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Lately I’ve been going deep into the writings of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, who the world lost (way too soon) in 2020. Rabbi Sacks wrote over 30 books during his lifetime leaving behind a legacy that bridges faith and modern society through a deeper understanding of tolerance, responsibility, and the common good.
In listening to his book To Heal a Fractured World, I was profoundly impacted by chapter 19, “Who Am I.” The chapter starts by explaining how several of the greatest leaders in Jewish history each questioned who am I to be a leader. They each humbly questioned “why me” when they were called to fulfil their purpose. Rabbi Sacks defines leadership as “response ability” - the ability to respond when called to act. It is the ability to understand our purpose and to act upon that purpose.
Personally, I believe that we are here for a purpose and that it’s our duty to fulfill that purpose. At the same time, discovering our purpose is one of the most challenging parts of life. To quote Gino Wickman (who was quoting Mark Twain)…
“The two greatest days in your life are
the day you were born and the day you figure out why.”
As much as this applies to life, it also applies to our work. Thankfully we have tools that when used appropriately help us clearly understanding our individual purpose within the organization.
Two EOS tools that help us understand our purpose at work are the Accountability Chart and the Scorecard.
On the Accountability Chart we create a seat for each function required in the business and then define the 5 primary roles that are fulfilled by that seat. Here is a simplified version of an Accountability Chart…
Once you have defined the seat, the next step is to create a Scorecard so that “everyone has a number.” We ultimately get to the point where everyone in the organization has at least one number for which they are accountable for achieving.
If leadership is the ability to understand our purpose and to act upon that purpose, then as Rabbi Sacks says, “you don’t have to be special to heed the call. All you need is the ability listen to… the challenge unmet, the problem unsolved, the things that need doing but remain undone.”
You don’t need to be in a formal leadership role to lead. It’s not about leader or not leader. It’s about when am I needed to lead. This could be a very big thing, a very small thing, or something in between. Whatever it is get involved, take the initiative, and contribute.
There is another profound quote by Rabbi Sacks, “a good leader creates followers - a great leader creates leaders.” This is one of the things I love most about EOS, at it’s core, EOS is a proven system for creating leaders throughout the organization. Perhaps this will be the topic of my next article.
P.S., changing gears... last year I road my bike from Toronto to NYC to raise funds to send kids with cancer and serious illness to overnight summer camp. We are helping these kids experience the joys of being a child in spite of the fact that they are going through a huge challenge.
This year I am riding from Toronto to Quebec City. The first three days of this ride are about 200KM each. Since committing to this ride, I have on many occasions asked myself, “who am I” to do this. Every day I get up to train, I have to push past my self-doubt and respond to the call to act.
If this resonates with you, I’d be delighted if you would consider donating to this amazing cause.
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About EOS
EOS is a simple, complete and proven system for running a truly great organization. As an EOS Implementer, I help my clients create organizational alignment, execute with accountability and discipline, and work together as a healthy team.