Dad was obsessed with being of service. He said, “Your goals shouldn’t focus on what you can achieve for yourself. Instead, they should only serve as markers, measuring the progress you make in pursuing something greater than yourself.”
If I set my mind to doing something, he would only assist or offer advice to me if it had a service component. How was this thing I wanted to do or have going to help someone other than me? As I grew older, the expectation was that my accomplishments must include opportunities for others in my sphere to achieve something they wanted as well.
During my tenure with Mary Kay, I learned that personal accomplishment would only take me so far. To move into management, a consultant must help others achieve their goals. As a Sales Director, my focus couldn’t just be on hitting production goals (which couldn’t be achieved alone); it had to be on helping the entire unit achieve their individual goals—one consultant at a time. Because I am highly driven, I’ll admit there were times, when I tried to do it alone with maximum personal achievement for my unit. All that was accomplished was my devoted unit members sitting down and watching the “Lauren Schieffer Show,” and the unit didn’t grow. Directors with longevity understand the privilege of serving their unit, listening to each team member to learn more about her goals and the why behind them, and then providing opportunities to stretch and grow. It’s only through their success that a Director achieves her own. In turn, because that success is born of service, it is also a way to attain significance.
Now, you don’t have to be in direct sales, lead a team, or grow up in the military to pursue a goal larger than yourself. Every city and small town has a food pantry that needs to be stocked, a homeless shelter that needs compassionate volunteers, a playground yet to be built, a school that needs a fresh coat of paint, or a community fishing pond that needs tending. The opportunities for service abound. All you have to do is look around you. Choose something today that resonates with you, and shift your focus from yourself and your achievements to collaborating with your neighbors and pursuing something that will benefit others—something greater than yourself.
Read Lauren’s Whitepaper on The Nine Essentials of Significant Leadership.