Leaders Who Develop Leaders

Leaders who develop followers grow their organization only one person at a time. But Leaders who develop leaders multiply their growth, because for every leader they develop, they also receive all of that leader's followers. Add ten followers to your organization, and you have the power of ten leaders times all the followers and leaders they influence. That's the difference between addition and multiplication. It's like growing your organization by teams instead of individuals. The better the leaders you develop, the greater the quality and quantity of followers.

To go to the highest level, you have to develop leaders of leaders. Some leaders want to make followers. Make Leaders! Not only want to make leaders, but make leaders of leaders. And then leaders of leaders of leaders. Once you are able to follow that pattern, there is almost no limit to the growth of your organization. That's why to add growth, lead followers, but to multiply growth, lead leaders. That's the Law of Explosive Growth.

Becoming a leader who develops leaders requires entirely different focus and attitude from those of a developer of followers. Consider some of the differences.

LEADERS WHO DEVELOP FOLLOWERS
Need to be Needed
Focus on Weaknesses
Develop the bottom 20%
Treat their people the same for fairness
Hoard power
Spend time with others
Grow by addition
Impact only people they touch

LEADERS WHO DEVELOP LEADERS
Want to be succeeded
Focus on Strenghts
Develop the top 20%
Treat their leaders as indivduals for impact
Invest time in others
Give Power away
Grow by multiplication
Impact people far beyond their own reach

Developing leaders is difficult because potential leaders are harder to find and attract. They're also harder to hold onto once you find them because unlike followers, they are energectic and entrepreneurial, and they tend to want to go their own way. Developing leaders is also hard work. Leadership development isn't an add-water and stir proposition.

It takes time, energy and resources.