The Ripple Effect of Leadership

Becoming a leader shifts your focus from yourself to those around you. How you choose to lead has lasting effects on your team, and they will take what they have learned from you, good or bad, and apply it to future situations. They will share that knowledge with others, and your leadership legacy can be carried on through people you may never even meet. Everyone has a story about someone who inspired them in the same way that everyone has a story about someone they never wish to see again, so which story do you want playing in someone’s mind about how you are as a leader?

Every interaction you have with another person, even a simple “hello” in passing, leaves an impression on them. When you are around an individual regularly, you have an even bigger impact. You can either leave someone better off or worse off, but you will never leave them the same. This is not a responsibility that you should take lightly as a leader. That is why it is so important that you continue developing yourself.

Your impact is not just a byproduct of interacting with your team; it is the direct result of your leadership efforts. If you want your legacy to be worthy of being shared and passed on to others, you have to be intentional about how you show up as a leader.

You want to be the example of a leader that people will talk about in a positive light. You should be proud to hear that others are talking about your leadership approach, not embarrassed or worried about what they are saying. Don’t become the example that people use to describe what not to do as a leader. Because people will talk about you as a leader. It is up to you to determine the leadership ripple you want to create.

-Meghan Slaughter