“Sure, we can take care of the parrot at our house,” are 11 words I’m beginning to regret. Newton was adopted by camp last fall to be the bird specimen in our nature room. I know… not a native species… but a somewhat cooperative one that allows kids to get up close and personal with the avian world.
Everything was going well keeping Newton in the office during the week… until the second day, when he got loud. At first, it was cute. Every time someone walked in the door or a phone rang he said “Hello.” But then, people would walk by without so much of a greeting… and he’d screech. And screech. And yell.
And now he lives in my dining room… where he’s unintentionally teaching me a little bit every day about what it means to be a great leader. So here are three most recent lessons from Newton.
1. Newton Says: Hello.
It’s Newton’s favorite word, but one I often skip. When I get into task mode, I can walk right past the most important people around—my coworkers and team members—without so much as a glance… and that’s not cool. Now, to be fair, most of them don’t squawk or screech when they’re ignored… but that doesn’t make it right, or good.
Great leaders engage with people before they engage the task, and it starts with a simple Hello.
2. Newton Says: Don’t Make Sudden Movements.
My kids are learning how to reach out their hand and have Newton step up onto their finger. It takes patience, and a slow and steady hand… and it takes trust. Some of us are better than others, but we’re realizing that we need to slow down around Newton, offer our hands for him to approach, and get total buy-in from the bird before he’ll step up.
Change isn’t bad, but sudden movements erode trust and leave our teams feeling uncertain. “If I step up, will the leader support me? Will she even still be there? Is there danger?” Great leaders offer a consistent, steady hand that provides a platform for confidence and success when team member step up.
3. Newton Says: Clean My Cage.
Seriously. Birds get stinky fast. This is a fact I know by experience. Besides Newton, we also have 18 chickens—which don’t live in our dining room, by the way. Ignore their messes for a few days, and they start to stink. But keep up on them, provide regular, daily care and cleaning, and they’ll do their part too.
Newton spends half his waking hours eating, and half of them preening—cleaning his feathers, feet and beak. But ignore the cleanliness of his cage, and he’ll give up on his self care, compounding the problem.
Municipalities call it the “ghetto principle.” Broken windows beget broken windows. Graffiti begets graffiti. And, as leaders, if we stop caring for the environment we all live and work in, our teams will stop caring too. (By the way, I’m scheduling a few minutes today to clean my office. Ugh.)
Some days Newton drives me nuts… and some days, he drives me to be a better leader.
What will you do today to be a better leader in your church, home or workplace?