Fish Rots From the Head Meme Updated

Fish Rots From the Head Meme

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What the Proverb "A Fish Rots from the Head Down" Can Teach Sales Leaders
If You lot Are a Sales Leader, You Are Responsible for What'south Broken
A Fish Rots from the Head, Simply the Caput As well Leads the Way: A Lesson for Sales Leaders

I was fortunate plenty to attend Harvard Business School for my executive education. The form that I was role of was made up of entrepreneurs from around the world. One day, our professor posed a question to the class. I don't fifty-fifty remember what the question was, just I distinctly recollect the answer...

I of my classmates, a gentleman from India, raised his mitt and responded, "A fish rots from the head down". I was struck by the unfamiliarity of the expression (and maybe a fleck disgusted by information technology).

I had never heard it before and I honestly had no thought what it meant. Over the course of the program, I heard him repeat it so often that I cringed when I heard the words come out of his mouth. It seemed like this odd expression was his response to just about everything.

After several more years of life experience, I now know exactly what he meant and why he used the expression as frequently equally he did. The statement "a fish rots from the head downward" means that, in addition to being a major contributing cistron in an organization's success, leadership is besides the root cause of an organization's failure and demise. This is true whether that arrangement is a country, a company, or a sales force. How could it exist otherwise?

What the Saying "A Fish Rots from the Head Down" Can Teach Sales Leaders

Leadership is a wonderful blessing and a heavy burden. We often attribute the successes of our organizations to good leadership, rightly and so, of course. Good leaders have the ability to cast a vision and inspire others to follow through great trials and uncertainties, bringing themselves and others to new heights they had perhaps never dared to dream of and earning the recognition and praise of their colleagues and subordinates. There is, however, a less glamourous side of leadership - one that is as important to understand, prior to accepting whatever position of leadership. Responsibleness has two sides.

If You lot Are a Sales Leader, You lot Are Responsible for What'south Broken

If the culture is cleaved, simply leadership can fix it. If leadership does not establish and protect a healthy culture , that vacuum will be filled by some unhealthy culture. If the leadership culture itself is unhealthy, in that location begins the rot, and shortly the fish is lost. If a pocket of negativity and cynicism exists, it'south because leadership hasn't cut information technology out of the organization—especially when the negativity comes from the leadership ranks.

If the strategy or direction is cleaved, only leadership has the power to make up one's mind and to change it. The determination as to who the company is and how it will compete and win belongs to leadership. If the vision is incorrect, it is the leadership'southward vision. Leadership chooses where and how to compete. If that's wrong, leadership has to exercise something to change information technology.

If the organization doesn't execute , leadership that is responsible for that failure. Only leadership tin can need and ensure that the organization does the work, that information technology keeps its promises. Leadership sets and keeps the standards .

If a company is failing because they take the wrong people in place, just leadership can demand that the right people be hired and retained and that those who impairment the company's results quickly detect their manner out of the organization .

The list of significant problems that poor leadership tin cause is endless and is much more dangerous to an arrangement than any emerging competitor. That'due south why good leadership is critical at all levels of an arrangement.

To keep the fish from rotting, the head has to be smart enough to evaluate what it is doing—or not doing—and brand the necessary changes there beginning regardless of what the changes may exist or of the pain that must back-trail those changes. Simply leadership has the power to make those changes, though they will need the support of their entire squad to execute them.

It'south the only way to keep the fish from rotting.

A Fish Rots from the Head, But the Head Also Leads the Way: A Lesson for Sales Leaders

I promise this won't exist a fish anatomy lesson. Existence a sales manager or a leader of whatsoever type is a heavy responsibility. By accepting a leadership position you accept, like it or non assumed responsibleness for all of the successes AND failures of every single person under your leadership.

The cadet stops with you. It's not just about creating policies and mandates. It'southward nigh leading past example. The head doesn't simply tell the torso where to go, it goes in that location first.

Then if your organization is experiencing low productivity or laziness or any other significant issues, yous must be the i to address them. Information technology'southward not like shooting fish in a barrel, only if you're in a leadership position, it's because somebody believed that you could handle information technology. If that scares yous a petty, you're in good company. But y'all don't have to exercise it alone.

Sales leaders looking to create positive change and meet with other agreeing leaders are welcome to join us for our Sales Accelerator course where you'll develop the tools you demand to drive positive change in your organization.

Anthony Iannarino is a author, an author of iv books on the modern sales approach, an international speaker, and an entrepreneur. Anthony posts hither daily.