The Leader Who Had No Title: The New Way to Win in Business – And in Life By: Robin Sharma T

he old way of leading is dead. Many of our best known organizations have fallen and some of our most revered leaders have lost face. The global economy has now transformed and with all the new media ranging from Twitter to YouTube, everyone can now build a following and lead in their field.

We have just entered what I call, "The Decade of Leadership". Leadership has become democratized. I'm not at all suggesting that we don't need titles and people at the top of organizations to set the vision, manage the team, and take overall responsibility for the ship. What I'm suggesting is that we now work and live in a world where leadership isn't just something executives do. It's something everyone needs to do for their organizations to survive, in this period of dramatic change.

For the past 15 years, I've had a simple mission that has become my obsession: to help people in organizations lead without a title – and play at their best in all that they do. This mission has taken me into client companies like Nike, FedEx, GE, Panasonic and Unilever where I've not only helped their best people grow even better but learned what world-class teams and enterprises do to create "wow". This mission has allowed me to serve as the private leadership advisor to many billionaires and celebrity entrepreneurs. And, this calling has enabled me to meet people from every walk of life in every industry and learn what keeps them from stepping up to their leadership best when that's exactly who they're built to be.

I've distilled everything I've learned into a step-by-step formula that I've shared in my new book, The Leader Who Had No Title: A Modern Fable on Real Success in Business and in Life (Simon & Schuster). Here are nine smart moves you can make today to start changing the game and creating exceptional results:

Remember That You Don't Need A Title
To Be A Leader

Leadership has less to do with the size of your title than the depth of your commitment. I've seen front-line employees, taxi drivers, and carpet installers doing their work with the passion of Picasso. Leadership isn't really about authority. It's about a choice you can make to do your best work each and every day, regardless of where you're planted.

Shift From Victimhood To Leadership

No great career, business, or life was ever created on a platform of excuses. Too many people play victim at work. They blame the boss or the economy or the competition or the weather for their less than mediocre results. Leaders Without a Title are different. They get that they have power. It may not be the power granted through a title like CEO or SVP. But they have power. And that's the power to see opportunity amid crises. That's the power to drive positive change. That's the power to encourage everyone on your team. And it's the power to step into the person you've always longed to be.

Innovate Or Stagnate

To Lead Without a Title is to leave everything you touch better than you found it. Mediocity happens when people refuse to change and improve all that they do. Look what happened to some of the big car companies because they slowed down their devotion to innovation. The competition ate them for breakfast. And, put some out of business. The best leaders and the best enterprises have a hunger to improve. It's such a deep part of their culture they know of no other way to be. And that's the edge that makes them great.

Become A Value Creator Versus A Clock Watcher

Success comes from the value you add rather than from the "busy-ness" you show. What's the point of being really busy around the wrong things? Leadership is a game of focus. Focusing on fewer but smarter activities, the ones that create real value for your teammates, customers, and the world at large.

Put People First

"The business of business is people," said Southwest Airlines founder Herb Kelleher. We have a ton of technology yet less and less humanity. Let's remember that people do business with people they like, trust, and respect. One of the clients we've done leadership development work with is RIM. Yes, they're a fast and innovative technology company. But, they also get that excellent results come from people playing at excellence. So build your team. Meet your customers. Deepen human connections. Treat others with respect. And put people first.

Remember That Tough Times Build Strong Leaders

Look at any exceptional leader and you'll find that they stepped into their leadership best during a period of crises versus calmness. To Lead Without a Title is to hunt for opportunity amid every adversity. Every setback has the seeds of an opportunity. Companies like Apple, Google and Amazon were built because their people leveraged disruptive times into brilliant wins. And, because their people refused to give up when faced with difficulty.

Go To Your Limits

The more you play out on the edges of your limits and take intelligent risks, the wider your limits will expand. The more you leave your comfort zone, the bigger your comfort zone will grow. Each day at work, do the things you know you must do but are scared to do. That's how you grow, build your leadership capability and access more of the leader within you. There's zero safety in staying within what I call "The Safe Harbor of the Known". That's just an illusion that bankrupts too many businesses and breaks too many human beings.

Lead Yourself First

The Leader Who Had No Title isn't just a book showing you how to create exceptional business success and win at work, it's also a handbook for personal leadership. Because how can you lead other people if you haven't first done what it takes to lead yourself? Get to know your values. Think through what you want your life to stand for. Become physically, mentally, and emotionally strong. And, have a remarkably good relationship with your family. What's the point of becoming super-successful yet being alone?

Give Back A Legacy

Success is good. Significance is even better. Sure profit and peer recognition and doing great work is mission-critical. But even more important than that is what you give – and all you leave behind. As I write in the book, "Even the longest life is pretty short. And all that matters when you get to your last day is the difference you've made and the people you've helped." So as you Lead Without a Title and step into your leadership best, stay focused on adding value. And, making an extraordinary contribution. 64 Ways to Make 2010 Your Best Year Yet

1. Remember that leadership isn't about your position. It's about your influence.

2. Get fit like a pro athlete.

3. Lift people up versus tearing people down.

4. Protect your good name. An impeccable reputation takes a lifetime to build. And 60 seconds to lose.

5. Surround yourself with positive, ethical people who are committed to excellence.

6. Remember that even a 1% daily innovation rate amounts to at least a 100% rate of innovation in 100 days.

7. Believe in your dreams (even when others laugh at them).

8. Measure your success, not by your net worth but by your self worth (and how happy you feel).

9. Take an intelligent risk every 24 hours. No try - no win.

10. Read Buffett: The Making of an American Capitalist by Roger Lowenstein

11. Watch Man on Wire.

12. Regardless of your title at work be a team builder.

13. Remember that business is all about relationships and human connections.

14. Say "please" more.

15. Say "thank you" more.

16. Know your Big 5: The five things that need to happen by the end of this year for you to feel it's been your best year yet.

17. Read your Big 5 every morning while the rest of the world is asleep.

18. Read As You Think by James Allen and Marc Allen, at least twice this year.

19. Be willing to fail. It's the price of greatness.

20. Focus less on making money and more on creating value.

21. Spend less, save more.

22. Leave everything you touch better than you found it.

23. Be the most positive person in every room you're in.

24. Run your own race.

25. Stay true to your deepest values and best ideals.

26. Write a handwritten thank you note to a customer/friend/loved one every day.

27. When you travel, send love letters to your kids on hotel stationary. In time, they'll have a rich collection to remember your travels by.

28. Read Atlas Shrugged by Ann Rynd.

29. Be a problem solver versus a trouble maker.

30. Rather than doing many things at mediocrity do just a few things – but at mastery.

31. Honor your parents.

32. Commit to doing great work whether anyone notices it or not. It's one of life's best sources of happiness.

33. Give more than you receive (another of the truths of happiness).

34. Have your 1/3/5/10/25 years goals recorded on paper and review them weekly.

35. Be patient. Slow and steady wins the race. The only reason businesses that went from zero to a billion in a year or two get featured in magazines is because 99% of businesses require a lot more time to win.

36. Under promise and then over deliver.

37. See part of your job as "a developer of people" (whether you work in the boardroom or the mailroom).

38. Wear your heart on your sleeve. When people see you're real, they'll fall in love with you.

39. Be authentic versus plastic.

40. Read The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

41. Remember that life wants you to win. So get out of your own way.

42. Consider that behind every fear lives your next level of growth (and power).

43. Eat less food.

44. Drink more water.

45. Rest when you need to.

46. Read MOTIVATED magazine.

47. Write your eulogy and then live your life backwards.

48. Demand the best from yourself.

49. Remember that the more you go to your limits, the more your limits will expand.

50. See everything that happens to you as an opportunity to grow (and therefore, as a precious gift).

51. Be obsessed with learning and self-development.

52. Become comfortable alone (you are the only person you get to be with your whole life).

53. Smile. It's a stunningly effective way to win in business and life.

54. Reflect on the shortness of life.

55. Be bold when it comes to your dreams but gentle with those you love.

56. Remember that success is dangerous because it can kill drive/innovation/passion and going the extra mile. Be successful yet stay hungry.

57. Read The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.

58. Be of deep value to this world.

59. Own beautiful things but don't let them own you.

60. Use excellent words.

61. Laugh more.

62. Don't complain, gossip or be negative.

63. Plan as if you'll live forever but live as if you'll die tomorrow.

64. Feel free to pass these lessons on to those you want to help.