Nonprofit Performance 360 Magazine Vol 5 No 1

Executive Office

JOHN C. MAXWELL

Get Connected

I was pretty good at getting into trouble when I was growing up. I wasn’t a bad kid, but I had a high energy level and a creative mind, which often led me into mischief. Once, when my fourth-grade teacher was playing the piano with her back to the class, I talked my classmates into sneaking out of the room. Mrs. Tacy didn’t know we were gone until she finished her song and turned around. That kind of behavior might have caused teachers to write me off as a troublemaker. But Mrs. Tacy saw my potential and loved me in spite of my orneriness in class. She was my favorite teacher, and she truly made a difference in my life. As a leader, I’m attracted to people who make a difference. These people are greater on the inside than on the outside.They think differently: their minds are like crockpots, not microwaves. Their words inspire, probe, challenge, and move others. They encourage, expand, engage, and empower me to become better. As leaders, we should all strive to make a difference at work, in our communities, and with our families. Beyond that, if we want to be truly successful, we need to have at least a few difference-makers on our teams.That’s easier said than done. You can’t always tell by looking at someone if she has what it takes to contribute something significant. It’s not about giftedness. I have known some extremely talented people who never accomplished much because they were lazy, undisciplined, and self-centered. And it’s not

The unhappy voice of discontentment that says, “I don’t like things as they are.” Great leaders create change because of the internal voice that proclaims, “Things could be better. Things should be better. And there’s something I could do to make them better.” The successful voice of somebody who’s climbed the mountain and says, “There’s room at the top. Come on up. You don’t have to stay down there!” 3. Make-a-difference people are connected to others who want to make a difference. Like attracts like. People who want to make a difference spend time with others who want to make a difference. People who don’t care about making a difference hang around with those who don’t care about making a difference. If you want to be a difference-maker, connect with a good leader, a powerful vision, and other people who want to make a difference, and then get busy. As Mrs. Tacy proved, no matter who you are or what you do, you have plenty of opportunities to make a difference in your world. Dr. John C. Maxwell is an internationally recognized leadership expert, speaker, coach, and author. His organizations EQUIP and the John Maxwell Company have trained more than 5 million leaders worldwide. A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Business Week best-selling author, Maxwell has written three million-seller books: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership , Developing the Leader Within You , and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader . JohnMaxwell.com

about position or title. An impressive résumé doesn’t mean he will make a difference on your team. The thing that sets difference-makers apart from everyone else is that they’re connected. This goes much deeper than name-dropping. Here are three key ways that difference- makers are connected. 1. Make-a-difference people are connected to the leader. They don’t wait for this connection to happen by itself. They take the initiative, because they understand that everything rises and falls on leadership. To be successful, get close to a leader who makes good things happen. It doesn’t have to be your boss; it could be someone in a totally different profession. Just hook up with a leader who makes a difference and soon you will be making a difference, too. 2. Make-a-difference people are connected to the vision. John Sculley said, “The future belongs to those who see possibilities before they become obvious.” Vision isn’t just something you see; it’s something you hear. What should you be listening for? Let’s start with three voices. The inner voice that pulls you above the mundane and says, “You were born for something better than this. You were created to do something great.”

12 I Nonprofit Performance Magazine