Read this post and click the link on the Common Sense PR blog. The link highlights axioms of Fred Ross, Sr., and I haven’t read anything this good in a long, long time.
I appears as though what most of us are most impressed with are organizers, not leaders. Here are my favorite points from his list:
An organizer is not someone who leads but someone who gets behind people and pushes.
90% of organizing is follow-up.
Good organizers never give up – they get the opposition to do that.
To win the hearts and minds of people, forget the dry facts and statistics; tell them the stories that won you to the cause.
The only way to organize is to organize, not to sit around and jaw about it.
I dare you to read through the list and not find at least three points that hit home. Do us a favor and write your favorites in the comments below.
4 responses so far ↓
Eric Eggertson // April 5, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Brett: The organizers in question were trying to create representation for migrant farm workers, who were so marginalized they felt they had no say in working conditions, wages, living quarters, etc.
That being said, the same qualities of clear goals, listening, providing encouragement, doing the legwork, communicating, following through, making good use of motivated advocates, etc., also apply to many situations in business and society.
Thanks for the mention!
Brett // April 5, 2008 at 2:06 pm
Eric –
And the fact that they were organizing volunteers instead of employees makes it all even more compelling. I believe it was John Maxwell who suggested testing your leadership with volunteers to truly develop it.
Still, if you can tap into that organizer spirit and rally the troops rather than just set the agenda, the same results will occur. We all want to work for much more than money.
cwd // April 7, 2008 at 1:59 pm
Brent – thanks for pioneering the world of organizing.
Brett // April 7, 2008 at 3:30 pm
CWD – thanks for contributing so much to the blog.