more than just leadership by example.

Some players aren’t comfortable with traditional leadership, and they don’t wan to speak up or take on a leadership role. Hopefully, they can just lead by example in a positive way. But your team is going to need more than that. I’m sure your team has some players that have great leadership instincts and qualities, and it’s your job to find them and develop them. Figure out who can handle a leadership role, and don’t just let them lead by example. Define leadership for them and nurture their ability to impact your team.

If you allow all of your players to just lead by example, you won’t have an impactful leadership dynamic within your team. To sustain success at a high level, you are going to need more.