The One Who Goes First

On Being a Leader

It was in the first huddle and with some of the first words out of his mouth, he immediately lost my respect. “Look busy”, he said. The eyes in the sky are watching. “So, look busy.” The managers come in before 5am, so “Look busy”.

Dude, I’m not getting paid to “look busy”. I’m getting paid to do the work that needs to be done. Putting the gift department back together every night. Customer service. Recovery and conditioning. Receiving and restocking. Deep cleaning. Floors. Cashier support, as needed.

I don’t need to “look busy”. I’m busy all night long. And I still can’t get it all done. There’s ALWAYS something to do.

As a Gen Xer, I was told growing up that if I complained about being bored, I would be given something to do. And that if I saw something around the house that needed to be done, just to do it. Don’t wait for or expect someone else to do it. Just do it yourself.

I have no interest in a career in middle management. But if I were Team Lead, I would train new gift associates myself. I would assign myself a department and have the new employees learn by helping me do the work in that area that night. And we would cycle through all of the departments until they were accurately and thoroughly trained.

If I were Team Lead and cashier support was requested, I would walk up to the registers immediately before asking any of the gift associates to leave their area to check out guests.

Because that’s what a leader is. The one who goes first.

If I were Team Lead, I would not only know how to do EVERYTHING gift associates are tasked with doing, but I would lead by example and actually do the work right alongside them.

If I were Team Lead, I would express appreciation at the start and end of every shift. I would speak to people. Not at them or about them during the team meeting.

Being a leader doesn’t mean you have followers. It means you go first.

~ Renee Mifsud

I don’t want to be promoted to Team Lead. And I don’t want followers. But as a leader in my own life, I always have and always will, go first.

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Pearls of Wisdom is a personal blog of the wisdom writings of Dara Eden that fall outside the realms of feng shui, The 8 Elements and her other personal energy work. Established in 2014, the blog is an expression of her highest values: Sovereignty, Truth, Wisdom & Inner Peace. It’s devoted to increasing awareness, expanding consciousness, bringing knowledge, sharing innerstandings and offering wisdom to the sovereign souls inhabiting the Earth.

Dara Eden is a writer and wisdom keepHER. The name, Dara, means “pearl of wisdom”. Pearls are formed when a microscopic irritant, like a grain of sand, embeds itself within the soft tissue of a shelled mollusk. To protect itself, the oyster or clam covers the invading gritty particle with concentric layers of iridescent crystalline calcium to form treasures, pearls of great beauty and worth. Gifts of the sea, pearls are the oldest known gem and the only gem that does not need to be cut, shaped or polished. Pearls are associated with elegance and luxury and are a symbol of mystery and purity. Pearls represent priceless knowledge, the rare wisdom that begins as a tiny, random, common irritant.