Nutrition & Foodservice Edge Magazine - July/August 2024 - 16

1 HR
CE
CBDM APPROVED
MANAGEMENT C ONNECTION
SUCCESSFUL LEADERS
NEVER STOP
LEARNING
BY MICHAEL KOPEC, CDM, CFPP
LEADERS SHOULD NEVER BE CONTENT with where
they are right now. They should want to grow and possess
an intrinsic desire to get better. Leaders who strive to
improve themselves are always learning and enhancing their
abilities.
Never stop learning and advancing your knowledge!
Leadership is a constant process of improvement. And since
change is constant, managers are required to stay up to date
on the latest industry innovations. Think outside the box and
keep an open mind. You are setting yourself up for success if
you commit to a growth mindset.
HAPPY LEADERS ARE ALWAYS GROWING
Show me a leader who says they're done learning, and I'll
show you a leader who's done growing. Exemplary leaders
are constantly curious. They want to learn. They are inspired
by knowledge. They never stop pursuing education. And that
includes learning about the people in their organization.
They're naturally curious to know what makes people tick
and how people work together. They're always interested in
what might make them a better leader. They have humility
when they approach new subjects, because they want to
learn from different people and varying viewpoints. They
desire to acquire new ideas. They're always looking to expand
their mind, and exploring ways to do something better.
They're also keen on discovering how they can be of greater
service to their teams, their customers, and the world.
REMOVING THE LID
One of the characteristics of great leaders is that they make
the commitment to becoming lifelong learners. Because
change is constant, but growth is optional, we get the choice
to grow, adapt, and evolve, or to stay stuck where we are
( " Leaders Never Stop Learning, " 0:03-0:19). " The Law of the
Lid " is the first rule in The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership
by John C. Maxwell. The law states that " a person's leadership
ability is like the lid on their potential, and the lower their
ability to lead, the lower their potential. " This means that our
team is only as good as its leader, and our team will never be
able to grow if we as leaders don't do anything to further our
own personal development.
When you're a leader in an organization, you're ultimately
the " lid " on everyone in that organization. If you stop
learning and growing, you're essentially preventing anybody
from going any further than you. And if you don't keep
developing and pushing yourself, you're going to hold
everybody else back. Your team members will eventually
catch up to you and in time will want to leave.
GROW LIKE A TREE
We've all had an exercise or fitness routine at some point in
our lives. What happens when you stop working out? Do you
stay fit? No, you fall off the cliff...and you probably gain some
unwanted weight back. Leadership is the same! By failing to
follow your routine you'll never arrive at great leadership,
and believe it or not, there's a valuable gift in this. The gift
is the journey. Leaders must ask themselves daily, " how can
I get better, how can I get better for myself, for my family,
for my community? " ( " Leaders Never Stop Learning, " 0:521:27).
Think of leadership as a tree. A tree routinely renews
itself. It drops needles or leaves but continues to grow new
ones. Trees also continually reach new heights. They don't
just decide to stop growing one day and be done. Again,
leadership is the same. The more that we work on ourselves,
16 NUTRITION & F OOD SER VICE EDGE | JULY-AUGUST 2024
Nutrition & Foodservice Edge Magazine - July/August 2024

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