You Can’t Call Yourself A Leader If…

You are not going first. If I could boil down leadership to one trait, this would be it.

One time we had a customer leave a 1-star review.

The stuff you see on Olive Garden’s Yelp page.

Where a Melanie expresses in 4 paragraphs the injustice that took place after they capped her garlic bread refills.

If you’re not reading reviews for entertainment, you’re missing out.

Anyways, it was bad.

And the worst part was all this came after we spent considerable time amending the situation.

Frankly, we didn’t deserve it, but nonetheless, we’re responsible (shoutout to Jocko Willink).

We had to get those reviews off. As a startup, you can’t afford it.

It wasn’t simple though.

Two different teams had been dealing with this customer and through multiple efforts, it still resulted in digital rage.

There wasn’t anything more we could offer the customer.

We had asked many times for him to take off the review, but to no avail. It got to a point where neither party wanted to engage in another call.

So I decided to call him. (Note I had not spoken to him yet).

After a rather cold greeting, I focused on the pain he had experienced in his interactions with us, and told him we dropped the ball.

I asked for clarification on his experience, then told him how bad we messed up again. I didn’t argue nor defend.

I stated that we take no pride in this and the only thing we can do at this stage is to learn from it. I further hammered in the point that we can do better. That we should do better and that he didn’t deserve this.

I didn’t have an ask. I ended it there.

But before I could hang up, he offered to take the review down.

It wasn’t a moment of brilliant negotiation or masterful manipulation. There was no Masterclass at display.

I just took full responsibility with no bullshit.

Even that is not the main reason he took down the review.

The customer received a bold expression of care and empathy.

In that moment where neither party dared to make another call, I decided to take the plunge.

I went first.

There are infinite complexities to leadership, (the main reason I love this topic so much) and for that, I consider myself a lifetime student of it.

Legacies and impact are infinite by nature.

You’re going to get a lot of it wrong, and that’s okay. That’s going to be the only way you learn, and get better.

When it comes to going first though, it’s a non-negotiable.

Whether it’s confronting the dissatisfied customer who cussed out your rep, or making 5000 calls with the script before handing it off to your team.

It means being the first to speak when your team has no hope left.

It means sacrificing something important to you in order for those around you to feel protected.

You earn infinite opportunities to solve the infinite complexities by going first.

If you’re thinking, “eh, it still doesn’t seem vital,” maybe this will do it:

There is no other way to get others to follow you.

Why should they?

If you’re not willing to take the plunge, then there is no reason someone should follow you. You’re not leading anything.

Alright, before I rile myself up, let’s put this into action.

Instead of a guide, I want to present you a challenge.

Do 3 things this week that highlight you going first. Regardless of your function, there are opportunities every day where you can express care, courage, or sacrifice.

In other words, show them you give a shit.

Email me at ardig@leadershipev.com with what you did, and I will feature it in next week’s newsletter.

P.S. If you have a friend that will enjoy this content, forward it over.