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In Lead with Luv, Ken Blanchard points out that a Compelling Vision tells You:
- Who You Are (Your Purpose);
- Where You Are Going (Your Picture of the Future); and
- What Will Guide Your Journey (Your Values).
He then tells the story of Southwest Airlines’ success, which was built on three core themes: Warrior Spirit, Servant’s Heart, and a Fun-Luving Attitude!
Have a Warrior Spirit
Barrett pointed out that the founders of Southwest Airlines fought to be the best. She urges others to do the same, and take pride in your legacy.
Start by setting clear expectations. Like a parent, you need to focus on your key 3-4 expectations, and model those expectations. At Southwest Airlines, “Our employees are our #1 customer—if we treat people with respect, we believe they’ll treat passengers with respect… Our employees understand that they’re trusted to do the right thing… Shareholders are #3—but note that we’ve run a profit for 40 consecutive years!”
Ken Blanchard relayed a story from Norman Vincent Peale, who once told him that the two best traits you can have to lead a fulfilling life are patience & persistence. He said we need patience because God’s timetable is different than ours. Things don’t always happen or occur on our schedule. But when they do happen, it’s usually at the right time. When you become impatient, persistence should take over, which means keep on moving. Then if your persistence—doing something—leads to frustration, go back to patience.
Have a Servant’s Heart
Southwest Airlines recognized that people make the difference for the company. Their founders were all raised by the Golden Rule. Colleen Barrett pointed out that she was “born to be a servant leader.”
She and the other founders wanted to be the airline for the underdog and the little guy. They formed trusting bonds with fellow team members and customers, sharing their heart with others. Barrett describes the “Southwest Spirit” as “treating each other and customers as family.”
Blanchard observed, “It’s interesting that the second trait that Jim Collins (in his book Good to Great) identified to describe great leaders, after will, which we mentioned earlier, was humility. It’s the capacity to realize that leadership is not about the leader, it’s about the people and what they need.”
Barrett echoed that sentiment, noting that the role of leaders at Southwest is to serve—not to be served. They want to bring out the best in all people and thrive on developing others with the belief that individuals with expertise will come forward as needed throughout the organization.
Robert Greenleaf summarized the notion of “Having a Servant’s Heart” well in his treatise on Servant Leadership when he said: “The true test of a Servant Leader is this: Do those around the Servant Leader become wiser, freer, more autonomous, healthier, and better able themselves to become Servant Leaders?”
Southwest Airlines looks for Servant Leaders, as they interview, hire, and promote—no matter what title or position they are going to hold, they have to want to serve. They need to have a Servant’s Heart—a passion for serving others. They expect all employees to follow The Golden Rule, adhere to Southwest’s basic principles, treat others with respect, put others first, be egalitarian, demonstrate proactive Customer Service, and embrace the Southwest Airlines family.
Their application process is extensive: everybody is important, so they screen out people who treat the receptionist poorly. They hire for attitude and train for skill. The results are remarkable, as they’re the only airline without a furlough in 41 years!
Have a Fun-Luving Attitude
Barrett said that the Southwest Airlines founders wanted all employees to wear professionalism lightly. Their feeling was that if you appear stiff and inflexible, the message was to leave fun at home.
So, they gave people flexibility to make decisions with their head and heart—trusting people to make good decisions. Barrett explained that the most important thing they learned as an organization was to treat people with respect because they believe every person can make a difference.
Building a culture with a Fun-Luving (LUV is Southwest Airlines stock exchange identifier) attitude was so important to Southwest that they formed a Company Culture Committee (CCC) before they even published an organizational chart. Their CCC is a group dedicated to preserving the Culture for the present and the future. The Committee stresses that the Southwest Culture resides in each Employee—no matter the Employee’s title. The Committee consists of about 120 individuals who serve three-year terms. In addition to attending quarterly meetings, Committee members are required to participate in Culture events throughout the system. After serving three years, a member moves to Alumni status, but many Alumni remain active in Culture activities.
What can you learn from Southwest Airlines’ Leading with Luv? May these lessons serve you well as you shoot for the stars!