When I was about six or seven, I decided I wanted to smoke ~ my dad smoked and he was the smartest and most wonderful person in the world to me.  Of course, this totally threw my mother (can you imagine the scolding my dad received later?) and gave her the ammunition she needed to convince my dad to finally kick the habit.  You see, I wanted to be just like my dad in every possible facet.   I tried to talk like him, copy his mannerisms, anything ~ because I related that to success.  

In Direct Selling, you may hear folks say that you need to duplicate yourself.  We are reminded to keep our systems simple, so it is easy for others to follow.  As we grow our teams and become leaders, we try to teach our systems in booking, sales and recruiting. 

But have you ever thought about what else you are teaching your team?  To me, this is where we truly cut the Divas from the herd.  Like it or not, you are replicating everything!  Your team will adopt your behaviors, habits, and—if you have a strong personality— even your mannerisms.

This has powerful implications for leadership. Unconsciously, your people will mimic you. This means:

• If you are late to meetings, your people will be late to meetings.
• If you don’t take notes in meetings, your people won’t take notes in meetings.
• If you are angry and defensive when you get negative feedback, your people will be angry and defensive when they get negative feedback.
• If you make excuses, are lazy, blame others and procrastinate – they will too!

These behaviors don’t increase paychecks.

Conversely:

• If you are humble and grateful, your people will be humble and grateful.
• If you are warm and engaging, your people will be warm and engaging.
• If you are even-tempered and unflinching under fire, your people will be even-tempered and unflinching under fire.

Ghandi said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” I would add, “Be the change you want to see in your organization.” If you don’t like the culture of your downline, team or company, start by changing yourself. Set a new standard.  This is the most powerful thing you can do to change your world.

The bottom line is that you are the prototype for your followers. Your actions speak louder than words. You must pay careful attention to your own behavior. You are a living example of what it takes to go to the next level. You will replicate yourself.

Consider:  If your people imitated you in everything you do, would you be happy with their performance? What needs to change in your own behavior, so that you ensure that their behavior is congruent with your deepest values?

Action:  Create a list of the behaviors you want your team to duplicate.  Make sure you are walking the walk and not just talking the talk.