The Power of “We”

Earlier this week, Chris Mothorpe sent Carrie and I an email noting that we like quotes. He thought something he heard at church would resonate with us:

The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say “I.” And that’s not because they have trained themselves not to say “I.” They don’t think “I.” They think “we”; they think “team.” They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don’t sidestep it, but “we” gets the credit. This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done.

He was right. We loved it, and it articulates our aspirations for Our School of Business.

It reminded me, years ago, I read this short article, “Leadership Grammar: We before I except before See” and it remains one of my absolute favorite insights. As we build our future together, it’s a great reminder that we do it together. That we communicate and respect each other. But it’s also important that you know that I see you, the challenges you face, the sacrifices you make, your incredible accomplishments, and the impact you make. We must recognize our collective efforts as well as see how each of us, as individuals, contributes.

As we create our collective future, remember the 3 question survey that gathers some of your thoughts on how we make a societal impact. Also, the 20-question open-ended survey to help us continue updating our strategic plan. You can answer all 20 questions or as many as you would like. And if you know someone who has valuable insights, please forward them the links as well. The results of both surveys will be shared, and we will use them to jumpstart our conversations.

Don’t forget to think “we.” And remember…

YOU make a difference.

Remember: