My nephew is a plebe at the U.S. Naval Academy. One of the books that best describes the Navy’s leadership laboratory is called Becoming A Leader The Annapolis Way. In the book (p.170), Andrea Phelps shares this lasting memory from her graduation ceremony:
“President Reagan spoke at our graduation, which was an awesome thing in and of itself. Those of us fortunate enough to be in the top 100 graduates were assured that the president would be handing out our diplomas. The rest of our classmates would not have that honor. After President Reagan finished with the first 100 graduates, he was shown to his seat to watch the remaining
procession. As soon as he understood that he was not going to be shaking every graduate’s hand, he ordered the program to be altered so that he could in fact personally congratulate each graduate. We know that he was probably dead tired with blisters on his hand after it was over, but his gesture had an unbelievable impact on our class and our families. We were all ready to charge into battle for him: sometimes the smallest considerations have the biggest impact on your subordinates.”
Note that last statement from Andrea Phelps: “…the smallest considerations have the biggest impact…” The point made by the authors is this: public displays of commitment to the team will inspire deep loyalty. That’s our challenge. As leaders, we need to show the team that we care, we are committed, and we’ll practice servant leadership. We know that small acts of service have the biggest impact.