In part one, I shared that I often meet frustrated employees who wonder when normalcy will return to the post-recession workplace. My reply is simple: Cuts your company made to stay in business won’t be restored. This is the new reality. I tell them that it’s ultimately up to them to get things moving.

If we viewed our careers as the baton in a relay race, passing through many hands, we would work hard to cultivate relationships—to ensure that the baton doesn’t drop and that we have strong hands to carry us forward. Here’s an idea on how to put the relay back in your career.

List your top 50 relationships. Rank the depth of each relationship on a scale of one to five and do three tasks: 

1. Identify five people with whom you want to deepen your relationship—how will you do this?
2. Identify who is not on the list but should be as you consider your next career steps.
3. Determine if there are negative relationships on your list and decrease the time you spend with these individuals.

The next time you complain about your company, stop. Instead, spend that time cultivating your key relationships. By spending your energy on building your relay team, you’ll advance farther and faster than if you focus your attention on the company you work for and what it can or cannot do for you.

I don’t absolve employers of their responsibility to foster a great culture. To achieve excellence, companies must build systems and programs that connect their people, customers, and community. At FlashPoint I emphasize that organizations can build systems that foster communication, heighten performance, and much more. Balance can be achieved when employees work hard to build strong relationships and when companies do the same.

Krista Skidmore is cofounder and principal of FlashPoint.

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I can list several things that I love about my role at FlashPoint, but working in a culture that supports and encourages us to volunteer in our local community is my favorite. I have been to events where I’ve met powerful CEOs, politicians, and local celebrities—heck, I even got to chat with Peyton Manning at a Peyback Foundation event—but my passion is working with kids.

As a member of the Kiwanis Club of Indianapolis, I assist with a program called the Builders Club at IPS #56; there my fellow members and I work with middle school students to help them learn about leadership, community involvement, and service. As the business adviser for this group of future leaders, I have the opportunity to talk to them about topics that I feel are important. During the election of officers a few weeks ago, I noticed that all of the candidates referenced having “good leadership” so I decided that I’ll talk to them about leadership at one of the upcoming meetings. Choosing this topic was the easy part. What I’m going to actually say is the million-dollar question.

I plan to keep it simple by telling them of a few myths:

Myth #1—Leaders are born. In a sense, leaders are born because everyone is born. But leadership is not about talents as much as it is about your behavior. It is how you “show up” each day.

Myth #2—Leaders are charismatic. While being charismatic doesn’t really hurt you, it is more important to be trustworthy, visionary, and a good person. Remember, Hitler was charismatic.

Myth #3—Titles make you a leader. A leader is simply someone who can get others to follow him or her. It does not matter what your title is; it matters if you are respected, trusted, and followed.

I also plan to discuss what makes a good leader:

Be Trustworthy—Do what you say you will do.

Have Vision—Don’t think only about today; think about your future and base your decisions on that.

Model the Way—Set a good example for others to follow.

Set Goals—Understand that the difference between a dream and a goal lies in writing it down. If you don’t have a goal, how do you know where you are going?

Be a Good Person—Recognize that people will eventually see who is a good person and who is not. We generally do not follow bad people for the long term.

I’d like to tell these kids so much more about leadership, but I want to keep it simple with the hope that they’ll remember the lesson and think about their behavior on a daily basis.

What would you tell an 8th grader about leadership?

Jeremy King is business development manager at FlashPoint.

Image: Pathathai Chungyam

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