The Leader I Want to Be Is the One Who Serves

For quite some time, I have had the opportunity to meet leaders from different industries through my work in corporate training and facilitation. Before their events or workshops, I often have the privilege of sitting with them, listening attentively to their perspectives, experiences, and beliefs about leadership.

One of the most common observations I have made is that many of these leaders genuinely believe in one simple but powerful statement:

“Leadership is really about serving people.”

I have met leaders who understand that their people come from different backgrounds and have different experiences, personalities, struggles, and aspirations. They don't see their employees merely as people who work for the organization. They see them as part of one big family.

Because of this, they extend patience when mistakes are made. They take the time to understand what happened. They invest effort and resources in training and development. More importantly, they look forward to seeing each person grow—not only in their position, but also as an individual.

But leadership is not always easy.

Leaders are human, too.

There are times when they become frustrated, especially when an employee repeatedly receives support, opportunities, training, and understanding but fails to recognize the bigger picture or appreciate the effort being extended to them.

And sometimes, leaders are faced with an incredibly painful decision: whether to continue keeping someone or to let that person go.

Letting someone go is never easy, especially when a leader has already invested time, patience, trust, and resources in that person.

But there are moments when a leader must make a difficult decision—not because they no longer care about the individual, but because they also have a responsibility to protect the entire team.

One person who refuses to grow, cooperate, or embrace the organization's values can eventually affect everyone.

That is also part of leadership.

The Values Leaders Hope to See

The leaders I have met often emphasize three things they hope to see from their people:

Gratitude for the opportunity given to them.

Integrity in the work they do.

And commitment throughout their journey with the organization.

During many of my training sessions, I share a simple reflection with employees.

Before they entered the organization, they applied for a position. They hoped for an opportunity. Some may have prayed to God for a job. Some may have asked for an answer to their financial needs or for a chance to build a better future for themselves and their families.

Then the opportunity came.

They were hired.

They became part of the organization.

They were welcomed, trained, supported, and given the opportunity to grow.

But somewhere along the way, sometimes, the fire slowly fades.

The employee who once asked, “How can I become part of this organization?” may eventually begin asking, “What can this organization give me?”

And that shift in perspective is something worth thinking about.

Dati Excited Tayong Pumasok

There is a line I often share during my training sessions:

“Dati excited tayong pumasok sa trabaho, ngayon excited na tayong umuwi.”

Before, we were excited to come to work.

Now, we are excited to go home.

I sometimes add another observation:

“Dati, minutes before our time-in, nasa biometrics na tayo. Ngayon, ilang minutes before time-out, nasa biometrics na tayo.”

It usually gets a few laughs.

But behind the humor is a serious question:

What happened to the fire we had when we first started?

Of course, not everything is the employee's fault.

Organizations and leaders also have a responsibility to create a healthy workplace, provide meaningful opportunities, communicate well, recognize contributions, and continue developing their people.

But employees also have a responsibility to themselves, their teammates, and the organization that gave them an opportunity.

We need to ask ourselves:

Have I become too focused on what I can receive instead of what I can contribute?
Have I forgotten to appreciate the opportunity I once prayed for?
Have I lost the sense of purpose that brought me here in the first place?

These are not easy questions.

But perhaps they are necessary ones.

Leadership Is a Shared Responsibility

Because leadership is not a one-way responsibility.

Leaders must serve their people.

But people must also serve the purpose, values, and mission of the organization they have chosen to become part of.

A healthy organization is built when leaders genuinely care for their people and employees genuinely care about the work, the team, and the organization they belong to.

That is what makes leadership—and teamwork—a shared responsibility.

And perhaps this is what I have learned from the many leaders I have had the privilege of meeting:

“Leadership is really about serving people.”

It means understanding them.

Developing them.

Being patient with them.

Believing in them.

Holding them accountable.

And sometimes, having the courage to make difficult decisions for the good of the greater team.

Because serving people does not mean tolerating everything.

It means caring enough to help people become better.

The Leader I Want to Be

Every time I listen to leaders talk about their people, I am reminded of the kind of leader I want to become.

I don't want leadership to be defined by a title.

I don't want people to respect me simply because of a position I hold.

I want the people I lead to know that I care about where they are coming from.

I want to understand their stories.

I want to help them discover what they are capable of becoming.

I want to celebrate their growth.

And when they make mistakes, I want to have the patience to teach before I judge.

But I also want to be courageous enough to have difficult conversations when necessary.

Because serving people does not mean avoiding accountability.

Sometimes, the greatest service we can give someone is helping them recognize that they need to change.

And sometimes, the greatest service we can give an entire team is making a difficult decision that protects the people who continue to show up, contribute, and believe in the organization.

Leadership Begins With People

After years of working with different organizations and meeting leaders from different industries, I have come to appreciate that leadership is deeply human.

It is not simply about strategy.

It is not only about targets.

It is not merely about authority.

It is about people.

People who need to be understood.

People who need to be developed.

People who need to be challenged.

People who need to be trusted.

People who sometimes need another chance.

And people who sometimes need to be reminded of the opportunity they once prayed for.

Perhaps that is why I continue to believe that:

“Leadership is really about serving people.”

Not because leaders are above their people.

But because leadership gives us the responsibility to help the people entrusted to us become better.

And perhaps the question we should all ask ourselves is not:

“How many people are following me?”

but:

“Because of my leadership, how many people have become better?”

That is the kind of leader I want to be.

A leader who serves.

A leader who develops people.

A leader who understands that leadership is not about being above others, but about helping others become better.

— Michael Badeon