#davesdailychallenge (112): The Lost Art of Leading People. Money, time, projects, products, finite resources, attention, and deadlines; these are all important aspects that any leader pays attention to. They are taught in our business schools. They are reinforced by training programs and incentivized with wealth, responsibility, and more. Each of these things have one primary element in common. They are the result of people. People make you money. People spend their time and other finite resources. People create products, or the machines that create them. People meet deadlines and people pay attention.

People are everything.

Why then is the skill of leading people considered “extracurricular” by so many. Like so many things in our modern life we seek order and simplicity and leading people is anything but simple and orderly. It is messy, chaotic, very difficult to measure objectively, a constant state of learning, and humbling to both leader and follower on a consistent basis. It is, however, a skill set that is extraordinarily in demand at all levels of organizations today. There are ways to improve this skill set although you can only learn so much from books. You must step away from the safe confines of your desk and be with those you mean to lead. You must realize that a good leader of people will learn as much as they teach. You must have authentic respect and care for your people. You must never ask them to do something you aren’t willing to do yourself or, preferably, have already done. You must be comfortable with discomfort and with making mistakes because I assure you that you will make many.

The growth of a true people leader is a difficult one but it is extraordinarily worthwhile. I challenge you to take it as your personal responsibility to improve this within yourself because many organizations simply don’t place the level of importance on it that they should. Don’t expect anyone to take your growth more importantly than you do. Together we can bring back the lost art of leading people. Good luck my friends.