Servant Leadership?

I've long been a fan of the term "servant leadership" and I think I defined it in my head as rolling my sleeves up and working alongside those I lead; never asking them to do anything that I wouldn't be willing to work on with them; always putting their needs ahead of mine and making time to encourage or train or affirm or coach.

I recently read an article that I thought did a much better job of defining servant leadership, and really articulated so well the one of the keys to effective leadership. The article explained the hallmark of servant leadership as really being about equipping and enabling people. Its so simple -- as most really good definitions are! If I want to be a good leader, I can't stop at setting a vision and getting people excited about it, I have to really make sure that they are set up for success. Teaching, coaching, training -- all key elements. Equipping means that I provide the tools and resources needed -- either I provide training or support myself, or I make sure to get the right support lined up; Enabling is really about making sure that people know what they need to know to deliver on a task...very different from doing it "for them" (enabling can have a very negative connotation in some applications)...it's really about filling in gaps (there's that darn gap thing again) so that people see the big picture and how their work fits in; showing them examples to help get them started and providing practical guidance on how to move forward.

I know lots of leaders that are really good at casting vision and getting people excited, but a good portion of them fall short on enabling and equipping. I probably tend to err on the side of enabling and equipping without paying enough attention to the vision casting piece...

Now, I can choose to work on the areas I'm weak in, or partner up with leaders who need me as much as I need them...I tend to prefer the latter approach. Seems more efficient, and I just can't resist filling in the gap between a great vision and implementation! ;-)

Anyway, there's a new definition of servant leadership to chew on...let me know what you think!?