Leadership Rules

I picked up the book Leadership Rules, by Chris Widener, for my husband a few weeks ago. It's a business parable with the sub-title "How to Become the Leader You Want to Be." I love business parables because they make abstract concepts easy to process. My long-time favorite is The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni, but I digress.

So the book takes place in Texas, and has a little to do with football and a lot to do with leadership. The "rules" that Widener espouses mirror the rules we use when work with companies on accountability. They are the "simple" rules of leadership that are so difficult to live by. Here they are, directly from Widener's book:
1. You get what you expect.
2. You get what you model.
3. You get what you reward.
4. You get what you work for.

In other words, clearly understand and communicate your expectations (and while you are at it, you may as well set them high), walk the talk, offer rewards for meeting those high expectations, and finally, keep at it for as long as it takes.