Cultivating leaders: The Racehorse Theory
Recently, in Orlando, Florida, I spoke to a group of landscape business leaders about cultivating their crews’ leadership skills. In the talk, I spoke about “The Racehorse Theory.” If you invested $100,000 in a horse for racing because you knew this horse had the potential to earn you one million dollars in a year, how would you handle that horse?
Would you allow the racehorse to just graze in the pasture to eat briars, weeds or whatever it could find? On race day, would you just show up and let your horse run against the competition without any training, without any conditioning and without a professional jockey to race it? You might finish the race, but the results would be less than stellar.
Once you have invested in the horse, the next investment is getting it ready to win the race. The racehorse needs the right food, the right training and conditioning to be competitive. Why buy such an expensive horse if you don’t invest in its success?
The same is true for any business. Good leaders are talent agents. They want to grow their talent base and are always looking for potential leaders to cultivate. As you continue to grow your business, you must be able to delegate responsibilities to the leaders you know can win. It is up to you to make sure they are equipped, trained and cultivated to lead themselves and others. When your crew leaders are successful, your company is successful.
This is my call to action for you: Look for fresh ways you can develop your crew leaders and grow your investment. Don’t leave them in a pasture to wander around; get them on a healthy leadership development program. Condition them to be aware of leadership opportunities and invest in their skills so they can motivate and inspire their teams. Doing anything else is wasting your crew leaders’ potential and reducing your return on investment. Do not delay; you and your team have a race to win. Be a part of something fresh that works. Become a Landscape Academy Faciliatory and create an amazing culture in your organization. Sign up now.
