{"id":1327,"date":"2025-02-03T10:11:19","date_gmt":"2025-02-03T10:11:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/samgembel.com\/blog\/?p=1327"},"modified":"2025-02-03T10:17:35","modified_gmt":"2025-02-03T10:17:35","slug":"we-can-teach-what-we-know-but-we-reproduce-who-we-are","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/samgembel.com\/blog\/we-can-teach-what-we-know-but-we-reproduce-who-we-are\/","title":{"rendered":"We Can Teach What We Know, But We Reproduce Who We Are"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cThe way you do one thing is the way you do everything.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0— Ed Mylett\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Leadership isn\u2019t just about sharing knowledge; it\u2019s about modeling behaviors. You can teach your team every best practice there is out there, every skill, and every technical aspect of the job – but at the end of the day, they will mirror who you are more than what you say!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s a reality I had to face in my own leadership journey through some of our very tough growth years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learned a valuable lesson… We Teach What We Know, But We Reproduce Who We Are!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, I found myself frustrated with my team\u2019s often reactive approach to problems. It seemed like we were constantly in firefighting mode, addressing issues as they popped up rather than preventing them in the first place. I would shake my head and ask myself, Why aren\u2019t they ever thinking ahead? Why aren\u2019t they solving problems before they happen?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then it hit me: They were just following my example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had created a culture of reaction rather than a culture of preparation. I was always the guy who could step in, show up in the fire, help to fix the problem, and move on to the next one. But in doing so, I wasn\u2019t building the systems we needed to eliminate those problems in the first place. My team was simply operating the way I had shown them – reacting instead of proactively leading. In a weird way, we got really good at it. But it wasn’t a sustainable model by any means. And it took a long time to break us of some bad habits. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The real difference in building up your team isn\u2019t just in what you teach – it\u2019s in your grit. The determination to change, to improve, and to set a higher standard starts right at the top. Your team will rise to the level of the example you set, not the level of the words you speak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what do we do about it? We MUST commit to being the leader we want to see in others. What does this look like? I thought you’d never ask… <\/p>\n\n\n\n