When Serving Others Feeds Our Purpose

If we’re in a leadership role and have this third primary behavioral style, where we’re more Reserved and People-Oriented, we’re part of the largest group across the population as a whole. That said, I haven’t personally seen nearly as many folks who are wired this way jump at opportunities to be front and center. Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not suggesting that they’re not capable of being incredibly effective leaders. The people who are wired this way don’t tend to jump up and down about much at all. In fact, their steady and supportive approach will be far more even keel than the Outgoing/Task-Oriented folks we started with or the Outgoing/People-Oriented ones we just looked at…

Most with this primary behavioral style prefer to be in the background. They don’t typically enjoy being the center of attention and confrontation is nearly always something they try to avoid. Based on those two things alone, carrying the responsibility that comes with leading a team of any size can be more daunting for them than for any of the other three primary styles. Make no mistake though, this doesn’t mean they’re not equipped to be great in leading their teams. In complete transparency, some of the more soft spoken leaders I’ve seen are also ones that have earned tremendous influence with the individuals who follow them - primarily through how they serve their teams! This is Cindy’s secondary style and I’m eternally grateful for how she’s about to balance out my direct and demanding approach, helping me to minimize the number of people I overwhelm on any given day!

While these folks can be hugely effective in leadership roles, I’ve seen many shy away from accepting the responsibility simply because of the amount of energy it will draw from them. But when they’ve developed clarity around how that energy in leading is genuinely helping others accomplish things they may never be able to achieve on their own, the Reserved and People-Oriented folks are often some of the strongest leaders you or I will ever see. And since they’re leading from a place of service, their teams are likely to be far more engaged and back them in ways that would never happen for someone trying to lead by pounding their chest and barking orders!

Although we may only see a small number of this overall large group step into a leadership role, the ones who do - and can tie their work to a purpose of doing for others what those others can’t do for themselves - can make a significant impact on their teams as well as the communities they’re a part of! But remember, their reserved approach won’t make as much noise as the last two styles we looked at - nor will the final style we’ll look at next…