It's Amazing What You Can Accomplish When You Don't Care Who Gets the Credit
Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at 03:54PM That headline, by the way, was a sign on Ronald Reagan’s desk when he was president.
And it’s our theme for the day.
Two weeks ago, I was speaking with a sergeant in the U.S. Army. One thing led to another, and the subject of leadership came up. My fave.
He told me a fascinating story of unselfish servant leadership that has to be shared. We can all learn from it.
At the time of our talk, he was a few weeks into a 3-month long training course, and the first round of tests had already occurred. One element was a physical training (PT) test. To pass, every soldier must meet or beat pre-determined scores in several different events (max push-ups in 2 minutes, max sit-ups in 2 minutes, a max 2-mile run time, and many more).
Should any soldier fail the cumulative PT test, he or she has one chance at a make-up test a week later. If they fail again, the consequences are severe. They get no third chance. And they can never be promoted to the next rank or pay grade.
Yikes. A lot riding on this.
The sergeant I spoke to passed his PT test with flying colors.
But 11 others failed.
For them, the pressure’s on. One more chance to pass. Period.
What did the sergeant do? He could have done nothing. Could have rested on his laurels and concerned himself only with his next phase. Why not, he did what was expected of him. He wasn’t in charge of PT. And he owed nobody anything.
But that’s not what he did. He had an idea.
He approached the commander and asked if he could be allowed to work with the 11 who failed, to give them extra PT help, on his own time, so they would not have the shame of failing again and never achieving higher rank.
The commander was impressed. He congratulated the sergeant for stepping up. And he agreed to allow it. He even told the sergeant he might qualify for a commendation.
“Yes sir, thank you, but I prefer not,” said the sergeant. “My reason for doing this is to help the men. Not myself. Personal recognition is not what I’m after.”
With that, the sergeant called a meeting of the 11 who failed. He asked them, “Are you all aware of the penalty for failing this PT test a second time next week?” All said yes. “How many of you want to pass this test?” All raised their hand.
“Good,” he continued. “Most of you are close to passing. Your first-round scores didn’t miss by much, and in a week, if you’re willing to work your tails off, I know I can help you improve in each event. I believe you can succeed. But a few of you were way off. I’ll help you too, but your climb is much higher and seven days isn’t much time to close your gap. You’ll have to work significantly harder. Here’s what I’ll do. I’m offering to work an extra hour of PT every day with you between now and next week. We’ll do it as a group, on our own time, not Army time, after regular PT and outside of class. Now, who wants to succeed so bad they’re willing to join me?”
The seven who were close, all raised their hands. The four who were way off, declined, and left.
In addition, three others who passed their PT test heard what was going on and stepped up to offer their help.
“Okay, this is our group,” Sarge said. “Let’s get at it.” Four coaches, seven students.
And so began the week-long journey. (I was chuckling under my breath as he described the setting. If you saw “Lord of the Rings”, doesn’t it remind you of the scene when the Fellowship was formed?)
At this point, our conversation ended.
But hey, I’m a naturally curious and excitable guy. Dish me a cliffhanger like that and I’m biting my nails until the next episode. Seven days later, right on schedule, I called the sergeant, eager to find out what happened.
Here’s what he told me…
Every day that week, they spent grinding it out. Sarge decided his best role was to be the voice of encouragement, praise, and positive reinforcement. To himself, he committed that he would never once criticize, blame, or point fingers, no matter how poorly they might do.
But he did draw a line in the sand. He would accept no whining, no complaining, and no bad attitudes from the men. He could accept their frustration, as long as they were trying and didn’t give up. He would be their best friend, not their worst enemy.
The week bore on. Sweat. Toil. Pain. At times, for each soldier, all seemed lost. But Sarge pushed them on. Told them he believed in their success, even if they couldn’t yet see it for themselves.
Finally, the end came. The day of reckoning. They all took the make-up.
And the results?
All seven passed.
They were ecstatic. New life. Several privately thanked the sergeant and credited him with saving them from failure.
“I’ll accept your gratitude,” he said. “But I will not take credit for you passing the test. I didn’t save you. You saved yourself. You showed up, you worked hard, you dug deep, you made it happen. Today you did what, a week ago, you didn’t believe you could do. Congratulations. Take this win forward, and the next time you have doubts that you can accomplish something big, remember today.”
LESSONS & ACTIONS FOR YOU.
Lots to learn here. Let me enumerate. Here’s what the sergeant did that every leader should note and replicate:
1. He stepped up to help others, unasked, when there was nothing in it for him.
2. He was offered recognition and unselfishly turned it down.
3. He forced no one to participate; he wanted only willing volunteers.
4. He did it on his own time, outside his normal commitments.
5. He gave only positive support and encouraging words, not negativity.
6. He expected honest effort and wouldn’t tolerate not trying (after all, they volunteered).
7. He accepted thanks, but took no credit for the success achieved by others.
8. He encouraged each to use the win as a catalyst for future challenges.
9. He was always humble, never boastful. He never made it about himself.
There’s a term for all this…
Servant leadership.
And our world could use more of it. Daily.
Okay, mirror check.
When was the last time you packaged all nine of those into one unselfish act? I submit that’s a pretty good checklist for any of us to follow.
I hope you’ll take this and do two things.
One, engage in something similar in the next 30 days. You decide what. Could be in your business. With a department or work team. A civic organization you’re a member of. In your family. Your place of worship. Maybe even set a conscious goal to do three to five small acts of servant leadership in the next year. Or one big one every year for the next 10.
And second, pay it forward. By that I mean… coach/mentor/push your peers, your employees, your team, your kids, your friends… to do the same.
Lead by example. You first… then them.
Just think of the impact if every leader did this. And counseled others to do the same.
Reagan’s words ring true… you can accomplish more if you don’t care who gets the credit.
Please don’t be confused. In no way am I suggesting that praise and recognition are bad. On the contrary, heap it bountifully on those deserving. On your peers, your team, your family, your friends. Benevolent leaders are never in short supply of thanks and acknowledgement to those who have earned it.
Nor am I saying you should be ungracious if someone honors you with gratitude or rewards for your noteworthy achievements. Not at all. Accept their gesture or appreciative gift with pride and dignity.
I’m saying this… that if the pursuit of fame and glory are your only or primary motivators, it’s an empty win. The less you expect, require, live for, want, or demand recognition for yourself, the more you’ll walk in the shoes of a noble, servant leader.
Oh yeah, almost forgot. There’s one final twist.
The sergeant in the story… is my son.
He did all of it on his own. Not one word of coaching from me.
Yes, I’m one proud dad.
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Reader Comments (1)
Thanks for sharing the story.
Tony