Be A Light In The Spaces You Occupy

One of the great aspects of being a servant leader is being a light. It might sound strange but essentially it means having the ability to step into workplaces (physically or virtually) and speak hope, truth, and wisdom. It’s having the ability to help teams see situations with a new perspective and encourage them to have a can-do attitude. 

Light is associated with visibility and helps to see things thoroughly, and servant leaders can provide that type of light. We can see things that others may not, such as highlighting why certain areas are not functioning well and cultivating a plan to tackle the problem.

How Can We Be Lights?

There are many ways we can be a light in our working environment and below I share four ways:

• Be perceptive/observant – This ultimately means being able to see deeper than what is on the surface; finding what systems are working or not and why, seeing how to implement new changes and reinforce what is already working well, etc.
• Be strategic – This definitely takes teamwork to brainstorm and create effective strategies to help run programmes, projects, or systems more smoothly.
• Spread hope – We can bring reassurance to others and brighten up the atmosphere by simply being hopeful and positive, reminding them of the vision and goal of the organisation/school.
• Embracing our individuality – Before being servant leaders, we are human with our own character traits and personalities. We can become more relatable and connect better with our colleagues/others because we come as ourselves. 

What’s The Significance of Being A Light?

You might be wondering why it’s so important to be a light? Well, to give an illustration, we know there’s a stark contrast between darkness and light. 

Imagine living in a house that is dimly lit for a whole week, and when the lights get fixed, everything becomes so much brighter and clearer. Similarly, we can be a light in dimly lit situations and see things through a new lens to help make what was ambiguous clear. 

Many of us have experienced other people being lights in our world, maybe our mums, a friend, a mentor, etc. They brought hope, warmth, or made things visible that were not clear to us. 

In Conclusion

In one way or another, all of us have the capability of being a light in each others’ lives. Specifically, in a working setting, servant leaders can be a light to spread hope, encourage change where necessary and bring new perspectives to improve overall work efficiency and efficacy.