Jogging With My Brother (A Leadership Lesson)

Recently on a vacation from school, I decided to take up jogging after a period of little exercise while at school.

On a particular day, I got an inspiration to bring my brother in on my jogging routine. So, I proferred the idea to him and he was really excited. On the next jogging day, we set sail… How did it go?

 

We happened to stop like 10 times along a route that will take me at least 2 stops to catch my breath. Repeatedly, he will stop and ask that we take a break so he can catch his breath. On the first day, we took more time in our breaks than we did jogging 😑.

 

Consequently we made it a habit, to jog about thrice a week. Many times, he will stop, complain and ask we go back. However, I took this as a challenge to help him out. I encouraged him by promising a treat if we  could make a particular point; he will get intrigued and push forward beyond previous barriers. Gradually, he began to improve and I also began to withdraw my treats 😁.

 

On a particular occasion, I wanted to do a speed round and he decided to come along. Truth be told, that day I preferred to have jogged alone but he was interested in coming. We started off the route and we actually were better than normal. However, on our return route, he had a cramp and couldn’t move so fast. I didn’t want to stop at that point and decided to tell him to keep moving. However his pain, was more perturbing than he could bear. I still jogged a few meters past as my inner adrenaline was still pumped but the voice of wisdom quickly rung in me to stop and meet him. So I met him, helped him out and he was able to walk better. Although we couldn’t hit our target time, he was able to still “power walk” his way home…

 

Through that experience one should think which scenario is better –

If I jogged my way alone and was able to beat my record time

Or the occasion that occured with him?

 

If you asked me this question 3 years ago, I would have said scenario 1 because I was more focused on my personal performance and productivity. However, lately I have come to be more aware of the priority of Leadership and the need to work with people.

 

John C Maxwell says “Leaders never cross the finish line first but carry people along with them.”

 

As a Leader, you have to be more concerned about the performance of your team and how your actions contribute not just to yourself but to your team. That’s what I had to learn in this lesson. Although we weren’t running an official event it was still a scenario were the effects of collaboration and support took effect.

 

Now think – How does your efforts contribute to the development and efficacy of your team?

Is it “me” focus or “we” focus?

 

Many times we might choose to live in denial and neglect these pivotal points but at the end of the day the root motives behind our actions will be exposed. Success is for us all, we can achieve it together through collaborative efforts.

Love you 👊

 

Written by Tosin Iyanda

Innomathor Services

http://Fb.me/innomathorservices1