
Error message
In order to filter by the "in queue" property, you need to add the Entityqueue: Queue relationship.-
County NewsHow often have you been disengaged because you saw others disengaged? How often have you said or thought that you’re not going to give 100 percent of your skills and abilities because you think your boss is an idiot, your team is just not worth it or you’re not getting paid enough or don’t have the right title or it’s just not worth your time?You Can’t Wait to Be Great
-
County News Article
You Can’t Wait to Be Great
How often have you been disengaged because you saw others disengaged? How often have you said or thought that you’re not going to give 100 percent of your skills and abilities because you think your boss is an idiot, your team is just not worth it or you’re not getting paid enough or don’t have the right title or it’s just not worth your time? This is understandable sometimes, but it’s also illogical.
It’s understandable because you want to feel and see a sense of fairness. But we all know that life’s not fair. What you should be aware of is the fact that you’re always being watched. Whether you want to be or not, you are. And more than just being watched, you’re being judged.
You’re being watched all the time, and people are making judgments about you all the time. If you don’t feel that you have a great leader or boss or manager and therefore are not going to show up in a great way, how then do you show up? If it’s not your best, then it’s something closer to average or worse, and that’s how people see you. So, the fact that you’re waiting for someone around you to be great (or greater) is causing you to not be great. How illogical is that?
You don’t have control over who your boss is. You don’t always have control over who’s on your team. You do, however, have control over how you show up. If you show up in average ways, you’re going to find averageness all around you.
If you think there’s averageness all around you and you show up in the great way you’re capable of, you’ll start to see the average get better. People aren’t watching you only to make judgments; more likely, they’re watching you to take cues as to how to make sense of a very complex world and, in turn, how to act themselves. When they see mediocrity, they’ll base their expectations around that level of performance and come to believe that averageness is okay, desired or maybe even the best that’s possible.
Ryan Russell, who leads the human-centered design work at Amazon, reminded me that there’s a big difference in knowing the difference between average and great. He said, “When you have great people, you attract great people. Great people make people feel great.”
That, in part, is what the best leaders do. And it’s what the best followers do, too. Through our actions, we help enable people to do great things and in that process, we attract great people, and they also attract great people. If we have an average manager, we can help that person get better. If we have an average teammate, we can help that person get better. But we can help them get better only if we choose to be great all the time.
Remember, excellence is not an exception. You can’t wait to have a great leader or great teammates for you to show up in a great way. Make the conscious decision to show up great and to be great all the time. Now you might think that “all the time” is a lot. Yes, it is. The greatest leaders know that the best never give up their enthusiasm to be great and to do great things. They make the decision to be great every day. Louie Ehrlich, the former president and chief information officer at Chevron said, “Everything you do has an influence, whether you like it or not.” There’s no escaping that fact as a leader. You’re always being watched, and your actions are always influencing others.
How often have you been disengaged because you saw others disengaged?2019-09-16County News Article2023-04-11
How often have you been disengaged because you saw others disengaged? How often have you said or thought that you’re not going to give 100 percent of your skills and abilities because you think your boss is an idiot, your team is just not worth it or you’re not getting paid enough or don’t have the right title or it’s just not worth your time? This is understandable sometimes, but it’s also illogical.
It’s understandable because you want to feel and see a sense of fairness. But we all know that life’s not fair. What you should be aware of is the fact that you’re always being watched. Whether you want to be or not, you are. And more than just being watched, you’re being judged.
You’re being watched all the time, and people are making judgments about you all the time. If you don’t feel that you have a great leader or boss or manager and therefore are not going to show up in a great way, how then do you show up? If it’s not your best, then it’s something closer to average or worse, and that’s how people see you. So, the fact that you’re waiting for someone around you to be great (or greater) is causing you to not be great. How illogical is that?
You don’t have control over who your boss is. You don’t always have control over who’s on your team. You do, however, have control over how you show up. If you show up in average ways, you’re going to find averageness all around you.
If you think there’s averageness all around you and you show up in the great way you’re capable of, you’ll start to see the average get better. People aren’t watching you only to make judgments; more likely, they’re watching you to take cues as to how to make sense of a very complex world and, in turn, how to act themselves. When they see mediocrity, they’ll base their expectations around that level of performance and come to believe that averageness is okay, desired or maybe even the best that’s possible.
Ryan Russell, who leads the human-centered design work at Amazon, reminded me that there’s a big difference in knowing the difference between average and great. He said, “When you have great people, you attract great people. Great people make people feel great.”
That, in part, is what the best leaders do. And it’s what the best followers do, too. Through our actions, we help enable people to do great things and in that process, we attract great people, and they also attract great people. If we have an average manager, we can help that person get better. If we have an average teammate, we can help that person get better. But we can help them get better only if we choose to be great all the time.
Remember, excellence is not an exception. You can’t wait to have a great leader or great teammates for you to show up in a great way. Make the conscious decision to show up great and to be great all the time. Now you might think that “all the time” is a lot. Yes, it is. The greatest leaders know that the best never give up their enthusiasm to be great and to do great things. They make the decision to be great every day. Louie Ehrlich, the former president and chief information officer at Chevron said, “Everything you do has an influence, whether you like it or not.” There’s no escaping that fact as a leader. You’re always being watched, and your actions are always influencing others.

About Tim Rahschulte, Ph.D. (Full Bio)
Chief Executive Officer, The Professional Development Academy
Tim Rahschulte is the CEO of the Professional Development Academy and chief architect of the NACo High Performance Leadership Program (www.naco.org/skills). He is the co-author of “My Best Advice: Proven Rules for Effective Leadership.”More from Tim Rahschulte, Ph.D.
-
Blog
How counties are taking control of constituent communication
This blog post is sponsored by NACo partner Indigov. Enhance your government outreach! Discover the best strategies for effective constituent communication in our latest blog. -
Blog
Announcing 2023 Achievement Award Winners
NACo is pleased to announce the winners for the 2023 Achievement Awards. -
County News
‘Breaking Bad’ actor’s role of a lifetime: County commissioner
Steven Michael Quezada is what performers call a quadruple threat — he’s an actor, a writer, a producer... and an elected official. The string that ties all of them together? Bernalillo County, N.M. -
County News
Economic momentum, bipartisan hope mark Biden’s return to Legislative Conference
Not satisfied to coast on two years of legislative wins, President Joe Biden charted the path forward for what he called a blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America during his second consecutive address to NACo’s Legislative Conference. -
County News
Keith Carson channels Berkeley upbringing on Alameda County Board
A student government program that kept Keith Carson out of jail as a teenager helped him find a talent and passion for government and launched a career that has included 30 years on the Alameda County, Calif. Board of Supervisors. -
County News
President Biden to address 2023 NACo Legislative Conference
President Biden will join the Feb. 14 General Session at the NACo Legislative Conference.
-
Forum / Meeting
2023 NCCAE-NACo Knowledge Management Forum
August 16, 2023 – August 18, 2023The National Council of County Association Executives (NCCAE) and the National Association of Counties (NACo) invite you to join us at the in-person NCCAE-NACo Knowledge Management Forum August 16-18 at the GFOA headquarters in Coo08169:00 am<p>The National Council of County Association Executives (NCCAE) and the National Association of Counties (NACo) invite you to join us at the in-person <a href="Learn More
-
Conference
2023 NACo Fall Board Meeting
November 30, 2023 – December 2, 2023Save the date to join county leaders for NACo's Fall Board of Directors MeetingRamsey County (St. Paul), Minn.113011:00 am<h3>Save the Date</h3>
<p>Save the date to join county leaders for NACo's Fall Board of Directors Meeting in Ramsey County (St. Paul), Minn. Nov. 30 – Dec. 2.</p>
-
Basic page
NACo High Performance Leadership Academy
The NACo High Performance Leadership Academy is an online 12-week program that will empower frontline county government professionals with the most fundamental leadership skills to deliver results for counties and communities.pagepagepage<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width:100%" summary="medium-call-out transparent">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td>
Contact
-
Chief Executive Officer, The Professional Development Academy
Related Resources
-
Blog
How counties are taking control of constituent communication
This blog post is sponsored by NACo partner Indigov. Enhance your government outreach! Discover the best strategies for effective constituent communication in our latest blog. -
Blog
Announcing 2023 Achievement Award Winners
NACo is pleased to announce the winners for the 2023 Achievement Awards. -
County News
‘Breaking Bad’ actor’s role of a lifetime: County commissioner
Steven Michael Quezada is what performers call a quadruple threat — he’s an actor, a writer, a producer... and an elected official. The string that ties all of them together? Bernalillo County, N.M.
-
Press Release
Winfrey Begins NACo Presidency
Will County, Ill. Board Member Denise Winfrey was sworn in as president of the National Association of Counties (NACo) on July 24 at the conclusion of NACo’s 87th Annual Conference in Adams County, Colo. -
Video
NACo President Denise Winfrey Announces RISE!
During the 2022 NACo Annual Business Meeting, NACo President Denise Winfrey outlined her presidential priority, “RISE!” -
Video
2022 NACo Annual Conference Livestreams
Tune in for livestreams of select conference programming from the 2022 NACo Annual Conference & Exposition.
Related Events
-
16Aug2023
-
30Nov2023Conference
2023 NACo Fall Board Meeting
Nov. 30, 2023 – Dec. 2, 2023Ramsey County (St. Paul), Minn.
More From
-
Announcing 2023 Achievement Award Winners
NACo is pleased to announce the winners for the 2023 Achievement Awards.
Learn More