Tebow as a Leader

I have to admit right up front that I'm not a football fanatic.  I don't even really watch football.  But a friend of mine (thanks Cindy!) was recently telling me about Tim Tebow so being the researcher I am, I went out and researched everything I could find on Tim Tebow.  I pretty much viewed every video and read every article possible.  Isn't the internet a great thing?  Now, I understand my perspective is somewhat limited as I haven't personally met Tim Tebow but I have to tell you, this guy is a fascinating case on leadership which is what this blog is about.  And he actually makes me want to watch football.  So, let's analyze Tim Tebow as a leader.

From everything I can find on Tim Tebow, he consistently demonstrates the following leadership qualities.

• Courage
• Passion
• Perseverance
• Character
• Humility
• Teamwork
• Desire to win
• Continuous Improvement
• Authenticity

I'm not saying he's perfect.  He's 24 years old so he obviously still has a great deal to learn.  That being said however, if more leaders had even a little bit more of the courage Tim Tebow so readily displays, they would be much better leaders.  

This blog would be extremely long if I talked about each of the items listed above so for the sake of brevity, I'm going to pick Courage, Perseverance, and Teamwork.

Courage

First and foremost, anyone that is willing to get on a football field with a group of the strongest and most powerful men in the world has to have a great deal of courage.  Tim Tebow's courage goes beyond the norm.  As the quarterback he is tasked with making decisions and executing on those decisions in real time, in front of millions of viewers.  

I'm not sure how many corporate executives have the stomach to make such tough decisions.  

Regardless of your religious affiliation or beliefs you can't deny that Tim Tebow's public display of personal faith requires great courage.  Can you imagine the amount of criticism he received from his peers on a public high school team, then college, and now the NFL.  He continues to be criticized for "tebowing" yet he never waivers in his demonstration of his beliefs.  

Compare that to the corporate leader afraid to speak up during a meeting because others may not agree with his/her position.

Perseverance

Regardless of the struggle, Tim Tebow seems to have been overcoming obstacles from the moment he was born.  Doctors advised his mother to abort him due to medical complications.  She was in a coma for a period of time while pregnant.  In high school he broke his leg (fibula) during a game and continued to play the entire second half.  Nobody knew his leg was broken until after the game. Oh, and rushed for a 29 yard touchdown with that broken leg.  

And we complain about working long hours and being stalled on our initiatives or unable to convince others to buy in to our vision.

Teamwork

 "They make me look better than I am."  - Tim Tebow

He is quick to give the team credit for all victories and fully comprehends that without the team, he is nothing.  The quarterback automatically receives the glory for wins yet in interview upon interview, Tim first credits Jesus and then the team.  That is not only a demonstration of teamwork, it is a demonstration of character, courage, and humility but I'll save all that for a future post.

Let's learn a lesson from Tim Tebow and apply it to a corporate setting or even our personal lives. 

Maybe this week we can all implement a little courage in our day and make the tough decisions we've been putting off or stand up for a strong belief.

Let's demonstrate perseverance in the face of obstacles - whether they be customer obstacles, product obstacles, peer obstacles,family obstacles, or personal learning obstacles.  We need to quit being so quick to give up and more willing to stick it out and work a little harder.

And let's make sure to give credit to the team for all they do to make us look good. 

I know reading about Tim Tebow made me want to be a better person.  If a 24 year old can demonstrate these qualities, surely I can too.  If nothing else, that statement alone demonstrates his power as a leader.  

Mari

Do You Have the Courage To Lead?

Leadership is not for those that lack courage.  It is a tough job.  You will be put into situations on a daily basis that require you reach outside your comfort zone.  Maybe it's because I'm from Kansas or maybe it's just because I was raised with the excitement of the annual showing of "The Wizard of Oz" but I can't help but think of the cowardly lion in this case.  I have worked with leaders for a long time and although many would not think of themselves as the cowardly lion, let me provide a few examples of NOT demonstrating courage.

• Avoiding the conversation with your difficult employee because you are "afraid" of the outcome.
• Implementing a process you feel is not in the best interest of the team because your boss told you to.
• Not speaking up at a meeting when the group is trying to determine the best way to implement a new process because you think your idea will not be well-received.
• Having great ideas for improvement but not sharing them because you aren't sure your boss will go for them.
• Witnessing a peer doing something unethical and not doing anything about it. 
• Avoiding the conversation with a peer that you have not been getting along with and it is impacting your ability to work well together. 

A core competency of leadership is courage.  In order to be effective, you have to be willing to have the tough conversations.  There is a bit of an art to learning how to have some of those conversations but it can be learned and it's really more about "are you willing to have them?"  Effective leadership requires standing up for what you believe.  Sure, sometimes the organization will make strategic decisions you may not agree with but I'm not talking about that - I'm talking about all the things within your scope of control.  Having a conversation with a difficult employee is within your scope of control.  Speaking up at a meeting is within your scope of control.  And calling a peer out on unethical behavior is within your scope of control.  But those actions require courage and confidence.  

So, what if you don't have courage?  What do you do?  Remember the Lion.  No, you don't go to the almighty Wizard and ask for it.  He really didn't have any power anyway, remember?  Courage is directly tied to confidence.  And you can improve your confidence with a little positive self-talk and becoming more competent.  It's like any task - as you practice it and become more competent, you also gain confidence.  

I remember when I first starting public speaking and teaching.  You wouldn't know it now, but I remember being a bit terrified at the idea of being in front of a large group.  When I was in high school I remember having to provide a speech at a community event.  In preparation for this event, I practiced, practiced, practiced the speech until I could practically give it in my sleep.  Knowing the material increased my competence and confidence.  Was I still nervous?  Sure I was.  And 20 years later when having to give a speech to a group of executives do I still get nervous.  Sure I do.  But I've learned there is a direct correlation between my competence and my confidence.  With increased confidence, I have more courage. 

Having difficult conversations with others or speaking up in a meeting with your ideas and suggestions may still make you nervous and be uncomfortable but with time and practice you will gain confidence which will equate to courage.  It will become easier.   It requires you take the first step.