Home from school at last, the five-year-old boy ran up the stairs, bursting at the seams with excitement, anxious to tell his daddy what had happened in class today. “Guess what, Daddy? I got to be the Class Leader today!”
Turning to greet his son, the father caught the contagious excitement of his preschooler and responded enthusiastically, “Really? Class Leader? That’s a big deal, little buddy. What did you get to do as the Class Leader?”
Without hesitation the boy proudly declared, “I got to open doors for people!”
This charming story, about author Bill Treasurer and his son, Ian, served as the inspiration for Bill’s book, Leaders Open Doors. In an interview with Huffington Post contributor BJ Gallagher, Bill explained,
“With seven simple words, Ian cut through two decades of studying and researching about leadership. ‘I got to open doors for people!’ Ian’s simple but profound insight helped remind me that leaders are simply creators of opportunity for others: they open doors for people.”
Whether you are a senior executive in a large corporation, a salesperson in a retail store, a teacher at a middle school, or a stay-at-home parent, you are a leader. As I’ve said over and over, everyone is a leader. No matter your title or lack of title, you are a leader. No matter who you are, you have influence in the lives of other people, and leadership is influence.
So as a leader, you are a creator of opportunity for others! It is your privilege and responsibility to “open doors for people.” What doors will you open today?
