Learning Leadership from the Marines: How to be Unselfish
Leaders don’t have to spend time in the marines to learn from the way these disciplined individuals live their lives. In an era where companies like Facebook are seeing huge PR crises because of selfish behavior, the marines have the answer to better leadership strategies in their 14 principles for effective management.
One of the 14 principles covered by leaders in the Marines is the quest to be unselfish. Essentially, the idea is that all managers should put the needs of their company and their team before their own ego and appearance. Obviously, this is something that Facebook is currently struggling with. By trying to hide his mistakes, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has landed in a huge amount of trouble.
Becoming an Unselfish Leader:
According to the Marines, unselfishness is one of the most important traits of any leader, because it helps to separate the true manager of a group from the rest of the people in it. While anyone can work to build their own status or improve their reputation, it takes a great leader to put someone else before themselves. Of course, being unselfish isn’t always easy. After all, when Zuckerberg discovered that the group behind Trump’s campaign was using data without the knowledge of Facebook users, he knew that revealing that information to the press would reflect badly on him. Although it might have had a bad impact on the company to begin with too, the rumors are that Zuckerberg was more worried about his own income and profits.
If the CEO of Facebook had taken the time to think about the best interests of the company, he may have been able to realize that telling the truth is always the best way forward – especially in today’s world of social media connectivity.
Striving for Unselfishness:
Ultimately, if someone in a leadership position can accomplish the feat of being unselfish, then they might be able to get better results on the behalf of their company and improve the corporate culture at the same time. For instance, an unselfish leader is more willing to share their time and experiences with their staff members, and this helps those employees to grow. The more employees develop their skills, the more the business benefits as a whole.
Learning unselfishness means taking the ego out of the business experience. While this isn’t always easy – it’s an important element of getting ahead in today’s world – where customers focus on getting more trust and authenticity out of the companies they work with.
With an unselfish approach to business, leaders can take a more comprehensive view of what’s happening with their company, and make sure that they’re doing things for the good of the many – rather than the benefit of the few. Through a process such as this one will require a complete shift in mindset, it could also help companies like Facebook, and other PR crisis companies like United Airlines to start building the strong relationships with employees and customers that lead to a better brand reputation.
