Whether you lead a church, business, non-profit or a sports organization, the enlistment and development of young leaders is critical to your long-term success. In the July 11th edition of USA Today, writer Bob Nightengale profiles the best outfield in baseball, the Pittsburgh Pirates.
While their talent is rare, what makes the Pirates’ outfield so intriguing is their respective ages. Center fielder and reigning National League MVP Andrew McCutchen is 27 years old, left fielder Starling Marte is 25, and rookie right fielder Gregory Polanco is only 22 years of age.
As I read the article, I gleaned 8 Practices Of Top Young Leaders:
- Top Young Leaders Focus On Results – It is a mistake to think top young leaders are shallow and braggadocious. McCutchen says, “We let our actions do all of our talking. We don’t need anything else.”
- Top Young Leaders Are A Privilege To Lead – Pirates manager Clint Hurdle says, “You can manage and coach your entire career, and not have the opportunity to work with three young players of this caliber.
- Top Young Leaders Inspire Others – Leaders focus on what people can do, not what they can’t do. Hurdle continues, “You can’t help but dream and envision what they’ll do. And they’ve got so much quiet confidence there’s nothing they don’t think they can do. I would never put a ceiling on them.”
- Top Young Leaders Are Often Your Organization’s Hardest Workers – The most valuable asset a leader brings to an organization is energy . Teammate Jared Hughes says, “It’s awesome to see the amount of energy they bring into the game. Everyone knows it’s the best outfield in the game, but the amount of hustle and hard work they bring really differentiates them from the rest of the league.”
- Top Young Leaders Create A Fun Atmosphere – One of the challenges mature leaders face is the importance of staying young. Young leaders help keep our thinking young. Polanco says, “I’m having a lot of fun. It’s everything I dreamed of.”
- Top Young Leaders Influence Other Young Leaders And Make Them Better – Hurdle says, “The beauty of it is that we have a North Star in center field (McCutchen) and these guys can all draw to it and be magnetized from it. (His) approach, day in and day out, the way he plays the game, the way he gets down to first base every night of the season. They know that they can’t let up, or he’ll show them up.”
- Top Young Leaders Are Highly Competitive – Young leaders thrive in environments with healthy competition. Pirates assistant coach Nick Leyva says, “They’ll deny it, but they want to be better than each other. So they just feed off each other.”
- Top Young Leaders Are Extremely Valuable And Secured For A Long Time – Churches and organizations should prioritize securing the services of their top young leaders for extended periods of time. They are that valuable. McCutchen is under contract through 2018, Polanco 2020, and Marte 2021.
What other qualities do top young leaders bring to your organization?
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