Oak Park MI All Stars 1963. Rob fourth from the left – back row.

Last week I had the pleasure of hosting John U. Bacon to discuss his book Let Them Lead. If you missed the event, you can watch it here. Also catch up with John on his Let Them Lead podcast, you can listen to it here.

Here Are 20 of John’s Rules for Leadership: 

1. When you are first introduced to a leadership role do not be afraid to ask for help. People think when they become leaders that they cannot rely on others for help, but that is a big mistake.
2. To make it special to be on your team, make it hard to be on your team.
3. Make only a few rules. The more rules you make, the more your team wants to break them.
4. When in doubt, always choose to do the right thing.
5. When you have a problem with someone, you have two choices: either bring it to them and only them, or keep it to yourself. Doing anything else will make things worse. But if you bring the problem directly to them, you’ve given them their very best chance to come through.
6. John’s two rules 1. Work hard 2. Support your teammates
7. Don’t lie to your people, they are not stupid.
8. Tell them the bad news, so everyone together can find a solution.
9. Jon Cooper stated, “Bad teams, nobody leads. Good teams, coach’s lead. Great teams, everybody leads”.
10. Give everyone a chance: water all the plants. Don’t be fooled by resumes and interviews.
11. Let them surprise you.
12. When there is a victory do not take credit for it. You did not score a single goal or make any passes as a player. Let the captain get their trophy and you walk off. That is the team’s trophy, not yours.
13. If your team fails, you have to take full responsibility but you are also allowed to fix it.
14. If you play favorites it is not good for the team’s culture. The favorite is demotivated since they know their job is secure, while everyone underneath them is only demotivated since they know the top is never attainable.
15. You have to work harder than your people do, and they need to see that.
16. There is no reason to be stingy with praise, especially for those who need it the most.
17. Do not try to fool your people, they will know you better than you know yourself.
18. If you are a leader you will be criticized, it is unavoidable so take it as a compliment.
19. There is nothing more important for any leader than getting to know your people.
20. Talent is not fixed, nor is immaturity, grit, or leadership ability. If you give them opportunities, they will grow.