The 360-Degree Leader: Complete Summary of John C. Maxwell’s Approach for Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization

John C. Maxwell, renowned as America’s expert on leadership, delivers a transformative guide in “The 360-Degree Leader.” This book challenges the conventional wisdom that leadership is reserved for those at the top, arguing instead that true influence can be developed and exerted from any position within an organization. Maxwell, leveraging his decades of experience coaching Fortune 500 companies, military academies, and sports organizations, unveils the principles that empower individuals to lead up, lead across, and lead down—influencing superiors, peers, and subordinates alike.

This comprehensive summary delves into Maxwell’s core philosophy, breaking down the myths that limit aspiring leaders, exploring the challenges faced by those in the middle, and providing actionable principles for effective influence in every direction. Readers will discover how to become an indispensable asset to their organization, not by waiting for a promotion, but by proactively developing their leadership capabilities right where they are. This guide is for anyone who feels constrained by their current role yet possesses a deep desire to make a significant impact and contribute meaningfully, transforming their professional trajectory through enhanced influence and strategic self-development.

Introduction: What This Book Is About

John C. Maxwell, a New York Times best-selling author and founder of organizations like Injoy Stewardship Services and EQUIP, introduces “The 360-Degree Leader” to dismantle the pervasive belief that leadership is exclusive to the uppermost echelons of an organization. Maxwell asserts that 99 percent of all leadership occurs not from the top, but from the middle, making the ability to influence from any position a critical skill for professional growth and organizational success. He directly addresses the common lament of individuals who feel their impact is limited because they are “not the main leader” or report to “average” superiors.

The book teaches individuals how to develop influence in all directions: with those they work for (leading up), with colleagues on the same level (leading across), and with those who report to them (leading down). Maxwell emphasizes that becoming a 360-Degree Leader is achievable for anyone with average or better leadership skills who is committed to the work. This nuanced approach to leadership moves beyond positional authority, focusing instead on earned influence and value creation. Readers will gain a comprehensive understanding of the myths that hinder mid-level leaders, the unique challenges they face, and the practical principles required to master multi-directional influence. This summary promises to provide a thorough overview of these key insights, enabling readers to immediately apply Maxwell’s strategies to their own careers and organizations.

Section I: The Myths of Leading from the Middle of an Organization

This section challenges seven common misconceptions that prevent individuals from realizing their leadership potential within an organization. Maxwell argues that these myths often hold people hostage to their circumstances, preventing them from making a significant impact.

Myth #1: The Position Myth: “I can’t lead if I am not at the top.”

The Position Myth is the number one misconception about leadership, stating that influence comes solely from a position or title. Maxwell debunks this by emphasizing that a place at the top does not automatically confer leadership; true leadership is influence—nothing more, nothing less. Many individuals wait for a title, neglecting to build relationships and gain influence naturally, leading to unhappiness and stagnation.

Understanding the Five Levels of Leadership

Maxwell introduces “The Five Levels of Leadership” from “Developing the Leader Within You” to explain how effective leadership develops. Leadership is dynamic and earned individually with each person.

• Level 1: Position (Rights): People follow because they have to. Influence is limited to the boundaries of the job description.
• Level 2: Permission (Relationships): People follow because they want to. Influence grows as leaders build relationships, treating others with dignity and respect.
• Level 3: Production (Results): People follow because of what you’ve done for the organization. Influence is earned through achieving results and helping the team succeed.
• Level 4: People Development (Reproduction): People follow because of what you’ve done for them. Leaders pour into individuals, mentoring them and sharpening their skills.
• Level 5: Personhood (Respect): Others put you here due to long-term excellence at the first four levels. This level cannot be strived for directly.

Disposition More Than Position

Influencing others is a matter of disposition, not position. Leaders do not need a top title to develop relationships, achieve results, or develop others. Leadership is a choice you make, not a place you sit. Leaders in the middle who choose to act effectively can have a profound effect, as doing nothing creates more weight for top leaders. Every level of an organization depends on leadership from someone. Anyone can choose to become a leader wherever they are and make a difference.

Myth #2: The Destination Myth: “When I get to the top, then I’ll learn to lead.”

The Destination Myth suggests that leadership skills are only acquired once a top position is achieved. Maxwell illustrates this with the metaphor of running a marathon: serious preparation begins long before race day. Good leadership is learned in the trenches. Leaders who excel where they are, regardless of their position, are the ones who are best prepared for greater responsibility.

Leadership as a Lifelong Learning Process

Becoming a good leader is a lifelong learning process. If individuals do not practice and refine their leadership skills when stakes are low and risks are small, they are likely to encounter significant trouble at higher levels where mistakes are costly and impactful. Mistakes made on a small scale are easily overcome, but those made at the top can greatly damage the organization and the leader’s credibility.

Proactive Preparation for Future Roles

To become the desired leader, individuals must start adopting the thinking, learning the skills, and developing the habits of that person now. Daydreaming about a future “on top” is a mistake; instead, focus on handling today in a way that prepares for tomorrow. “When opportunity comes, it’s too late to prepare,” as basketball coach John Wooden wisely stated. Proactive learning and practice are essential for aspiring leaders.

Myth #3: The Influence Myth: “If I were on top, then people would follow me.”

The Influence Myth perpetuates the idea that a leadership title automatically grants influence and followership. Maxwell argues that this is a fallacy, as influence must be earned, not granted. President Woodrow Wilson’s housekeeper, who believed her husband would become influential if appointed Secretary of Labor, exemplifies this misunderstanding.

Position Grants Opportunity, Not Influence

A position grants an opportunity to try out leadership and initially gives the benefit of the doubt. However, influence is earned over time, for better or worse. Good leaders will expand their influence beyond their given position, while ineffective leaders may even shrink the influence associated with their title. A position does not make a leader; a leader makes the position. True followership is a result of earned respect and trust, not just a title.

Myth #4: The Inexperience Myth: “When I get to the top, I’ll be in control.”

The Inexperience Myth is the belief that achieving a top position will grant total control and make leadership easier. Maxwell acknowledges that the desire to improve and the belief in one’s capability are often marks of a leader, as leaders inherently believe they can do a better job. However, he cautions that without experience at the top, individuals tend to overestimate the amount of control they will have.

Complexity of Top-Level Leadership

The higher one goes in an organization, and the larger the organization becomes, the more one realizes that many factors control the organization. Top leaders require every bit of influence they can muster, as their position does not guarantee total control or protection. The example of Carly Fiorina’s forced resignation from Hewlett-Packard despite her high-ranking CEO position illustrates that even top executives face external and internal pressures beyond their control. Life “at the top” has its own set of problems and challenges; influence remains the ultimate bottom line in leadership, regardless of one’s position.

Myth #5: The Freedom Myth: “When I get to the top, I’ll no longer be limited.”

The Freedom Myth suggests that leadership is a ticket to unlimited freedom and a cure-all for professional problems. Maxwell counters this by stating that being at the top does not eliminate limits or remove the lid from one’s potential. Limits are inherent to life and leadership, regardless of job or position.

Increased Responsibility and Constraints at the Top

As one moves up in an organization, the weight of responsibility increases, often at a faster rate than the increase in authority. Higher positions bring greater expectations, more pressure, and heavier consequences for decisions. Using the example of a successful salesperson becoming a sales manager, Maxwell illustrates how leaders often have less personal freedom due to managing teams, coordinating schedules, and facing increased financial pressures. The diagram provided in the book visually represents how customer freedom is high, worker freedom is moderate, and leader freedom is low. Leaders willingly choose these limitations. The true path to pushing the limits of effectiveness is learning to lead, which in itself blows the lid off one’s potential.

Myth #6: The Potential Myth: “I can’t reach my potential if I’m not the top leader.”

The Potential Myth posits that one’s full potential can only be realized by becoming the top leader of an organization. Maxwell argues that few people will ever be the top leader, and this should not deter them from leading effectively. He believes individuals should strive for the top of their game, not necessarily the top of the organization. Each person should focus on reaching their personal potential.

Impact Beyond the “Top” Position

Sometimes, the greatest impact can be made from a position other than first place. The example of Vice President Dick Cheney’s remarkable career highlights this. Despite having the credentials to run for president, Cheney excelled in roles like White House chief of staff, congressman, and secretary of defense, ultimately serving as Vice President. Lynne Cheney noted that his career had been “preparation for this” role, which he seemed content with and highly effective in. Cheney is presented as an excellent example of a 360-Degree Leader who knows how to influence from any position.

Myth #7: The All-or-Nothing Myth: “If I can’t get to the top, then I won’t try to lead.”

The All-or-Nothing Myth leads individuals to give up on leadership altogether if they perceive that they cannot reach the top. Maxwell criticizes this mindset, where success is solely defined by being “on top,” leading to frustration, disillusionment, bitterness, and cynicism. Such individuals become hindrances rather than assets to their organizations.

Making a Difference from Anywhere

Maxwell highlights that people can make an impact from wherever they are in an organization, even when facing significant obstacles. The example of six African-American “unsung heroes” featured in Fortune magazine illustrates this. These men—Clifton Wharton, Darwin Davis, James Avery, Lee Archer, James “Bud” Ward, and George Lewis—led their way into executive suites at major corporations like Exxon, Philip Morris, and Marriott during the 1950s and ’60s, a time of immense prejudice.

Overcoming Obstacles through Mid-Level Leadership

James Avery, despite facing segregation, pursued his goal to lead and became a senior vice president at Esso (now Exxon). Bud Ward became the hotel industry’s first black vice president at Marriott, opening 350 hotels and developing new chains. These leaders saw their role as interpreting the civil rights movement from within corporate America. They demonstrate that leadership is not meant to be an all-or-nothing proposition. Individuals can overcome challenges and develop influence across all levels of an organization. Improving one’s leadership can impact the organization, change lives, and add value, even without reaching the very top.

Section I Review: The Myths of Leading from the Middle of an Organization

This section summarizes the seven myths that hinder individuals from embracing leadership from the middle of an organization.

• MYTH #1 The Position Myth: “I can’t lead if I am not at the top.” (Leadership is influence, not just a title.)
• MYTH #2 The Destination Myth: “When I get to the top, then I’ll learn to lead.” (Good leadership is learned through ongoing practice and preparation.)
• MYTH #3 The Influence Myth: “If I were on top, then people would follow me.” (Influence must be earned, a position only provides an opportunity.)
• MYTH #4 The Inexperience Myth: “When I get to the top, I’ll be in control.” (Top positions come with significant external controls and pressures.)
• MYTH #5 The Freedom Myth: “When I get to the top, I’ll no longer be limited.” (Responsibility increases faster than authority; limits remain at all levels.)
• MYTH #6 The Potential Myth: “I can’t reach my potential if I’m not the top leader.” (Potential is about reaching the top of your game, not necessarily the top of the organization.)
• MYTH #7 The All-or-Nothing Myth: “If I can’t get to the top, then I won’t try to lead.” (You can make a significant impact and add value from any position.)

Section II: The Challenges 360-Degree Leaders Face

This section explores the common difficulties faced by leaders operating in the middle of an organization. Maxwell acknowledges that mid-level leadership is inherently challenging, often leading to frustration and tension, but asserts that these are universal experiences that can be navigated.

Challenge #1: The Tension Challenge: The Pressure of Being Caught in the Middle

The Tension Challenge stems from being caught between having some power and authority while also lacking it in other areas. Leaders in the middle can make some decisions and direct their teams, but they don’t run the show and can get into trouble if they overstep their authority. The authority possessed by mid-level leaders is on loan from higher authority, creating inherent tension.

Factors Impacting Tension

Five factors significantly impact how strongly mid-level leaders experience the Tension Challenge:

• Empowerment: The amount of authority and responsibility given by superiors, and the clarity of those lines. Vague lines increase stress.
• Initiative: Balancing the desire to initiate with the need to avoid overstepping boundaries. Stronger initiative can lead to conflict if not managed well.
• Environment: The unique leadership DNA of the organization and its top leader. Some environments may be more empowering than others.
• Job Parameters: How well the leader knows their job and how to do it. Less familiarity or unclear expectations increase tension.
• Appreciation: The ability to thrive without constant public recognition or credit. A greater desire for credit increases frustration in the middle.

How to Relieve the Tension Challenge

To thrive, mid-level leaders must learn to relieve this tension:

• Become Comfortable with the Middle: Recognize that leading from the middle can be easier if supported by a good top leader. Comfort is a function of expectations; discuss expectations clearly with your boss.
• Know What to “Own” and What to Let Go: Clear lines of responsibility reduce tension. Ask your boss for a short list of non-delegable duties and maintain ongoing dialogue.
• Find Quick Access to Answers When Caught in the Middle: Delays in information create stress. Seek efficient ways to get answers, especially if superiors are not highly communicative.
• Never Violate Your Position or the Trust of the Leader: Abusing authority, undermining the leader, or using organizational resources for personal gain destroys trust. Trust is built one block at a time, but when violated, the entire wall comes crashing down. Maintain faithfulness to those who grant authority.
• Find a Way to Relieve Stress: Since stress cannot be eliminated, find healthy outlets. Writing down observations, engaging in physical activity, or pursuing hobbies can help clear the mind and prevent venting frustrations inappropriately.

Challenge #2: The Frustration Challenge: Following an Ineffective Leader

The Frustration Challenge arises from working for an ineffective leader, a situation that can be maddening for competent mid-level leaders. Maxwell illustrates this with Robert E. Lee’s loyalty to the ineffective Jefferson Davis during the American Civil War, leading to calls for Lee to take command.

Types of Ineffective Leaders

Maxwell identifies several particularly difficult types of ineffective leaders:

• The Insecure Leader: Consumed with self, fears being outshone by competent team members, reacts angrily to poor performance, and prioritizes the status quo for everyone but themselves.
• The Visionless Leader: Fails to provide direction or incentive, leading to stagnation. Such leaders often lack passion, creating a dull work environment.
• The Incompetent Leader: Ineffective and often resistant to advice. They act as “lids” on their teams’ effectiveness, limiting growth.
• The Selfish Leader: Leads for personal gain, encouraging others to “lose” so they can “collect all the spoils.” Hoards perks and resources.
• The Chameleon Leader: Inconsistent and unpredictable in reactions, wasting team energy as people try to anticipate their next move.
• The Political Leader: Motivated by personal ambition rather than organizational mission, making decisions based on what advances their career.
• The Controlling Leader: Micromanages, stifling progress and implying that others’ contributions are less valuable. Often driven by a desire for unobtainable perfection or a belief that no one can do a job as well as they can.

The Solution to the Frustration Challenge: Adding Value

The normal reaction is to fix or replace the ineffective leader, but this is usually not an option. Maxwell states, “No matter what our circumstances, our greatest limitation isn’t the leader above us—it’s the spirit within us.” The role of mid-level leaders is to add value to the organization and to the leader, unless the leader is unethical or criminal.

Strategies for Adding Value to an Ineffective Leader

• Develop a Solid Relationship with Your Leader: Resist the urge to withdraw; instead, build a relational bridge, find common ground, and reaffirm commitment to the mission.
• Identify and Appreciate Your Leader’s Strengths: Everyone has strengths. Find them, regardless of personal preference, and consider how they can be assets to the organization.
• Commit Yourself to Adding Value to Your Leader’s Strengths: Help leverage their strengths, focusing on maximizing their impact.
• Get Permission to Develop a Game Plan to Complement Your Leader’s Weaknesses: Tactfully offer to fill talent gaps. The goal is to do what they can’t, enabling them to excel in their best areas.
• Expose Your Leader to Good Leadership Resources: Share books, CDs, or DVDs without making it seem like a criticism. Position it as something you’ve enjoyed and thought they might like.
• Publicly Affirm Your Leader: Offer truthful affirmations focusing on strengths. This helps the leader gain confidence and doesn’t reflect poorly on you.
• If Frustration Persists, Consider a Change: If the frustration becomes overwhelming and cannot be managed by adding value, changing jobs might be the best option, but ensure it’s not due to selfishness or ego.

Challenge #3: The Multi-Hat Challenge: One Head . . . Many Hats

The Multi-Hat Challenge describes the pressure mid-level leaders face from having to wear many different “hats” or perform a wide range of tasks and roles simultaneously. Maxwell uses the example of his first employee, Stan Toler, who served multiple roles from choir director to custodian.

The Pressure of Wearing Many Hats

• People at the Bottom of an Organization: Usually perform a limited, focused number of tasks (e.g., a production-line worker or a grill cook). Their roles require specific skills but typically only one “hat.”
• People at the Top of an Organization: While carrying the weight of the entire organization, top leaders have the luxury of choosing their priorities, focusing on strengths, and delegating or dismissing other tasks. They narrow their focus to fewer things with great excellence.
• People in the Middle of the Organization: Experience the Multi-Hat Challenge daily. They must perform diverse tasks, possess broad knowledge, and deal with multiple shifting priorities, often with limited time and resources. Maxwell calls this the “handyman syndrome.” The sous-chef example illustrates moving from a single-hat role (cook) to a multi-hat role (managing cooks, interacting with waiters, ordering supplies, reporting to the owner). This constant shifting deters many from moving up in an organization.

How to Handle the Multi-Hat Challenge

Mid-level leaders, like middle children in a family, must learn to get along with everyone and navigate various “family” dynamics.

• Remember That the Hat Sets the Context When Interacting with Others: Each role has unique responsibilities and objectives. Adjust your interaction style based on the hat (e.g., spouse vs. employee).
• Don’t Use One Hat to Accomplish a Task Required for Another Hat: Do not abuse a position of influence from one role to manipulate outcomes in another. Cultivate each working relationship on its own terms.
• When You Change Hats, Don’t Change Your Personality: Maintain consistent and predictable attitude and behavior across all roles to build trustworthiness.
• Don’t Neglect Any Hat You Are Responsible to Wear: All duties must be attended to. Rod Loy’s strategy of setting up three separate offices to manage distinct departmental responsibilities illustrates this commitment.
• Remain Flexible: The key to navigating the Multi-Hat Challenge is knowing which hat to wear at any moment and enjoying the variety it offers. Flexibility is crucial as demands rapidly change.

Challenge #4: The Ego Challenge: You’re Often Hidden in the Middle

The Ego Challenge arises because leaders in the middle are often hidden, not receiving the credit or recognition they desire and deserve. Maxwell explains that while his current public role seems glamorous, it is the result of thirty years of obscure, unglamorous work. Most of a successful leader’s life, like an iceberg, is hidden beneath the surface. “True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever the cost,” as Arthur Ashe stated.

How to Handle the Ego Challenge

To remain content and contribute effectively despite being hidden, leaders must manage their ego:

• Concentrate More on Your Duties Than Your Dreams: Focus on production over promotion. “The man who delivers the goods” will be noticed. Being content with the job done, even without external recognition, is key.
• Appreciate the Value of Your Position: Every position has inherent value; it becomes important by valuing it yourself. Avoid “destination disease” or the “greener grass syndrome” of constantly wishing to be elsewhere.
• Find Satisfaction in Knowing the Real Reason for the Success of a Project: Good leaders understand that success comes from the people who get the work done, especially mid-level leaders. Knowing you make a significant contribution provides internal motivation.
• Embrace the Compliments of Others in the Middle of the Pack: Praise from a colleague who shares similar experiences holds significant weight and can sustain morale.
• Understand the Difference Between Self-Promotion and Selfless Promotion: Self-promotion focuses on “me first,” guarding information, and taking credit. Selfless promotion focuses on “others first,” sharing information, giving credit, and helping the team succeed. The story of Edmund Halley supporting Isaac Newton’s work illustrates selfless promotion. Leaders with an abundance mindset (plenty of resources, credit, and opportunities for everyone) excel in the middle. Consistently good leadership gets noticed.

Challenge #5: The Fulfillment Challenge: Leaders Like the Front More Than the Middle

The Fulfillment Challenge addresses the natural desire of leaders to be “out front” or “on top” rather than in the middle. Maxwell explores why this preference exists and how to find fulfillment despite being in the middle.

Why Leaders Like the Front

• The Front Is the Most Recognized Position for a Leader: Leaders enjoy praise and recognition, which are often directed at those in visible, top positions. However, recognition is a double-edged sword, as top leaders also receive blame when things go wrong.
• The View Is Better from the Front: Top positions offer a unique perspective and thrilling overview of the entire organization. This perspective, however, comes with the responsibility to address problems that threaten the organization, employees, or customers.
• Leaders in Front Get to Determine the Direction: Top leaders primarily control direction and timing. This ability is diminished if people aren’t following effectively.
• Leaders Can Set the Pace: Leaders desire progress and want to move quickly. However, “The journey with others is slower than the journey alone” (Patience Principle). Leaders succeed by bringing others across the finish line with them, not by being first.
• Leaders Enjoy Being In On the Action: Leaders are drawn to where things are happening. Often, most of the exciting activity occurs in the middle of an organization, not always at the very top where major decisions are made. Doug Carter’s choice to be a number two leader at EQUIP to be “in on the action” illustrates this.

How to Be Fulfilled in the Middle of the Pack: See the Big Picture

“Leadership is more disposition than position.” With the right attitude and skills, influence is possible from anywhere.

• Develop Strong Relationships with Key People: Focus on building genuine connections. “It’s more important to get along with people than to get ahead of them.” Even potential adversaries can become allies.
• Define a Win in Terms of Teamwork: Success is a collective effort. “The main ingredient of stardom is the rest of the team,” said John Wooden. Bob Christian’s career as an NFL fullback, valuing blocking and teamwork, illustrates fulfillment through collective success.
• Engage in Continual Communication: Stay “in” on the vision by regularly communicating up to leaders and actively passing the vision down to subordinates. This prevents being blindsided and strengthens your role as a conduit. Vision leaks and needs to be continually refilled and clarified.
• Gain Experience and Maturity: Maturity comes with accepting responsibility. A longer view makes position less important than excellent execution of entrusted responsibilities. Patience allows time to learn, network, and gain wisdom.
• Put the Team Above Your Personal Success: Good team members prioritize collective wins. The example of Winston Churchill and Clement Attlee collaborating during WWII despite deep political differences illustrates prioritizing national interest over personal ambition. Leadership is ultimately about helping others win.

Challenge #6: The Vision Challenge: Championing the Vision Is More Difficult When You Didn’t Create It

The Vision Challenge arises because leaders in the middle are typically asked to champion a vision created by others. While leaders prefer to fulfill their own vision, gaining the opportunity to do so often requires succeeding in fulfilling someone else’s.

How People Respond to the Vision Challenge

People respond to vision in various ways, from negative to positive:

• Attack It—Criticize and Sabotage the Vision: Reasons include not helping to create it (participation increases ownership), not understanding it (vision needs constant, diverse communication), disagreeing with it (often due to lack of belief in the leader, as “people buy into the leader, then the vision”), not knowing it (vision leaks and needs continuous reinforcement), feeling unneeded to achieve it (people are motivated when they feel essential), or not being ready for it (requiring training or different placement).
• Ignore It—Do Their Own Thing: Some avoid direct conflict but also offer no support, pursuing personal agendas.
• Abandon It—Leave the Organization: If the vision fundamentally violates personal principles, leaving with honor may be appropriate, but ensure it’s not due to selfishness or ego.
• Adapt to It—Find a Way to Align with the Vision: At a minimum, good employees align themselves. Bret’s story of a mid-manager aligning his computer support role with the company’s training efficiency goals illustrates positive adaptation. Alignment of mid-level and top-level vision leads to high job satisfaction and success.
• Champion It—Take the Leader’s Vision and Make It a Reality: This is the ideal response for 360-Degree Leaders. Vision starts with one but is accomplished by many. Those who champion the vision are elevated in the top leader’s estimation. They represent the vision well and transfer it to their followers.
• Add Value to It: The most positive response is to go beyond championing and actively improve the vision. This transforms it into something personally contributed to, eliminating the “challenge” of championing someone else’s idea. EQUIP’s Million Leaders Mandate, where key leaders helped refine the vision to focus on overseas training, exemplifies this.

Challenge #7: The Influence Challenge: Leading Others Beyond Your Position Is Not Easy

The Influence Challenge is universal: leading others beyond one’s formal position is difficult because people are not obligated to follow. Maxwell emphasizes that true leadership is about influence, not positional power. The goal for 360-Degree Leaders is to shift their thinking from “I want a position that will make people follow me” to “I want to become a person whom people will want to follow.”

People Follow Leaders They Know—Leaders Who Care

People respond positively to leaders who genuinely care about them as individuals, not just as tools for organizational gain. “You cannot antagonize and influence at the same time,” notes John Knox. Deeper concern leads to broader and longer-lasting influence. Second-mile leaders produce second-mile followers, meaning going out of your way to help others will lead them to help you in return.

People Follow Leaders They Trust—Leaders with Character

Trust is the foundation of leadership. Strong character is essential, as intelligence and skill cannot substitute for it. Chuck Colson highlights that people depend on character more than IQ. Mid-level leaders who desire to advance must live by the high character code of top leadership now, not just when they achieve visible positions. Developing and exhibiting admirable character paves the way for both current relationships and future nonpositional leadership opportunities.

People Follow Leaders They Respect—Leaders Who Are Competent

Respect is earned, especially in difficult situations. Leaders who cannot meet challenges may be liked but rarely highly respected. “While poor leaders demand respect, competent leaders command respect.” The ability to perform a job well, demonstrating competence, brings credibility.

People Follow Leaders They Can Approach—Leaders Who Are Consistent

Consistency builds dependability and trust. Inconsistent leaders create uncertainty, making followers hesitant to approach them. Fred’s strategy of gauging his moody boss’s mood before presenting issues highlights the impact of inconsistency. Being consistent makes a leader approachable, even when the truth is difficult to deliver.

People Follow Leaders They Admire—Leaders with Commitment

People admire great commitment, as seen in leaders like Winston Churchill or Martin Luther King Jr. A Yiddish proverb notes, “If you act like an ass, don’t get insulted if people ride you,” implying that consistency in behavior is key. The “farmer with no payments” joke illustrates commitment despite setbacks. Maxwell’s “Becoming a Person of Influence” outlines qualities of an influencer (INTEGRITY, NURTURING, FAITH, LISTENING, UNDERSTANDING, ENLARGING, NAVIGATING, CONNECTING, EMPOWERING). Overcoming the Influence Challenge means thinking influence, not position.

Section II Review: The Challenges 360-Degree Leaders Face

This section provides a brief review of the seven common challenges faced by leaders operating in the middle of an organization:

1. The Tension Challenge: The pressure of being “Caught in the Middle” due to borrowed authority and unclear boundaries.
2. The Frustration Challenge: Following an Ineffective Leader, requiring adaptation and adding value rather than trying to fix or replace.
3. The Multi-Hat Challenge: One Head . . . Many Hats, demanding flexibility and diverse skill sets for varied roles.
4. The Ego Challenge: You’re Often Hidden in the Middle, requiring focus on duties and selfless promotion over personal recognition.
5. The Fulfillment Challenge: Leaders Like the Front More Than the Middle, necessitating finding satisfaction in teamwork and the big picture.
6. The Vision Challenge: Championing the Vision Is More Difficult When You Didn’t Create It, calling for deep understanding, clear communication, and value-adding contributions to the existing vision.
7. The Influence Challenge: Leading Others Beyond Your Position Is Not Easy, emphasizing the need to become a person others want to follow through character, competence, and care.

Section III: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Practice to Lead Up

“Follow me, I’m right behind you.” Leading up is the most significant challenge for 360-Degree Leaders, as most leaders prefer to lead, not be led. The core strategy is to support your leader, add value to the organization, and distinguish yourself with excellence. If consistently applied, this builds trust and reliance, increasing influence and opportunities to lead up. The story of Eugene Lehner, a highly skilled violist in an orchestra waiting for his conductor to ask for his expertise, illustrates the desire to lead up effectively.

Lead-Up Principle #1: Lead Yourself Exceptionally Well

Leading yourself is the foundation of all leadership. If you wouldn’t follow yourself, why should anyone else? This involves self-management, focusing on managing decisions daily rather than just making them once.

What a Leader Must Self-Manage

To gain credibility with your boss and others, focus on these seven areas:

• Manage Your Emotions: Good leaders know when to display and when to delay emotions. They prioritize the team’s needs over their own emotional gratification. General Tommy Franks’s example in Vietnam demonstrates delaying anguish for the sake of troop morale.
• Manage Your Time: Time is a precious, finite commodity. “Until you value yourself, you won’t value your time,” as M. Scott Peck noted. Viewing tasks in terms of time spent (e.g., a vacation house costing “five years” of life) can redefine priorities. Mid-level leaders often face time management challenges due to the Multi-Hat Challenge.
• Manage Your Priorities: While 360-Degree Leaders are generalists, they must strive to focus their time effectively: 80 percent on strengths, 15 percent on learning, and 5 percent on other necessary areas. This often requires ruthlessly using a “stop doing” list.
• Manage Your Energy: Recognize and protect your energy. Maxwell identifies “the ABCs energy-drain”: Activity Without Direction, Burden Without Action, and Conflict Without Resolution. Identify your “main event” each day to ensure your best energy is applied.
• Manage Your Thinking: Busyness is the greatest enemy of good thinking. Schedule dedicated “think-time” to process ideas and problems. “A minute of thinking is often more valuable than an hour of talk or unplanned work.”
• Manage Your Words: Leaders value action, not just talk. “Show me what you can do; don’t just tell me what you can do,” said John Wooden. Words need to have value and be well-weighed. Be concise and impactful. David McKinley’s experience of talking too much in an important meeting taught him the value of “staying in bounds.”
• Manage Your Personal Life: A messy personal life will eventually impact professional performance. “Success is having those closest to me love and respect me the most.” Prioritizing family ensures long-term integrity and effectiveness, as failure at home spills into all other areas. If you can’t lead yourself, others won’t follow, respect, or partner with you.

Lead-Up Principle #2: Lighten Your Leader’s Load

Lighten your leader’s load by taking responsibility and helping them succeed. Harry Truman’s “The Buck Stops Here” motto illustrates the ultimate burden of top leadership. As an employee, you can either lighten or heavy the load. “If you want to get ahead, leading up is much better than kissing up,” Dan Reiland asserts. Motives matter; genuine help is crucial.

How Lifting Your Leader Lifts You

• Lifting Shows You Are a Team Player: Consistently helping the leader, like Kirk Nowery’s approach at ISS, demonstrates dedication to the team’s overall success.
• Lifting Shows Gratitude for Being on the Team: A Chinese proverb says, “Those who drink the water must remember those who dug the well.” Showing gratitude builds reciprocal relationships.
• Lifting Makes You Part of Something Bigger: Helping a leader with a larger vision, as with EQUIP’s Million Leaders Mandate, makes you part of a significant endeavor and expands your own perspective.
• Lifting Gets You Noticed: Even if others don’t, the leader being lifted notices. Consistent help leads to the leader’s reliance and willingness to help you in return. “The lift you give for the leader often leads to the leader lifting you.”
• Lifting Increases Your Value and Influence: Load lifters gain a special place in their leaders’ hearts. If you make your leaders feel they are better off because you are on the team, your value and influence rise.

How to Lift Your Leader’s Load

• Do Your Own Job Well First: The primary way to lighten your leader’s load is by preventing them from having to lift yours. “It isn’t hard to be good from time to time in sports. What’s tough is being good every day,” said Willie Mays.
• When You Find a Problem, Provide a Solution: Don’t just dump problems; come with solutions. Henry Ford’s motto, “Don’t find a fault; find a remedy,” is key. Insist on bringing at least three potential solutions.
• Tell Leaders What They Need to Hear, Not What They Want to Hear: Be a trusted source of truth. “Very few big executives want to be surrounded by ‘yes’ men,” notes Burton Bigelow. Your job is to be a funnel, not a filter, conveying information without spinning it.
• Go the Second Mile: Do more than is asked. “There are no traffic jams on the extra mile,” Zig Ziglar stated. This attitude makes you a “go-to player” and often leads to inclusion in the leader’s inner circle.
• Stand Up for Your Leader Whenever You Can: Loyalty means giving honest opinions during debate, but once a decision is made, execute it as if it were your own.
• Stand In for Your Leader Whenever You Can: Represent your leaders well and step up to fill vacuums. You have a choice: pour water or gasoline on fires.
• Ask Your Leader How You Can Lift the Load: Proactively ask what you can do to help. Maxwell, as a speaker, asks hosts: “Can I say something you’ve said before to give you another voice? . . . something you’d like to say but can’t? . . . something you haven’t said yet?” This adds value and earns trust.

Lead-Up Principle #3: Be Willing to Do What Others Won’t

Successful people do the things that unsuccessful people are unwilling to do. David Livingstone’s preference for men who would come “even if there is no road at all” illustrates this principle. A “whatever-it-takes” attitude is highly valued by top leaders, often elevating 360-Degree Leaders above their peers.

What It Means to Do What Others Won’t

• 360-Degree Leaders Take the Tough Jobs: Accomplishing difficult tasks earns respect quickly. Problem-solving is a fast track to leadership, and tough assignments build resiliency and tenacity.
• 360-Degree Leaders Pay Their Dues: Becoming a 360-Degree Leader requires sacrifice—giving up opportunities, personal goals, and comfort, and consistently putting others first without complaint. “Nobody who ever gave their best ever regretted it,” said George Halas.
• 360-Degree Leaders Work in Obscurity: Ego is less of a problem for those who’ve proven themselves in unseen efforts. It’s a test of personal integrity, doing what matters because it’s right, not for recognition.
• 360-Degree Leaders Succeed with Difficult People: They find ways to work with challenging individuals, seeking common ground rather than avoiding them. They recognize that succeeding with such people benefits the organization.
• 360-Degree Leaders Put Themselves on the Line: Taking calculated risks and personally bearing the consequences distinguishes them. “You don’t have the right to put the organization on the line… If you are going to take a risk, you need to put yourself on the line.”
• 360-Degree Leaders Admit Faults but Never Make Excuses: It’s easier to move from failure to success than from excuses to success. Admitting shortcomings and refraining from excuses builds credibility. “The higher the level you play, the less they accept excuses.”
• 360-Degree Leaders Do More Than Expected: Going the extra mile makes you stand out. Chris Hodges’s willingness to attend a live TV taping, despite having no role, led to him becoming a co-host for two and a half years, building his relationship with his leader and his own communication skills.
• 360-Degree Leaders Are the First to Step Up and Help: Volunteering first makes you a hero. Helping teammates helps the whole team and gets noticed by leaders.
• 360-Degree Leaders Perform Tasks That Are “Not Their Job”: They embody the Law of the Big Picture: “The goal is more important than the role.” They do whatever it takes to fulfill the organization’s vision, even if it means performing duties outside their usual scope.
• 360-Degree Leaders Take Responsibility for Their Responsibilities: They follow through 100%. Lack of responsibility is a deal-breaker. They embrace their commitments, knowing that taking ownership is essential for growth and for staying in a leadership role. “Unless you are willing to drench yourself in your work beyond the capacity of the average man, you are just not cut out for positions at the top.”

Lead-Up Principle #4: Do More Than Manage—Lead!

Maxwell differentiates between management and leadership: Managers work with processes; leaders work with people. Both are necessary for smooth organizational function, but they have distinct roles. Leaders lead the people who manage processes. If an organization ran purely on machines and computers, it wouldn’t need leaders. Good leaders are also good managers, starting with self-management, then managing their expertise, and finally influencing others. “Leaders must be good managers, but most managers are not necessarily good leaders,” says Tom Mullins.

Moving Beyond Management

To transition from management to leadership, broaden your mindset:

• Leaders Think Longer Term: They look ahead, ensuring the right things are done for the organization’s future, not just current efficiency. They consider the purpose of activities beyond immediate output, such as producing rotary telephones.
• Leaders See Within the Larger Context: They understand how their department fits into the entire organization, how the organization fits in the market, and how the market relates to the economy. This broader perspective informs their decisions.
• Leaders Push Boundaries: Unlike managers who rely on rules, leaders question “why do we do it this way?” They seek better ways, make improvements, and pursue progress. This means challenging old rules and procedures.
• Leaders Put the Emphasis on Intangibles: Leadership deals with morale, motivation, momentum, emotions, and attitudes. These are not easily measurable but are crucial. General Tommy Franks’s practice of listing daily “Challenges and Opportunities” to prepare for intangibles is a powerful example. Real problems often stem from intangible issues, not just surface-level metrics.
• Leaders Learn to Rely on Intuition: Working with intangibles requires trusting one’s hunches, which are often based on accumulated “facts filed away just below the conscious level,” as Joyce Brothers noted. Leaders learn to trust these “blessed impulses.”
• Leaders Invest Power in Others: Management is about control; leadership is about releasing. Good leaders give their power away by investing in people, empowering them to perform. They welcome seeing others outshine them.
• Leaders See Themselves as Agents of Change: Peak performers consistently look to the future, generate new challenges, and embrace a “more work to be done” mindset. Leaders desire innovation and actively seek to make things happen, welcoming constant evolution.

Leadership is a moving target. To become a better leader, embrace change, think people, think progress, and think intangibles.

Lead-Up Principle #5: Invest in Relational Chemistry

All good leadership is based on relationships. “People won’t go along with you if they can’t get along with you.” This applies to leading up, across, and down. The key to developing chemistry with leaders is building relationships by adapting to their personality while maintaining integrity. As a 360-Degree Leader, you must take the responsibility to connect up.

How to Get Started with Relational Chemistry

• Listen to Your Leader’s Heartbeat: Understand what truly motivates them by paying attention in informal settings. Focus on what makes them laugh (joy), cry (deep emotion), and sing (fulfillment). Never treat this insight flippantly or manipulatively.
• Know Your Leader’s Priorities: Understand their non-negotiable duties and objectives. Knowing their “do-or-die” list allows for better communication and support.
• Catch Your Leader’s Enthusiasm: Sharing enthusiasm creates a bond and energizes the relationship. It’s contagious and will naturally pass on to your sphere of influence.
• Support Your Leader’s Vision: When top leaders hear their vision articulated by others, it signals strong ownership. “Promote your leader’s dreams, and he will promote you.” Engage with the vision, ask clarifying questions, and ensure alignment before communicating it down.
• Connect with Your Leader’s Interests: Go beyond work-related topics. Learn about their hobbies, family, or outside interests. This builds a deeper, genuine connection and makes them feel understood, especially if they feel isolated.
• Understand Your Leader’s Personality: Leaders are accustomed to others accommodating their personalities. Use tools like DISC or Myers-Briggs to understand their style and how yours interacts. Be flexible, especially if your personality type is similar to theirs.
• Earn Your Leader’s Trust: Investing in relational chemistry builds relational currency or “change in your pocket.” “Loyalty publicly results in leverage privately,” says Andy Stanley. Consistent public support earns private influence.
• Learn to Work with Your Leader’s Weaknesses: Don’t disrespect leaders for their weaknesses. Focus on their positives and work around their negatives. Your attitude toward their shortcomings impacts your relationship.

Investing in relational chemistry with your leader is crucial for your success, as the quality of that relationship directly impacts your ability to lead up.

Lead-Up Principle #6: Be Prepared Every Time You Take Your Leader’s Time

Time is precious for leaders because it is the one commodity that cannot be increased and is essential for all their endeavors. When engaging with your leader, always be prepared, regardless of how much access you have.

Key Strategies for Preparedness

• Invest 10X: Show you value your leader’s time by spending ten minutes preparing for every minute you expect to meet. This saves their time and proves your value. The less relational connection, the more preparation is needed. “The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his time when it comes,” noted Benjamin Disraeli.
• Don’t Make Your Boss Think for You: Only ask questions you cannot answer yourself after thorough research. Good questions clarify objectives, speed up processes, and stimulate good thinking. Bad questions, conversely, signal laziness or lack of thought.
• Bring Something to the Table: Always come with resources, ideas, or opportunities that add value. “A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great.” Being constructive and making ideas better is highly valued. Avoid being a “guest” who only seeks to be served.
• When Asked to Speak, Don’t Wing It: Preparation shows respect and builds credibility. If you don’t put in the work, you will eventually be “found out.” Joe Frazier’s quote about “roadwork” highlights that true ability shows under pressure.
• Learn to Speak Your Boss’s Language: Understand their thinking and communication style. This is crucial not only for communicating with them but also for representing them to others. The goal is to connect, not to be a “yes man.”
• Get to the Bottom Line: Good leaders want results quickly. Get straight to the point after establishing credibility. You don’t need to share every detail; your leader can ask for more if needed.
• Give a Return on Your Leader’s Investment: Make the time your leader spends with you an investment by implementing their counsel and showing growth. Courtney McBath’s consistent updates to Maxwell on his learning and application demonstrate this, leading to more investment from Maxwell.

Being continually prepared builds trust and earns influence, transforming your leader’s time with you into a valuable investment.

Lead-Up Principle #7: Know When to Push and When to Back Off

Timing is critically important to leadership. “Make hay when the sun shines—that’s smart; Go fishing during the harvest—that’s stupid.” A great idea at the wrong time is as ineffective as a bad idea. The Orange Revolution in Ukraine exemplifies successful pushing when the time was right due to advances in communication.

When Should I Push Forward?

Ask these four questions to determine if it’s time to push:

• Do I Know Something My Boss Doesn’t But Needs To?: Communicate great problems or great opportunities that could impact the organization. Leaders need to be informed to address critical situations.
• Is Time Running Out?: If delaying will prevent seizing an opportunity, take a risk and push. “Better one word in time than two afterward.” Leaders need the chance to decide before it’s too late.
• Are My Responsibilities at Risk?: If you’re having difficulty completing entrusted tasks, inform your leader to allow them to help. Don’t hide struggles.
• Can I Help My Boss Win?: If you see an opportunity for your leader to achieve a win related to their priorities, push forward with that insight.

When Should I Back Off?

Ask these six questions to know when to back off:

• Am I Promoting My Own Personal Agenda?: If your motivation is self-serving rather than for the good of the organization, back off. 360-Degree Leaders are unselfish.
• Have I Already Made My Point?: Clearly communicate your perspective once. Continuing to “hammer away” at a point after it’s made is coercive and unproductive. “Trying to win your point at all costs with your boss can be like trying to do the same with your spouse. Even if you win, you lose.”
• Must Everyone But Me Take the Risk?: If you’re pushing for something but not sharing in the risk, you will alienate others. Leaders who distinguish themselves have “skin in the game.”
• Does the Atmosphere Say “No”?: Read the mood of your workplace and your boss. A “weather chart” for leaders illustrates different atmospheres and appropriate actions. Don’t let a great idea be “rained on” by poor timing.
• Is the Timing Right Only for Me?: “To be right too soon is to be wrong.” If the timing is only beneficial for you, hasten slowly. The dolphin and anchor symbol (festina lente) represents balancing initiative with wisdom.
• Does My Request Exceed Our Relationship?: Your relationship with your leader is your “ace.” Don’t overplay it with requests that exceed the trust built. The story of Queen Esther illustrates the risk of pushing beyond a tenuous relationship.

Knowing when to push and when to back off reveals character and proper motives, distinguishing effective 360-Degree Leaders.

Lead-Up Principle #8: Become a Go-To Player

A “go-to player” is someone who consistently produces results, especially when the pressure is on. They are invaluable to any team and earn the reliance and influence of their leaders. The Law of the Catalyst states that winning teams have players who make things happen.

Go-To Players Produce When . . .

• Go-To Players Produce When the Pressure’s On: They find a way to make things happen regardless of circumstances, even outside their comfort zone. They thrive under pressure, performing better when stakes are high.
• Go-To Players Produce When the Resources Are Few: They find solutions and deliver results even with limited resources. The leader who mobilized staff to buy books from local stores to ensure attendees had resources exemplifies this.
• Go-To Players Produce When the Momentum Is Low: They are momentum makers, driving things forward, overcoming obstacles, and creating energy when others are tired or discouraged. They are in the top 10 percent of an organization.
• Go-To Players Produce When the Load Is Heavy: They consistently carry a heavy load for their leaders, not just when their own workload is light. Their willingness and capacity to lift the leader’s burden builds influence.
• Go-To Players Produce When the Leader Is Absent: This is the greatest opportunity for a mid-level leader to distinguish themselves. They step up to fill leadership vacuums, demonstrating initiative and revealing their true, positive motives.
• Go-To Players Produce When the Time Is Limited: They deliver results no matter how tough the situation or short the deadline. Rod Loy’s quick action to launch an unannounced program, sketched out during a meeting, exemplifies delivering under severe time constraints, preserving his leader’s credibility and serving the people.

Becoming a go-to player leads to increased influence and credibility because leaders come to rely on those who consistently deliver.

Lead-Up Principle #9: Be Better Tomorrow Than You Are Today

The “turkey and bull” fable illustrates that “BS might get you to the top, but it won’t keep you there.” Many individuals suffer from “destination disease,” stopping their growth once they achieve a desired position. True success comes from an open-ended journey of continuous personal development, making growth more important than static goals. “The key to personal development is being more growth oriented than goal oriented.”

How Growth Helps You Lead Up

• The Better You Are, the More People Listen: Competence is key to credibility. If people respect you, they will listen. Focusing on growth makes you wiser daily, increasing your influence. Abraham Lincoln noted the value of being wiser today than yesterday.
• The Better You Are, the Greater Your Value Today: Like a fruit tree, growth enables greater production. “If what you did yesterday still looks big to you, you haven’t done much today,” Elbert Hubbard observed. Stagnation damages leadership ability. Warren Bennis and Bert Nanus emphasize that the capacity to improve distinguishes leaders from followers. “If you’re not moving forward as a learner, then you are moving backward as a leader.”
• The Better You Are, the Greater Your Potential for Tomorrow: Continuous learning expands capacity for future learning, increasing potential. Mahatma Gandhi highlighted the vast difference between what we do and what we are capable of. Investing in growth means investing in ability, adaptability, and promotability. The cost of doing nothing is always greater than the cost of growing. The example of the young leader learning from his boss’s tough conversations about mistakes highlights the value of evaluated experience.

How to Become Better Tomorrow

• Learn Your Craft Today: There’s no time like the present to become an expert. Napoleon Hill advises, “You can’t change where you started, but you can change the direction you are going. It’s not what you are going to do, but it’s what you are doing now that counts.” Focus on being the best you can be right now.
• Talk Your Craft Today: Engage in discussions about your profession with peers and, crucially, with those ahead of you in experience. This fuels passion, provides new insights, and prepares for action. Maxwell’s “learning lunches” with admired leaders exemplify learning from others’ strengths and applying it to one’s own situation.
• Practice Your Craft Today: Improvement comes from consistent practice and a willingness to step out of your comfort zone to try new things. William Osler encouraged living “only for the hour and its allotted work.” “Experience alone isn’t a good enough teacher—evaluated experience is.” The only way to grow an organization is to grow its leaders. “Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others,” Jack Welch asserted.

Section III Review: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Need to Lead Up

This section reviews the nine principles essential for 360-Degree Leaders to master in order to effectively lead up within their organizations:

1. Lead Yourself Exceptionally Well: Master self-management in emotions, time, priorities, energy, thinking, words, and personal life.
2. Lighten Your Leader’s Load: Be a team player by solving problems, telling the truth, going the extra mile, and asking how you can help.
3. Be Willing to Do What Others Won’t: Take tough jobs, pay dues, work in obscurity, succeed with difficult people, take risks, admit faults, do more than expected, be first to help, perform “not my job” tasks, and take full responsibility.
4. Do More Than Manage—Lead!: Think long-term, see the big picture, push boundaries, focus on intangibles, rely on intuition, empower others, and act as an agent of change.
5. Invest in Relational Chemistry: Listen to their heartbeat, know priorities, share enthusiasm, support vision, connect with interests, understand personality, earn trust, and work with weaknesses.
6. Be Prepared Every Time You Take Your Leader’s Time: Invest 10X in preparation, don’t make them think for you, bring value to the table, don’t wing it, speak their language, get to the bottom line, and provide a return on their investment.
7. Know When to Push and When to Back Off: Push when you have critical information, time is short, responsibilities are at risk, or you can help your boss win. Back off if promoting a personal agenda, you’ve made your point, risk is unequal, atmosphere is negative, timing is only for you, or your request exceeds the relationship.
8. Become a Go-To Player: Consistently produce results under pressure, with few resources, when momentum is low, when the load is heavy, when the leader is absent, and when time is limited.
9. Be Better Tomorrow Than You Are Today: Prioritize continuous personal growth, learning your craft, talking your craft, and practicing your craft daily.

Section IV: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Practice to Lead Across

“Follow me, I’ll walk with you.” This section focuses on leading peers, which Maxwell identifies as a unique challenge, especially for highly productive individuals who might evoke jealousy. To succeed, 360-Degree Leaders must help their peers win by earning their permission, particularly if their production skills outpace their relational skills.

Lead-Across Principle #1: Understand, Practice, and Complete the Leadership Loop

Many leaders struggle to lead across due to a shortsighted approach to influence. Leading is an ongoing process, especially with peers. To gain influence and credibility, one must understand, practice, and complete the leadership loop.

The Leadership Loop

The leadership loop is a cycle for building influence with peers:

• 1. Caring—Take an Interest in People: It all starts with showing genuine care. Leaders should actively seek value in every person, find reasons to like them, and remember that “people always move toward someone who increases them and away from anyone who decreases them.”
• 2. Learning—Get to Know People: Beyond caring, make an effort to understand individuals. Talk to peers, discover their skills, appreciate differences, and ask for their opinions. Tools like the Maximum Impact Value Cards can help reveal personal values, fostering deeper understanding and camaraderie, as seen in John Farrell’s PrintingHouse Press.
• 3. Appreciating—Respect People: Treat peers with respect, recognizing their unique experiences and skills as resources. Dennis Bakke’s philosophy at AES—assuming employees are creative, trustworthy, accountable, fallible, unique, and desirous of positive contribution—exemplifies this.
• 4. Contributing—Add Value to People: Increase credibility by genuinely helping peers without expecting direct benefit. Share your best ideas and resources, fill their gaps, invest in their growth, and include them in opportunities. “When you light another’s candle, you lose nothing of your own.”
• 5. Verbalizing—Affirm People: Become their best cheerleader. Praise their strengths, acknowledge accomplishments, and compliment them sincerely, both privately and publicly. Affirmation “makes firm” positive beliefs within others.
• 6. Leading—Influence People: After building relationships, credibility, and demonstrating good motives through the previous steps, you earn the right to influence. This is not the end goal; the ultimate goal is the next step.
• 7. Succeeding—Win with People: Good leaders balance fulfilling their own vision with helping others succeed. “Great leaders don’t use people so that they can win. They lead people so that they all can win together.” Helping others succeed creates more opportunities to help even more people, restarting the cycle. People will follow if they can trust you, believe in your commitment, and feel you care about them as individuals.

Lead-Across Principle #2: Put Completing Fellow Leaders Ahead of Competing with Them

While competition is natural, it can be detrimental if channeled inappropriately. The problem for many leaders is competing against their peers within their own organization in a way that hurts the team. “Winning at all costs will cost you when it comes to your peers.” Instead of competing, the goal is to complete them.

Competing vs. Completing

• Competing: Driven by a scarcity mindset (“me first”), destroys trust, focuses on win-lose, emphasizes single thinking (my good ideas), and excludes others.
• Completing: Driven by an abundance mindset (“organization first”), develops trust, focuses on win-win, emphasizes shared thinking (our great ideas), and includes others.

How to Balance Competing and Completing

The success of the whole team is paramount. Achieve balance through:

• Acknowledge Your Natural Desire to Compete: Recognize that competitiveness is a natural leadership instinct. The story of Maxwell’s aggressive play in an alumni basketball game highlights this instinct.
• Embrace Healthy Competition: Healthy competition brings out the best, promotes honest assessment (by comparing performance with peers), and creates camaraderie without becoming personal. It motivates the team to improve.
• Put Competition in Its Proper Place: Leverage internal competition for the collective win, focusing efforts on beating external rivals. Tommy Lasorda’s candle-blowing anecdote illustrates extreme focus on winning against external opponents.
• Know Where to Draw the Line: Healthy competition raises the bar and makes others better; unhealthy competition lowers morale and hurts the team. Never “go for the throat” with peers. The competitive yet supportive environment on Maxwell’s staff at Skyline Church, where leaders like Dan Reiland, Sheryl Fleisher, and Tim Elmore competed to excel but also readily helped each other, exemplifies this balance. They prioritized the team’s win and remained friends.

Lead-Across Principle #3: Be a Friend

Beyond being coworkers or competitors, 360-Degree Leaders should strive to be a friend to their peers. “The glory of friendship… is in the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him,” wrote Ralph Waldo Emerson. Friendship provides support and improves the work experience.

Why Be a Friend on the Job

• Friendship Is the Foundation of Influence: “If you would win a man to your cause, first convince him that you are his sincere friend,” said Abraham Lincoln.
• Friendship Is the Framework for Success: Knowing how to get along with people is the most important ingredient for long-term success, according to Theodore Roosevelt.
• Friendship Is the Shelter Against Sudden Storms: Friends offer comfort, support, and help in difficult times. Aristotle noted, “True friends are a sure refuge.”

How to Be a Friend

Make it your goal to be a friend, not to find a friend, meaning you continue efforts even if initial reciprocation is lacking:

• Listen!: True friendship starts with hearing and understanding. Becoming a consistently good listener makes coworkers seek you out and value your advice, building influence.
• Find Common Ground Not Related to Work: Broaden your connection beyond job tasks. Shared hobbies or outside interests build deeper bonds, as “to enjoy a friend, I need more in common with him than hating the same people.”
• Be Available Beyond Business Hours: True friendship is not “on the clock.” Stepping outside work confines (e.g., lunch off-site, social events, helping in need) deepens relationships and provides new insights into personalities.
• Have a Sense of Humor: “Laughter is the closest distance between two people,” observed Victor Borge. Humor can quickly bond people and create a positive, approachable atmosphere, as seen in Charlie Wetzel’s friendship with Homer Arrington.
• Tell the Truth When Others Don’t: “A friend is one who warns you.” Friends bring out the best by offering hard truths when needed, even if it’s risky. This requires relational credibility and courage. The more relational currency you have, the better the chance they will listen. Charles Schwab emphasized being kind and friendly to everyone, noting its role in a happy life and earned influence.

Lead-Across Principle #4: Avoid Office Politics

Playing politics is defined as changing who you appear to be or what you normally do to gain advantage with those in power. This means prioritizing personal advancement over principles, productivity, or teamwork. While politicians may employ such tactics, they inevitably backfire in a work environment, alienating peers. People who rely on politics are driven by ambition rather than excellence, making their gains temporary. Integrity, consistency, and productivity always pay off in the long run.

How to Avoid Office Politics

Even if not naturally political, exercise caution to avoid damaging peer relationships:

• Avoid Gossip: “Great people talk about ideas, average people talk about themselves, and small people talk about others.” Gossip diminishes everyone involved. 360-Degree Leaders are like eagles—they soar, inspire, and address issues directly, praising publicly and criticizing privately.
• Stay Away from Petty Arguments: Wise leaders in the middle avoid getting drawn into old grudges or feuds, even if they could resolve them. They know some issues are “not worth it.” Skip Schoenhals’s example of avoiding opinions on every city council issue to gain credibility illustrates the wisdom of picking your battles.
• Stand Up for What’s Right, Not Just for What’s Popular: Use the Golden Rule as your guide: “Do to others what you would have them do to you.” Stand up when someone is being treated unfairly, even if it’s unpopular.
• Look at All Sides of the Issue: Leverage your unique mid-level perspective to see issues from multiple angles (up, down, and across). Avoid dogmatic thinking and be open to different points of view. The advice to “take a good look at both sides—his side and the outside” before arguing with your boss highlights this.
• Don’t Protect Your Turf: Political leaders protect their domain for power. Leaders who lead across prioritize the team’s best interest, willing to give up space, budget, or tasks if it benefits the organization.
• Say What You Mean, and Mean What You Say: Build trust through consistency. Your words, actions, and stated beliefs must align. “What you say, what you do, and what you say you do all match.” This ensures dependability and prevents a negative “politician” reputation. Strive to be a statesman for your organization—unselfish, patriotic, and focused on the big picture.

Lead-Across Principle #5: Expand Your Circle of Acquaintances

Expanding your circle of acquaintances is crucial for expanding your influence. Maxwell shares his personal experience of intentionally connecting with African-American leaders in Atlanta, which was a “new world” for him. While uncomfortable, this outward stretch yields significant benefits.

Benefits of Expanding Your Circle

• Improved Personal Growth: Exposes you to new ideas, different perspectives, new working methods, and fosters innovation.
• Expanded Network: Connects you to more people and their networks, which Tim Sanders describes as a most valuable asset alongside knowledge and compassion. Sanders argues that “relationships are nodes in our individual network that constitute the promise of our bizlife and serve as a predictor of our success.” Value “explodes with membership” in a network.

How to Expand Your Circle

Recognize that people are like rubber bands—most valuable when stretched. Get out of your relational comfort zone, which typically includes long-known people, those with common experiences, and those who already like you.

• Expand Beyond Your Inner Circle: Leverage your existing friends to meet their friends. Ask for introductions, join them in hobbies, or simply request phone numbers. This can quickly double or triple your network.
• Expand Beyond Your Expertise: Connect with people in other departments or professions. This fosters understanding and collaboration, benefiting the entire organization.
• Expand Beyond Your Strengths: Intentionally connect with people whose strengths differ from your own (e.g., creative types with analytical, Type-A with laid-back). This broadens your experience and appreciation for diverse abilities.
• Expand Beyond Your Personal Prejudices: Address implicit biases based on race, ethnicity, gender, occupation, etc. Reach out to disliked or mistrusted groups to find common ground. This is challenging but rewarding.
• Expand Beyond Your Routine: Break habitual patterns (e.g., visiting different stores, providers). This creates new opportunities for encounters. Linda Eggers’s intentional effort to connect with EQUIP staff after an office move illustrates breaking routine to maintain valuable connections.

Expanding your circle is an investment in time and influence that is always worth making, even if connections don’t always materialize or are initially uncomfortable.

Lead-Across Principle #6: Let the Best Idea Win

When leading a project meeting, especially when personal investment is high, the natural instinct is to fight for one’s own ideas. However, if you desire to become a 360-Degree Leader, you need to resist the temptation to fight for your idea when it’s not the best idea. This is because good ideas are too important to the organization. Harvey Firestone emphasized that ideas are the main asset and key to unlimited potential. Great organizations are driven by leaders at all levels who produce and elevate ideas, fostering synergy among peers.

What Leads to the Best Ideas?

• 360-Degree Leaders Listen to All Ideas: The process begins with an open mind. “Almost all really new ideas have a certain aspect of foolishness when they are first produced,” said Alfred North Whitehead. Collaborative environments, where ideas are contributed to, shaped, and taken to the next level, are crucial.
• 360-Degree Leaders Never Settle for Just One Idea: Action-oriented leaders often rush to one solution. However, many ideas make an organization stronger, fostering creativity, innovation, and continuous improvement, much like the democratic system compared to communism.
• 360-Degree Leaders Look in Unusual Places for Ideas: They cultivate attentiveness, actively searching for ideas in diverse contexts—newspapers, movies, leisure, or conversations. Good ideas rarely just appear.
• 360-Degree Leaders Don’t Let Personality Overshadow Purpose: Do not dismiss good ideas simply because they come from someone you dislike or disrespect. Prioritize adding value to the team and advancing the organization over personal preferences. Reject the idea, not the person.
• 360-Degree Leaders Protect Creative People and Their Ideas: New ideas are fragile. They champion creative peers, promoting and encouraging them against pragmatic dismissal. They help creative individuals thrive, ensuring a continuous flow of beneficial ideas.
• 360-Degree Leaders Don’t Take Rejection Personally: When personal ideas are not well-received, avoid letting feelings derail the creative process. The discussion should remain about the ideas and the organization’s benefit. Maxwell’s own experience with book titles, where he frequently allows publishers or editors to choose, exemplifies his commitment to letting the best idea win, even if it’s not his own.

Be passionate and defend your ideas, but know when to compromise when principle is not at stake. A collaborative spirit focusing on “our idea” rather than “my idea” or “her idea” helps the team win and builds influence with peers.

Lead-Across Principle #7: Don’t Pretend You’re Perfect

Many leaders exhaust themselves trying to appear perfect, a futile endeavor as “to talk about the need for perfection in man is to talk about the need for another species,” as Norman Cousins stated. Being genuine about weaknesses and strengths draws others, engenders trust, and creates an approachable, refreshing environment.

How to Be “Real” in a Competitive Environment

• Admit Your Faults: Your coworkers already know your weaknesses. Admitting them signals self-awareness, making you approachable and trustworthy. When mistakes occur, admit them and seek forgiveness quickly to clear relational decks.
• Ask for Advice: Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you don’t know the answer. This shows humility and a willingness to learn, fostering collaboration rather than making you look bad.
• Worry Less About What Others Think: People pleasers often accomplish less. Prioritize doing what is right in your heart over impressing others. “One of the nice things about being imperfect is the joy that it brings to others!” Being genuine, rather than pretending, makes you more likable.
• Be Open to Learning from Others: People who play the “expert all the time” are exhausting. Embrace the Learning Principle: “Each person we meet has the potential to teach us something.” Being open to learning makes you approachable and builds rapport.
• Put Away Pride and Pretense: Don’t try to impress others or be larger than life. Pride is a form of selfishness; pretense keeps people at arm’s length. Instead, focus on others and let them impress you. People with charisma focus on others, not themselves, attracting influence by not pretending to be perfect.

“Perfectionism is a dangerous state of mind in an imperfect world.” By always doing your best and being genuine, you will earn your peers’ respect, gain their trust, and create the foundation for leadership.

Section IV Review: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Need to Lead Across

This section reviews the seven principles essential for 360-Degree Leaders to master in order to effectively lead across within their organizations:

1. Understand, Practice, and Complete the Leadership Loop: Engage in caring, learning, appreciating, contributing, verbalizing, leading, and succeeding to build influence.
2. Put Completing Fellow Leaders Ahead of Competing with Them: Channel competitiveness to elevate the team, avoiding destructive rivalry, and prioritizing collective success.
3. Be a Friend: Cultivate genuine friendships by listening, finding common ground outside of work, being available, having a sense of humor, and telling the truth.
4. Avoid Office Politics: Steer clear of gossip, petty arguments, and turf protection. Stand up for what’s right, look at all sides, and say what you mean.
5. Expand Your Circle of Acquaintances: Intentionally connect with people beyond your inner circle, expertise, strengths, prejudices, and routine to broaden influence and opportunities.
6. Let the Best Idea Win: Foster an environment where all ideas are heard, never settle for one, seek inspiration broadly, prioritize purpose over personality, protect creative people, and don’t take rejection personally.
7. Don’t Pretend You’re Perfect: Admit faults, ask for advice, worry less about external opinions, be open to learning from everyone, and abandon pride and pretense.

Section V: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Practice to Lead Down

“Follow me, I’ll add value to you.” This section focuses on how 360-Degree Leaders lead their direct reports. Unlike traditional top-down leadership, 360-Degree Leaders lead through influence, not just position or power. They earn influence with their followers by dedicating time and effort to adding value to them. Admiral James B. Stockdale notes that genuine leadership is based on goodwill and a “wholehearted commitment to helping followers.” This approach means helping individuals discover their potential, modeling desired behavior, fostering team participation, and rewarding contributions.

Lead-Down Principle #1: Walk Slowly Through the Halls

A common mistake leaders make is spending too much time in their offices and not enough time connecting with people. Leadership is fundamentally a people business. Ignoring the relational aspect undermines leadership, as people will eventually stop following. Walking slowly through the halls allows for informal connections, staying attuned to morale, and providing opportunities for people to interact. Mid-level leaders have an advantage here as they are often perceived as more accessible and approachable than top leaders.

How to Develop the Skill of “Walking Slowly Through the Halls”

• Slow Down: To connect with people, travel at their speed. While leaders are often naturally fast, leading others requires slowing down to engage them. This is akin to a parent teaching a child a task—it’s slower but yields long-term development. Leaders are the first to bring all their people across the finish line.
• Express That You Care: People desire a personal touch. Show genuine concern for your team members as human beings, not just workers. This builds positive relationships and makes them feel valued.
• Create a Healthy Balance of Personal and Professional Interest: Show interest in their lives outside of work (e.g., family, hobbies) without being nosy or inappropriate. Respect privacy, but be available to help if they choose to share. When personal lives are going well, professional lives often follow suit.
• Pay Attention When People Start Avoiding You: Consistent informal interaction builds awareness. If a normally communicative person starts avoiding you, it’s a tip-off that something isn’t right. People are quicker to bring good news than bad; a good 360-Degree Leader looks, listens, and reads between the lines for these signs.
• Tend to the People, and They Will Tend to the Business: Leaders who focus solely on business often lose both people and business. Leaders who tend to the people build up both the people and the business. Dick Vermeil’s success as an NFL coach, despite being initially perceived as old-fashioned, stemmed from his deep personal care for his players, demonstrating that investing in people first yields results.

Lead-Down Principle #2: See Everyone As a “10”

The quality of your leadership is directly tied to how you view your people. 360-Degree Leaders get more out of their people because they think more of their people. They respect and value their team members, leading to followership and a positive working environment where everyone feels they have a place and purpose. This “see everyone as a 10” mindset is a learnable skill, essential for any 360-Degree Leader.

Applying the “See Everyone As a 10” Mindset

• See Them As Who They Can Become: Look for the great potential within each person you lead. Like discovering a “potential JFK,” proactively draw out and encourage their best. Secure leaders lift others up, becoming discoverers and encouragers.
• Let Them “Borrow” Your Belief in Them: When individuals lack self-belief, loan them your confidence. Kevin Myers’s church plant, struggling for three years, was transformed when his former boss, Wayne Schmidt, told him, “Kevin, if you’ve lost faith, borrow mine.” This faith can fuel their success.
• Catch Them Doing Something Right: Counter cultural norms by actively seeking out and praising positive actions. This provides positive reinforcement, taps into potential, and encourages continued improvement, unlike focusing on mistakes which causes defensiveness.
• Believe the Best—Give Others the Benefit of the Doubt: Treat others with the same consideration you give yourself. Trustful people are stronger and more perceptive than mistrustful ones. Giving the benefit of the doubt fosters positive interactions.
• Realize That “10” Has Many Definitions: A “10” is not a narrow ideal. People usually cannot improve skills beyond 2 points on a 1–10 scale. However, everyone is exceptional at something, a “10” in some area (e.g., responsibility, charisma). Focus on identifying and developing these unique strengths. Even in non-skill areas like attitude, desire, or perseverance, individuals can grow into a “10.”
• Give Them the “10” Treatment: Treat everyone with respect and dignity, regardless of their current performance. While bad performance shouldn’t be rewarded, your best treatment sets a high standard. People generally rise to a leader’s expectations, especially if they like and respect the leader. Melvin Maxwell’s “Daily Dozen” reminder to build people up by encouragement, give credit by acknowledgment, and recognition by gratitude exemplifies this.

Lead-Down Principle #3: Develop Each Team Member as a Person

Maxwell emphasizes that beyond just getting the job done, an exceptional leader develops their people as individuals. This involves moving beyond simply “equipping” (teaching job skills) to “developing” (helping them acquire personal qualities that benefit them in many areas of life). While equipping is a given, development pays higher dividends because it strengthens the whole person and lifts them to a higher level.

How to Develop Your People

• See Development as a Long-Term Process: Unlike quick equipping, development takes time as it requires personal change. Plan consistent, regularly scheduled activities like reading books, teaching lessons, or attending conferences. Remember, “you cannot give what you do not have”; continuous self-growth is prerequisite for developing others.
• Discover Each Person’s Dreams and Desires: Development should be based on individuals’ needs. “Ignore what a man desires and you ignore the very source of his power,” noted Walter Lippmann. Knowing and supporting their dreams harnesses and fuels their energy. Leaders who resent others’ dreams often need to rekindle their own.
• Lead Everyone Differently: Avoid the mistake of leading everyone the same way. While consistency in kindness and respect is vital, tailor your leadership strategies (e.g., challenge vs. nurture, provide game plan vs. allow creation, frequent vs. minimal follow-up) to individual needs. You must adapt to them, not expect them to adapt to you.
• Use Organizational Goals for Individual Development: Integrate individual development with organizational needs. The ideal scenario is when something is “good for the individual and good for the organization”—everyone wins. Create synergistic alignments by matching organizational goals with individual strengths and providing opportunities and resources for development.
• Help Them Know Themselves: People often lack self-awareness. It’s a leader’s responsibility to help them define their strengths and weaknesses. Max DePree highlighted that a leader’s first responsibility is to “define reality,” and for developing others, this includes helping them understand their own reality.
• Be Ready to Have a Hard Conversation: Growth often requires difficult conversations. Don’t avoid them out of personal discomfort; ask if the conversation will hurt them or hurt you. If it hurts you, you’re being selfish. The story of the U.S. Army officer whose peculiar habits hindered his career until a leader had a hard conversation illustrates the power of honest feedback for development.
• Celebrate the Right Wins: Target wins strategically to encourage growth in specific areas. Evaluate successes to ensure they are teaching the desired lessons, not just celebrating a result achieved by improper means. “Experience alone isn’t a good enough teacher—evaluated experience is.”
• Prepare Them for Leadership: Development culminates in preparing people to lead. Use an on-the-job training process:
  • I DO IT: Master the skill yourself.
  • I DO IT AND YOU WATCH: Explain your process while they observe.
  • YOU DO IT AND I WATCH: Coach and correct as they practice.
  • YOU DO IT: Step back and give them room to master their style.
  • YOU DO IT AND SOMEONE ELSE WATCHES: Help them develop others, as “you never really know something until you teach it to someone else.” This also ensures succession.

Dedication to long-term people development fosters loyalty and ensures a continuous supply of leaders, allowing you to eventually “let them spread their wings and fly.”

Lead-Down Principle #4: Place People in Their Strength Zones

Placing people in their strength zones has a highly significant positive impact on an organization’s performance. Gallup Organization research shows that employees working in their strengths are 50% less likely to turnover, 38% more productive, and contribute to 44% higher customer satisfaction. Conversely, the number one reason people don’t like their jobs is not working in their strength zone, leading to demoralization and burnout. This is primarily the leader’s fault. Successful leaders identify and leverage the strengths of their team members.

Steps for Placing People in Their Strength Zones

• Discover Their True Strengths: Most people don’t discover their strengths alone. Use tools like Strengths Finder, DISC, Myers-Briggs, and personal observation to help them identify their innate talents.
• Give Them the Right Job: Moving someone from a disliked job to a fitting one can be life-changing, turning a struggling employee into a star. Proactively ask staff, “If you could be doing anything, what would it be?” to uncover potential misfits. Resist the urge to place people conveniently; invest the time to find the right fit.
• Identify the Skills They’ll Need and Provide World-Class Training: Even with natural strength, specific skills are required for job success. It’s the leader’s responsibility to ensure people acquire these skills through training. The critical questions are: “What am I doing to develop myself?” and “What am I doing to develop my staff?”
• The Law of the Niche: “All players have a place where they add the most value.” This niche determines their best role. The story of Coach Don Neff intentionally misplacing his best basketball players to demonstrate that “having the best players on the floor isn’t enough. You have to have the best players in the right positions” powerfully illustrates this principle. Failing to place people in their strength zones makes it almost impossible for them and the leader to win.

Lead-Down Principle #5: Model the Behavior You Desire

Leaders set the tone and pace for their teams; they need to be what they want to see. Fred Smith’s concept of “incarnational leadership” highlights that consistent identity and actions lead to consistent results. Inconsistencies produce inconsistent results. This principle, when applied, ensures alignment between a leader’s character and their team’s performance.

The Leader’s Impact

• Your Behavior Determines the Culture: A leader’s actions directly shape the organizational culture. The Oakland Raiders’ “bad-boy image” consistently created by their owner and players, versus the Dallas Cowboys’ culture shift after Tom Landry, exemplify this. To change culture, change your behavior.
• Your Attitude Determines the Atmosphere: A leader’s attitude acts as a thermostat for the workplace. An upbeat, optimistic attitude creates a pleasant, easy-to-work-in environment, contrasting with the “insufferable” temperature set by a negative one.
• Your Values Determine the Decisions: Decisions inconsistent with values are short-lived. What leaders value (e.g., speed vs. quality, honesty vs. shortcuts) will be reflected in their people’s decisions.
• Your Investment Determines the Return: Just like in finance, investment in people yields a return. “What’s worse than training your people and losing them? Not training them and keeping them.” Sowing developmental seeds determines the harvest.
• Your Character Determines the Trust: Trust is earned, not given by position. It’s built through consistency, especially when tested. If people can’t trust you 100% of the time, they consider you untrustworthy.
• Your Work Ethic Determines the Productivity: Leaders set the tone for productivity. Employees are motivated to match their boss’s diligence. Thomas Jefferson noted, “It’s wonderful how much can be done if we are always working.”
• Your Growth Determines the Potential: The Law of the Lid states that leadership ability determines effectiveness. A leader’s continuous growth is crucial because “you teach what you know, but you reproduce what you are.” To increase team potential, the leader must keep growing.

The story of King David’s warriors becoming “giant killers” because they were influenced by his character and actions illustrates that followers become like their leaders. Examine your own conduct before criticizing your team’s.

Lead-Down Principle #6: Transfer the Vision

After modeling behavior, developing relationships, and training people, the next crucial step in leading down is transferring the vision. As mid-level leaders are typically interpreters, not inventors, of the vision, they are the crucial link between top leaders and the people. Effective transfer fires up the team and sets them in the right direction.

Elements of Effective Vision Transfer

• 1. Clarity: The vision must be clear and complete for people to “get” it. Like a Padres baseball game picture revealed piece by piece, gradually unveil the vision. Ask: “What do I want them to know, and what do I want them to do?”
• 2. Connection of Past, Present, and Future: Don’t just focus on the future. Honor the past (history, founders) to provide security and validation. Connect it to the present and future to create a unified narrative, enhancing power and continuity.
• 3. Purpose: Vision tells where to go; purpose tells why to go. This gives meaning to tasks, aids adjustments, and fuels motivation, helping people stay on target.
• 4. Goals: Vision needs measurable and attainable goals with a clear strategy. “Hope is not a strategy.” A process makes the vision realistic, increasing confidence.
• 5. A Challenge: A compelling vision requires people to stretch. A challenge fires up the committed and helps define the uncommitted. It encourages good people to spread their wings.
• 6. Stories: Humanize the vision with stories of struggle, victory, and contribution from others involved. This makes the vision relatable and helps average people see themselves as part of it.
• 7. Passion: If there is no passion, the vision is not transferable; it’s just a snapshot. Passion is contagious and provides the necessary fire for people to work hard, overcome obstacles, and go the extra mile.

Dan Reiland’s success at Skyline Church in transferring Maxwell’s vision to his Joint Venture class, leading to a continuous flow of new board members, illustrates effective vision transfer from “me to we.” When mid-level leaders excel at transferring vision, even large organizations can turn quickly, as it’s the size of the leaders within it, not just the organization’s size, that matters.

Lead-Down Principle #7: Reward for Results

“Whatever gets rewarded gets done.” This fundamental truth applies to all aspects of leadership. Leaders must be careful what they reward, as those actions will be repeated. Rewarding for results inspires people, fosters productivity, and enhances job satisfaction, making you a more effective and influential 360-Degree Leader.

Principles for Effective Rewards

• 1. Give Praise Publicly and Privately: Start with praise, which can never be given too much. Praise privately first for integrity, then publicly for greater impact. “It’s okay to let those you lead outshine you, for if they shine brightly enough, they reflect positively on you,” advises Billy Hornsby.
• 2. Give More Than Just Praise: “If you praise them but don’t raise them, it won’t pay their bills. If you raise them but don’t praise them, it won’t cure their ills.” Talk is cheap; back up praise with fair financial compensation. The most costly employees are those whose work doesn’t match their pay.
• 3. Don’t Reward Everyone the Same: While “fairness” is often demanded, it’s not fair to reward unequal results equally. “Any business or industry that pays equal rewards to its goof-offs and its eager beavers sooner or later will find itself with more goof-offs than eager beavers.” Praise effort for everyone, but reward results financially.
• 4. Give Perks Beyond Pay: When financial rewards are limited, offer perks like reserved parking, event tickets, or corporate suite use. Secure leaders also share their relational wealth by introducing employees to beneficial contacts. Acknowledge and extend perks to employees’ family members when appropriate, recognizing their sacrifices.
• 5. Promote When Possible: Promote from within when factors are equal. A promotion signifies belief in an employee’s ability to do more and is a powerful reward for performance. The best promotions are self-evident because the individual has clearly grown into the role.
• 6. Remember That You Get What You Pay For: Underpaying staff attracts and keeps only average or poor performers. If you want to attract and keep good people, you must pay them what they’re worth. Otherwise, you’ll end up with people who are worth what you pay.

Leadership is like a balance scale: rewards counterbalance results. Instead of pushing for more from employees, load up the rewards side (the side you control) to motivate them to produce more. By giving more, you get more, and so do your people.

Section V Review: The Principles 360-Degree Leaders Need to Lead Down

This section summarizes the seven principles essential for 360-Degree Leaders to master in order to effectively lead down within their organizations:

1. Walk Slowly Through the Halls: Prioritize informal connections and express genuine care for people as individuals, balancing personal and professional interest, and noticing when people avoid you.
2. See Everyone as a “10”: Look for potential, lend your belief, catch them doing right, give them the benefit of the doubt, recognize diverse definitions of “10,” and treat them with high regard.
3. Develop Each Team Member as a Person: View development as a long-term process, discover individual dreams, lead everyone differently, integrate development with organizational goals, help them with self-awareness, be ready for hard conversations, and celebrate the right wins, preparing them for future leadership.
4. Place People in Their Strength Zones: Discover true strengths, give them the right job that aligns with those strengths, and provide world-class training, understanding that every player has a niche where they add the most value.
5. Model the Behavior You Desire: Ensure your behavior, attitude, values, investment, character, work ethic, and growth consistently exemplify what you want to see in your team.
6. Transfer the Vision: Communicate vision with clarity, connecting past, present, and future, defining its purpose and goals, presenting a challenge, incorporating stories, and conveying passion.
7. Reward for Results: Praise publicly and privately, give more than just praise (including financial and non-financial perks), avoid rewarding everyone the same, and promote when possible, understanding that “whatever gets rewarded gets done.”

Section VI: The Value of 360-Degree Leaders

Becoming a 360-Degree Leader requires significant effort but is immensely valuable. Maxwell emphasizes that organizations always need more leaders, and the positive impact of 360-Degree Leaders is transformative. On challenging days, remember why the effort is worthwhile.

Value #1: A Leadership Team Is More Effective Than Just One Leader

Leadership is a complex and difficult skill that no single person ever fully masters. Even the greatest leaders have blind spots. Therefore, the solution is to develop leadership teams at every level. A group of leaders working together is always more effective than one leader working alone.

Leaders Who Build Teams

• Visionary Leaders Are Willing to Hire People Better Than Themselves: Their paramount desire is to fulfill the vision, even if it means hiring and paying individuals more than themselves. This prioritizes the vision over ego.
• Wise Leaders Shape Their People into a Team: They recognize they cannot achieve significance alone. They seek the best people, not just subservient ones, because each team member is needed to complete the whole. Chris Hodges’s practice of building cosponsor teams, even across aisles, reflects this wisdom.
• Secure Leaders Empower Their Teams: “No amount of personal competency compensates for personal insecurity.” Secure leaders focus on others, empower them, and are happy to let them take credit.
• Experienced Leaders Listen to Their Teams: Generals, despite their rank, acknowledge that field officers know more about unit strengths. “A successful general must listen more than he talks.” If people aren’t following, listen more, don’t be more forceful.
• Productive Leaders Understand That One Is Too Small a Number to Achieve Greatness: Organizations evolve: from 1980s management (consistency) to 1990s individual leadership (change) to 2000s team leadership (complexity). Leadership is multifaceted, requiring skills to lead up, across, and down. A team of 360-Degree Leaders provides unparalleled effectiveness.

Value #2: Leaders Are Needed at Every Level of the Organization

“Everything rises and falls on leadership.” Without effective leadership at every level—from the top down to individual teams—organizations inevitably drift, suffer delays, multiply agendas, extend conflicts, experience low morale, reduce production, and find success difficult to achieve. Maxwell emphasizes that leadership makes the difference at every level.

What Happens Without a Leader

• Without a Leader, Vision Is Lost: Vision leaks and dissipates, leaving the team without direction. A leader, as a visionary, eventually provides direction even if the team starts without one.
• Without a Leader, Decisions Are Delayed: Leaders are inherently decision-makers. In their absence, decisions are slow or not made at all, as demonstrated by President Reagan’s shoe story.
• Without a Leader, Agendas Are Multiplied: Without a unifying voice, individuals pursue personal agendas, leading to disunity.
• Without a Leader, Conflicts Are Extended: Leaders are crucial for conflict resolution. Their absence prolongs and worsens disputes.
• Without a Leader, Morale Is Low: “Leaders are dealers in hope.” Morale is defined as “faith in the leader at top,” so its absence leads to plummeting spirits.
• Without a Leader, Production Is Reduced: Leaders make things happen. Charles Schwab’s chalk mark story illustrates how a simple leadership challenge can dramatically increase productivity.
• Without a Leader, Success Is Difficult: Jim Collins’s research for “Good to Great” initially sought to downplay leadership but ultimately concluded that every great company was led by a “level five leader.” Leadership is indispensable for organizational success.

Organizations need 360-Degree Leaders at every level to be well led.

Value #3: Leading Successfully at One Level Is a Qualifier for Leading at the Next Level

Growing organizations seek qualified individuals to step up. The key to advancing as an emerging leader is to focus on leading well in your current position, not on aspiring to the next one. Leading effectively where you are builds the resume for future opportunities.

How to Qualify for the Next Level

• Leadership Is a Journey That Starts Where You Are, Not Where You Want to Be: Focus on current responsibilities. “You can’t get anywhere until you first know where you are.” Ken Rosenthals notes that each new growth stage puts you at the bottom of another ladder. Don’t lament the past; focus on the present.
• Leadership Skills Are the Same, but the “League of Play” Changes: While skills are constant, each new level demands higher proficiency, similar to moving up in sports leagues. Your best chance for the next level is to grow on your current level.
• Great Responsibilities Come Only After Handling Small Ones Well: Start small and work up. Influencing one person precedes building a team. “Start doing what is necessary; then do what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible,” said St. Francis of Assisi. Personal conquests pave the way for larger ones.
• Leading at Your Current Level Creates Your Resumé for Going to the Next Level: Your current track record is the primary determinant for future opportunities. “When I interview someone for a job, I put 90 percent of the emphasis on the track record.”
• When You Can Lead Volunteers Well, You Can Lead Almost Anyone: Leading volunteers is a “foolproof” test of leadership. It requires maximum leadership skill because there’s no positional leverage. If you thrive here, you possess strong qualifications for higher organizational levels. Encourage team members to volunteer to test their leadership potential.

“Leadership is action, not position.” Act effectively where you are, and opportunities for advancement will follow.

Value #4: Good Leaders in the Middle Make Better Leaders at the Top

In developed, free-market nations, a strong leadership culture emerges due to competitive markets. In contrast, many developing countries struggle with leadership quality, often due to highly positional top leaders who suppress mid-level leadership. When there are no 360-Degree Leaders, top leaders are less effective. “Good leaders anywhere in an organization make better leaders at the top—and make for a much better organization overall.”

Impact of Good Mid-Level Leaders

• Every Time You Add a Good Leader, You Get a Better Team: Good leaders maximize team performance, setting direction, inspiring, and achieving results. A change in coach often elevates player performance.
• Every Time You Add a Good Leader, All the Leaders in the Organization Get Better: “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” Strong mid-level leaders raise the bar for performance and teamwork, challenging others to improve.
• Good Leaders in the Middle Add Value to the Leaders Above Them: Being closer to the “trenches,” they possess vital information and influence at lower levels, “stretching” the top leaders’ influence beyond their direct reach. This makes top leaders more effective.
• Good Leaders in the Middle Release Top Leaders to Focus on Their Priorities: They prevent senior leaders from getting bogged down by low-level problems, allowing them to operate at their strategic level. “The leaders at the top can only be as good as the middle leaders working for them.”
• Good Leaders in the Middle Motivate Leaders Above Them to Continue Growing: Their excellent performance inspires healthy competition and a desire for continuous improvement in top leaders.
• Good Leaders in the Middle Give the Organization a Future: Future success requires innovation, growth, and a continuous supply of new leaders. “The ultimate test for a leader is not whether he or she makes smart decisions and takes decisive action, but whether he or she teaches others to be leaders and builds an organization that can sustain its success even when he or she is not around.” Today’s workers become tomorrow’s mid-level leaders, and today’s mid-level leaders become tomorrow’s top leaders.

Leadership succession is a key responsibility. By developing 360-Degree Leaders, you build organizational depth and strength.

Value #5: 360-Degree Leaders Possess Qualities Every Organization Needs

360-Degree Leaders are distinct due to specific internal qualities that enable them to lead in every direction. These qualities add immense value to any organization.

Essential Qualities of 360-Degree Leaders

• Adaptability—Quickly Adjusts to Change: Mid-level leaders are rarely the first to know or decide, so they must process change quickly. They help early, middle, and late adapters. Being flexible is key; “Blessed are the flexible, for they will not be bent out of shape.”
• Discernment—Understands the Real Issues: They cut through clutter, knowing what truly matters. Like the story of the president and the priest with the parachutes, they identify core problems. They “know which half to believe” when listening.
• Perspective—Sees Beyond Their Own Vantage Point: “Leadership is seeing opportunity in tough times.” Mid-level leaders have a unique advantage, seeing their own level, one level up, and one level down. This gives them a comprehensive view unavailable to others.
• Communication—Links to All Levels of the Organization: They act as crucial conduits, using their unique perspective to communicate both up and down the chain of command. Effective communication is 360-degree. Martin Luther King Jr. emphasized that maintaining open channels between people and leaders is vital for any movement.
• Security—Finds Identity in Self, Not Position: They are secure in who they are, not just their title. They don’t worry about “where they are” but focus on “who they are becoming.” They understand that “the true measure of leaders is not the number of people who serve them but the number of people they serve.”
• Servanthood—Does Whatever It Takes: They adopt a “servant first, leader second” attitude, measuring actions by the value they add to the mission and those on it. Robert Greenleaf’s definition of servant leadership begins with the natural desire to serve.
• Resourcefulness—Finds Creative Ways to Make Things Happen: They thrive with less authority and fewer resources. The story of the campaign manager who turned a potential copyright disaster into a deal by asking the photo studio “what will you pay us?” demonstrates exceptional resourcefulness.
• Maturity—Puts the Team Before Self: Defined as “putting the team before oneself.” Mature leaders don’t possess a “me-first” attitude. The example of principals sacrificing raises to hire a bilingual specialist for students illustrates this.
• Endurance—Remains Consistent in Character and Competence Over the Long Haul: Unlike cheetahs with small hearts who can only sprint, leaders need endurance. The challenges of mid-level leadership require sustained effort and consistent performance.
• Countability—Can Be Counted On When It Counts: This means teammates can truly depend on each other, a concept Maxwell defines as “countability.” It fosters a culture of reliability and shared success.

The ultimate example of a 360-Degree Leader is General George C. Marshall, who successfully led up to President Roosevelt (who called him “the organizer of victory” and couldn’t sleep without him in the country), across to Allied commanders (ensuring cooperation and winning strategic debates), and down with his officers (expanding the U.S. military from 200,000 to 8.3 million). His post-war influence as Secretary of State led to the Marshall Plan, a testament to his selfless service and global impact, earning him the Nobel Peace Prize. He demonstrated that positive impact can be made anywhere in life, regardless of title, by consistently adding value to others.

Section VI Review: The Value of 360-Degree Leaders

This section reiterates the immense value that 360-Degree Leaders bring to an organization, serving as encouragement for continued growth and effort in leading from the middle.

1. A leadership team is more effective than just one leader: Collective leadership at all levels amplifies organizational effectiveness.
2. Leaders are needed at every level of the organization: Leadership is the linchpin; everything rises and falls on it, and its absence leads to organizational decay.
3. Leading successfully at one level is a qualifier for leading at the next level: Current performance builds the resume and develops the skills necessary for future advancement.
4. Good leaders in the middle make better leaders at the top: They extend the reach of top leaders, free them to focus on high-level priorities, motivate them, and ensure the organization’s future through continuous leader development.
5. 360-Degree leaders possess qualities every organization needs: These include adaptability, discernment, perspective, communication, security, servanthood, resourcefulness, maturity, endurance, and countability—qualities that drive overall success.

Special Section: Create an Environment That Unleashes 360-Degree Leaders

This section is addressed to top leaders, emphasizing their unique power to create a positive leadership culture. Over two-thirds of employees leave their jobs due to ineffective leaders. Top leaders must shift from merely leading the organization to serving and empowering leaders at all levels, fostering an environment where potential leaders can flourish and become 360-Degree Leaders. This is a journey that may take years but is crucial for long-term organizational success.

The Leader’s Daily Dozen

Top leaders should commit to these twelve power-unleashing activities daily to cultivate a leader-friendly environment:

1. Place a High Value on People: The fundamental shift. Organizations that prioritize people over just vision and bottom line will eventually win all three. Level five leaders consistently credit their people.
2. Commit Resources to Develop People: Development is an investment. It costs less than the cost of NOT developing people. Provide books, courses, and opportunities for growth.
3. Place a High Value on Leadership: Recognize that leadership is essential at every level. Like the American military valuing its sergeants, emphasize and cultivate leadership throughout the ranks.
4. Look for Potential Leaders: Actively search for “eagles” with qualities like initiative, influence, value-adding, team-building, idea-generating, positive attitude, commitment, and loyalty.
5. Know and Respect Your People: Understand individual desires (results, effectiveness, appreciation, inclusion in celebration) and tailor your approach.
6. Provide Your People with Leadership Experiences: Delegate actual leadership functions with authority and accountability, allowing them to gain practical experience, rather than just tasks.
7. Reward Leadership Initiative: Encourage and reward proactive leadership, even if emerging leaders sometimes act before they are fully ready. A scarcity mindset hinders this; an abundance mindset fosters risk-taking.
8. Provide a Safe Environment Where People Ask Questions, Share Ideas, and Take Risks: Secure top leaders welcome challenges to old ideas and the status quo. They act as advisors and advocates, not just “Mr. Answerman.” “Leaders have a say in what they are being led to. A leader who neglects that soon finds himself without followers.”
9. Grow with Your People: Top leaders should constantly grow themselves, modeling a culture of continuous learning. This removes barriers and sends a clear message that growth is a priority for everyone.
10. Draw People with High Potential into Your Inner Circle: Mentoring is the most effective way to develop high-caliber leaders. Handpick the best and invest your best into them, whether one-on-one or in groups.
11. Commit Yourself to Developing a Leadership Team: Recognize that no one can do everything well. Develop a team of leaders who can fill gaps, challenge, and sharpen each other, breaking through the “glass ceiling of our own leadership limitations.”
12. Unleash Your Leaders to Lead: The most challenging step is releasing leaders. Top leaders should become “lid lifters,” removing barriers for their teams. When top leaders lift lids for middle leaders, those middle leaders become “load lifters” for the top. This leads to the legacy of a leader: moving from leading everything personally to leading only a few strategic things, as Lao-Tzu observed, “A leader is best when the people barely know he exists.”

Tom Mullins’s journey from founding pastor doing everything to primarily coaching and advising a large, active church with many 360-Degree Leaders exemplifies this ultimate stage of leadership. The organization’s success far exceeds his initial dreams due to empowering others. By creating an environment that develops 360-Degree Leaders, you will eventually be able to lead, empower, and then get out of the way, leaving a lasting positive impact.