Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

The Right Approach: Leadership 101—The Laws of the Picture and Buy-in

Introduction
Good leadership always makes a difference; unfortunately, so does bad leadership. This leadership truth continues as we will be talking about laws 13 and 14 of the “21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership,” developed by John C. Maxwell.

The Law of the Picture
I am sure that everyone remembers the childhood phrase “Monkey see, monkey do.” When boiled down, this is exactly what the Law of the Picture teaches. As with most of the 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, they play off very basic human nature attributes; in this case it is the tendency of people to mimic the behaviors of their leaders. When a leader demonstrates behaviors that lead to success, people follow. But the same is true when a leader demonstrates bad behaviors. So, how do you take measure of yourself?

Look in the Mirror
A good, honest assessment of ourselves is the starting point to understanding how others see us. Use the following questions to connect with yourself. Do I:

• Know my values and the message I want to project?
• Live my message and lead by example?
• Walk the talk?
• Do what’s right, not what’s easy?
• Know my people and communicate on their level?
• Place integrity over expedience?
• Believe in others?
• Offer direction and hope?

And the most important question: “Would I want me as a boss?”

These are all required attributes of a great leader, and a foundation to the Law of the Picture. You might even want to consult a colleague (family and friends may be biased) for an independent assessment of where your actions don’t match up with your values. Your colleague might be calling your baby ugly, but this feedback must be taken in a constructive way and without getting defensive. One of the leadership training exercises I do is to ask the participants to make a list of their perceived leadership qualities. I tuck that away for now and during a later session I ask the same group to make a list of the qualities they would like to see in their employees: integrity, loyalty, work ethic, whatever they may be. Then we compare the two lists, which is usually an eye-opening event for some of them and a good roadmap for improvement.

Monkey see, monkey do.

The Law of Buy-In
Anyone who has experienced an implementation of any new project will have seen this law in action. There are two paths these things can take, and let’s use implementing a new QMS for illustrative purposes:

1. Imposing a canned set of procedures, work instructions and forms, and telling the workforce, “This is the new way of doing your job.”
2. Involving the people who actually do the work from day one to be key contributors in developing the new procedures, work instructions, and forms.

Which do you think has the highest success rate? (Rhetorical question). This is what the Law of Buy-In is all about as it relates to leadership.

“The Law of Buy-In: People buy into the leader, then the vision.”—John C. Maxwell

As we look at the reason why people don’t buy into a leader’s vision there are ample examples in our work and personal lives, politics, churches, marriages (the list is endless). It doesn’t matter how strong the vision is, the leader can’t be successful if they can’t move others to action or change; in other words, buy-in. 

Backward Thinking
Many people have it backward, which is the fundamental reason they fail. They believe that if the cause is good enough, people will automatically buy-in and follow. But it doesn’t work that way. People don’t follow worthy causes; they follow worthy leaders. People buy into the leader first, then the leader’s vision.

With apologies to my good buddy Kevin Costner, “If we build it, they will come” doesn’t transfer well to leadership. Look at some of the leaders you admire and aspire to be like, then look at who follows them (Facebook definitely doesn’t count). I would bet a boatload of beer that the folks on your list inspired their followers way before they bought into their vision. If fact, I would double-down and bet that they could do a 180-degree pivot in their vision and wouldn’t lose a single follower because people believe in the leader first, and the vision second.

Follow these guidelines and the Laws of the Picture and Buy-in, and you will truly be surprised at the results. Focus on enhancing your leadership skills to lead by example and the results will be epic. My high school buddy Bert said it best when he famously commented:

“Setting an example is not the main means of influencing others, it is the only means.”—Albert Einstein

Steve Williams is an independent certified coach, trainer, and speaker with the John Maxwell team.

This column originally appeared in the January 2022 issue of Design007 Magazine.