Developing the Mind of a Leader: Your Path to Lead and Inspire People

By Bill Boyajian

There are no tricks or shortcuts to being a great leader - but you can learn how to maximize any business situation if you are willing to master the core precepts of leadership.

Developing the Mind of a Leader will help you:
• Discover your leadership call
• Become a leader people follow
• Understand the Six Cs of Leadership
• Move from career success to career significance
• Learn how to leave a lasting legacy

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bill Boyajian
• Release date: Nov 14, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465857071

Bill Boyajian

No one in this generation has had a greater impact on the gem and jewelry industry than Bill Boyajian. In his 31-year tenure with the prestigious Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the last 20 years as its President, he impacted the lives and careers of thousands of people and left a lasting legacy of leadership. He is largely credited for taking the Institute to its pre-eminent global position today. When GIA’s Board of Governors needed a leader to take them into the future, they selected Boyajian at the age of only 34. When the U.S. Congress needed an expert to testify on the controversial conflict diamond issue, they called on Bill Boyajian. When business leaders were confronted with the threat of synthetics and treatments in gemstones, they rested confidently in the leadership that Boyajian would provide. Arguably one of the most knowledgeable and sought-after leaders in the gem and jewelry industry, Boyajian now takes that expertise to new heights with the publishing of his book, Developing the Mind of a Leader – Your Path to Lead and Inspire People. In it, he expresses his philosophy of leadership and shares principles and values that served him so well over a decorated 35-year career. An internationally respected author, educator, speaker, and business coach, Boyajian consults for leading companies in the jewelry industry and is in demand as a keynote speaker by prominent groups from both within and outside the jewelry trade. He is a member of the World Presidents Organization and the CEO Forum, and is on the Board of Directors of Top Hat, Inc. (DBA Be Iced Jewelry Evaluation Centers); Infocore, Inc., a list brokerage and management company; Outside the Bowl, a ministry to starving children around the world; and is Chairman of VeriChannel, LLC, The Search Engine of the Jewelry Industry, a company he helped found in 2010. Bill is a proud member of: 24Karat Club of New York, 24Karat Club of Southern California, The CEO Forum, Jewelry Vigilance Committee, and the Women's Jewelry Association. Boyajian resides in Carlsbad, CA with his wife, Joyce. They are active members of North Coast Church in Carlsbad and have two adult children, Rebecca and David. Boyajian enjoys golf, fishing, sports, gardening, bridge, writing, and speaking.

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Author's Note

As we explore the paths of our youth, each adventure is its own justification. These early explorations need no destination, nor require any victories - only an open heart and a sense of wonder. But in time, the template of modern life imposes its over-arching structure, and the schools and jobs and decisions that lead us to choose a career path also lead us to begin our lives anew. It is largely the progression of this career path that determines how well or poorly we acquire the traits necessary to succeed in business - and indeed, in life.

Simply put, the focus of this book is career and life success through leadership. The sooner we learn to identify the values that allow us to lead and inspire people, the sooner we discover the riches of our personal growth and potential. As we learn to positively influence those around us, we form the foundation of a lasting legacy.

For me, the groundwork for finding these first gems of leadership began when I was in junior high school. I was voted most likely to succeed - whatever that means. I guess fellow students saw something. But my leadership traits really blossomed when I was 21. While the early steps were simple and began in ordinary ways, their later impact was powerful - even profound. I was working two part-time jobs while carrying a full load in college. One job was for my father, a drilling contractor. The other was in a liquor store in the evenings. It was there, in my native Fresno, California, that I struck up a conversation with a man who frequented the store and managed a leased jewelry department in a local department store. His work piqued my interest, and understanding that he occasionally needed help, I gave him my name and phone number, forgetting about it until I got a call from him eight months later.

The man offered me a job, and I accepted. I soon became a successful jewelry salesperson and, nearing graduation with a Bachelors Degree in economics, I became interested in a possible career in the jewelry industry. Like many others I would learn about in the years that would follow, my boss encouraged enrollment at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). I checked out the school in Los Angeles and met with several jewelers in my hometown who highly recommended the training. If I was to go into the business, I wanted to build a foundation on solid rock. I was sold, and started my gemological studies three weeks after graduating from college. My goal was to become a Graduate Gemologist and to get a good job in the jewelry industry. I never imagined this would lead to a career at the very Institute where I had studied.

After completing the diploma program, I landed a job at GIA, and absorbed the subject of gemology. I learned that teaching a subject was the ultimate test of one's mastery of it. At 27, I was promoted into my first role in management, supervising the very programs I had been teaching. My years as an instructor taught me a lot about leadership: how to motivate students to want to learn and achieve; how to make difficult concepts easier to understand; and how to inspire life-long learning and a genuine appreciation of one's chosen profession.

During this period in my career, I studied human behavior, salesmanship, management, and leadership while developing my skills as an educator, author, speaker, and gem expert. While others used politics to climb the ladder, I was advancing my knowledge and acquiring the experience it would take to be successful in my career. Though my goal was to become one of the top people at the Institute, I never dreamed I could become president (let alone at the age of 34).

What a life lesson! That hard work, sincere effort, and belief in laying a foundation for success were critical to being a success. Over the years, I amassed considerable experience leading the Institute. I also began collecting information on leadership, reading and writing intently on the subject, and speaking regularly to audiences both inside and outside the gem trade. The responses I received were encouraging, and upon retiring in 2006, I began to write the book I always dreamed about - the one you now hold in your hands. It reflects 30 years of research, writing, and hands-on experience, and it represents my philosophy of leadership.

As we uncover the secrets of leadership in the pages that follow, you will discover with certainty, as I did, these three things:

• Leaders are made, not born.

• Leadership is caught, not taught.

• Leading is a lifelong learning experience.

These are recurring themes that will unfold as you read. As simply as I can put it, Developing the Mind of a Leader is what you must do to realize your full potential. You must dig deep within to recognize and utilize the nuggets that lie there. Like a gem miner sifting through ore and tailings, you can find the character and competence within you.

This book will teach you how to accomplish more than is expected, what it takes to ascend to the top of an organization, what traits are vital to leadership, and how to carry a legacy forward. To some, it will seem unconventional. To others, it will make perfect sense. All I ask is that you have an open mind - that magical sense of curiosity and adventure - so you can develop a mind that will make you a leader people follow.

Preface

Although they would probably agree with most of what is written here, this is not a book for Fortune 500 CEOs. It's a book for the rest of us. It's a book for you.

Everyone leads. And most lead people. You may be an executive clinging to your leadership role, a middle manager trying to get hold of your department, a single mother struggling to lead your children, or a devoted but frustrated volunteer serving a cause you believe in. Whatever your lot in life - and unless you live alone on an island somewhere - you lead in one form or another because leadership is a position of influence.

Unfortunately, leadership - and leading people, in particular - doesn't come with a set of ironclad rules. You start with a few fundamentals and then learn what works best largely through trial and error - hopefully more trial than error. The journey never stops. Nor does the learning. What worked yesterday may not work today, and is even less likely to work tomorrow.

In business, and in life, things can unravel fast. I've seen executives derailed from their leadership track, professionals lose their license to practice, husbands lose their wives, and pastors lose their congregations. I've seen people in all walks of life lose their identity and self-esteem. It's no exaggeration that, had they been able to discover the leader within, their lives would be different.

If you've ever struggled as a leader - at work, in the home, through community affairs, wherever - this book will give you the tools to hone your leadership skills and positively impact the people around you. We will look at what it takes to be a leader, how to lead people, and how to maximize your success in leading. The words in these pages can change how and why you lead. They can even change your life.

The real key to leading is to achieve greater good for others. This comes from a fundamental understanding of who you are as a person and what your calling in life is as a leader. Great leadership transcends the bounds of time and culture. More often than we like to admit, we fail at leading. But there is great hope for those of us who are committed to learning and growing as leaders, where the rewards, quite frankly, far outweigh the demands of time and pressure.

Although this book is written for leaders by a leader, there's no ivory - tower language - just undeniable facts about leadership and leading people that will make so much sense as to appear self-evident. That's the beauty of it. Most leadership principles are simple, yet elegant, in their results and rewards.

Good leadership is all about capitalizing on our strengths, minimizing our weaknesses, and building upon acquired knowledge. Leading people means developing followership. When you understand the mind of a leader, you'll grasp the principles that replenish the reservoir of skills all leaders rely upon to bring people with them.

Part One - The Leadership Call

Leadership begins with a clear understanding of the fundamentals. In Part One, I define what leadership is - and what it is not. I compare and contrast it with management principles that will lead you to decide whether you're more leader than manager. I will discuss role preference, team profile, and some of the emotional subtleties that characterize great leaders. And I will take you through a progression of steps that will help you grow as a leader, get to the next level, and take charge when you are ultimately asked to lead.

Chapter 1 - What Is Leadership?

Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.

Thomas Edison

Audrey seemed perfect. Wonderful credentials, experience in the field, a great resume, and nearing the prime of her career. After all, that's why she was recruited to be the president of the company.

But Audrey wasn't relating well to her staff. Some felt she was distracted by other interests. Others felt she was arrogant and just didn't care. Her colleagues encouraged her to focus on her people. To put them first. To work hard to restore their belief in her. Audrey said she appreciated the advice. It was what she needed to hear. People thought she heard it. But she continued in her ways and was soon gone. Derailed at the top.

What went wrong? I'll bet you can guess. She was more concerned about her own views than those of her people. Likely, it wasn't a good fit for her in the first place. Nor for the firm. But why couldn't a bright, experienced person like her see it? Why would someone with this kind of talent become a casualty of leading, rather than a hero of it?

What are the most common reasons a leader is derailed? In my experience, it's usually one or more of these:

• Incompetence

• Unethical values

• Arrogance and self-importance

• Inability to get along with others

• Inflexibility and lack of openness

• Unwillingness to give credit to others

Audrey failed to win the hearts and minds of her followers. Her perceived lack of interest crippled her ability to lead. But was it the right position for her in the first place? Was she even a leader? Only time would tell.

Being a leader doesn't mean you're suited for every leadership role - that every position is your right fit. I will talk more about fit in chapter 3, but it bears mentioning here in brief. In Audrey's case, she wasn't a corporate person content to lead hundreds of staff in a company she didn't love. She didn't have care and concern for her people, nor the ability or passion for the job. Audrey may or may not have had the ability to be a leader, but this certainly wasn't her preferred role.

Leadership Defined

The best leaders see the future and balance it with reality. They know how to employ skills and develop resources to get things done. They know how to maximize their strengths and those of others. And more than anything, they have a knack for helping people with diverse backgrounds and talents accomplish team-oriented goals.

Leaders balance dreams with rational thinking, vision with reality. They know how to take a dream, form a vision, and make it reality. They take ideas and form strategy. They take strategy and form structure. They take structure and form action plans. Yet they are flexible enough to handle the curves and bumps in the road - to change course and take detours - while not wavering from the direction set and the ultimate destination. This is what makes leadership so challenging, yet so rewarding.

Simply stated, leadership sets direction, establishes priorities, harnesses resources, cultivates people, and empowers individuals to achieve team-oriented objectives.

Good leaders understand the inherent strengths and shortcomings of individuals and know how to get the maximum from each. Leaders see the potential in people that others miss. Life - and all firms and organizations, even families - is not populated with gifted over-achievers. It's full of people who genuinely want to be appreciated for a job well done. They want to know that their actions helped make a difference toward stated corporate goals.

Not all your people are rocket scientists or CEO material, but a little encouragement can help an average person excel. People need to belong, but they also want to contribute. They want to be part of something, but they also want to stand out. With reference to psychologist Earnest Becker, Tom Peters and Robert Waterman's In Search of Excellence presented a management mantra: People want to be part of a winning team but a hero in their own right. As a leader, you have an obligation to help them do both.

Leadership requires an almost unimaginable set of skills. Perfection is unattainable, and no leader or organization can afford to tempt it. Instead, what you want is excellence and continuous improvement.

Leaders Are Learners

I grew up believing that leaders were born, not made. I believed either you had it or you didn't, based on God-given gifts or a good gene pool. But leadership behavior is learned through the process of life and seeking to lead. For those of us who were raised as I was, this should be liberating news.

Leaders are learners. They constantly improve and innovate as a result of being propelled by their own initiative. They seek to understand themselves, they accept responsibility for their actions, and they reflect on their experience.

Very often, leaders are ordinary people who perform extraordinary feats. They have something to prove - to themselves and perhaps to others - and that need to prove, that drive to succeed, that compulsion to achieve, is what separates them from followers.

Leaders, then, are not just learners; they are achievers of a high order. They know leadership is a need in our society and culture. They know that, of those to whom much is given, much is expected. They take their role seriously: they know the kind of impact they can have on others. Leaders know that leading is a privilege and a high calling. They never take their call for granted.

Leadership vs. Management

Leadership is rare and valued. So is management. But they are as different as art is from science. In fact, leadership is an art, as Max DePree so eloquently stated in his book by that title. In it, he skillfully describes what he calls liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible.

Leadership is people-oriented; its very byword is effectiveness. Management is a science; its result is efficiency. One is different from - but not better than - the other. In Leaders, Warren Bennis and Bert Nanus put it this way:

To manage means to bring about, to accomplish, to have charge of or responsibility for, to conduct. Leading is influencing, guiding in direction, course, action, opinion. The distinction is crucial. Managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who do the right things. The difference may be summarized as activities of vision and judgment - effectiveness versus activities mastering routines - efficiency.

The distinction between doing things right and doing the right things seems subtle, but it is profound, often confusing people about their own strengths.

It is wrong to say that great managers can't lead. Many find themselves rising to important leadership positions. They lead by utilizing their extraordinary management strengths. Unlike leaders, they exert more control over the movements and actions of people, largely due to their process orientation. The best managers enjoy refining and improving already established programs, products, and services. They are superb administrators and think in terms of organization and operations. They know how to set up systems of accountability around priorities.

Leaders prefer to create new things, rather than refine or improve existing realities. They don't organize people. They empower them. They see the big picture - the forest, not the trees. Leaders get bored with details. They're best at developing new things, motivating and inspiring people in key directions, and leaving the management to managers. I'm not saying leaders can't manage. Nor am I saying leaders don't manage. I'm just saying that leaders prefer to lead and should leave management to others. This leaves even more time for leaders to lead, which is what they should be doing.

Here are some words that distinguish leaders from managers:

According to a training session I attended with Bobb Biehl's MasterPlanning Group International, leaders instinctively know what to do next, why it is important, and how to bring the resources to bear to get things done.

Managers, on the other hand, instinctively know what needs improving, why it is vital for greater efficiency, and how to set up systems and processes to make it happen. Both leaders and managers are fundamental to success in any business or undertaking. Understanding the different roles of leading and managing - and the value each skill brings to the table - is a sign of good leadership.

Years ago, United Technologies ran a full-page ad in the Wall Street Journal (see figure A) that slighted management in favor of leadership. I kept a framed copy in my office for many years. It was a strong reminder that a CEO's job is to