October 24, 2023
by Stephen T. Messenger
There’s a lot of news right now about Taylor Swift and her takeover of the NFL. Watching her crash onto the Sunday football scene highlights her ability to strategically influence countless followers while simultaneously connecting with individual fans.
Leadership is all about influence, and she’s got it.
We can all learn from leading like a Swiftie.
Swift Leadership
Taylor Swift knows what she’s doing—and it’s brilliant! She influences others at the highest and most junior levels of her organization, while leaving everything in the middle up to her staff.
Strategic Leadership
Swift has the uncanny knack of commanding a crowd of tens of thousands at a concert. Watch clips of these someday. All eyes are upon her. She can get them clapping in unison, singing the same song, or emotionally influenced by the tone she sets.
It’s a masterful ability to control such a large audience and have them leave the concert wanting more.
This is our job as leaders. It’s to cast purpose, direction, motivation, and vision to our organization and have them sing the same song we are. Our goal is to outline the future of where the team is headed and have them use our words to spread to others.
This upper-level leadership is about avoiding micromanagement. Do you see Taylor Swift telling the concession shift leaders how to manage their lines? Is she directing the stagehands to move equipment? Does Taylor Swift direct parking flow into a concert? No. She has people for that.
Her vision is probably something like her quote in Rolling Stones Magazine, “We’re just entertaining people, and it’s supposed to be fun.”
She then puts on a concert focusing on the highest levels and lets everyone else do their job well to create the best show experience.
Individual Connection
Outside of concerts, Taylor Swift will drill down on a young girl’s Instagram account and compliment her look. This is a life-changing moment for that girl who will tell the story for years. Swift has the uncanny ability to connect with individuals on a personal level.
She remembers early on a manager once saying, “If you want to sell 500,000 records, then go out there and meet 500,000 people.” She understands that personal connection is more important than anything. Each person you meet in your organization is going to come out of that engagement with a story.
The story will be positive or negative based on how you treat them. If you’re a leader that’s always around, people notice. If you’re one that’s never around, people notice that too.
Leaders must engage one-on-one.
In smaller teams, it’s easier to connect daily. In organizations with hundreds of people, it’s much harder. Some ways are to simply walk around and say hi to people. Work side-by-side with people doing their jobs. Know people’s birthdays and connect with them. There are so many ways to interact with others.
This is a labor of love. After all, you have a job to do as well. The bad news is, no matter how good you are or how hard you try, you’re going to miss. You’ll miss a birthday. You’ll walk by someone. Taylor Swift feels you. You probably can’t get to everyone, but you can start small.
Lead on the Fringes
The Army likes to say that commanders should do only things commanders can do. This usually means leading on the fringes—influence at the highest levels and circulate the battlefield.
Leaders have people to do all the stuff in the middle. Our job is to cast vision, guidance, and intent. It’s to get into the trenches and talk to the most junior employees. And it’s to let our people do what they do best – their job.
Taylor Swift knows this well. She once said, “You are the only one who gets to decide what you will be remembered for.” By leading at the highest levels to drive the organization forward and connecting with people to build relationships, you’ll be remembered for being a great leader and a great person.
Final Thought from Taylor Swift
“No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good to people is a wonderful legacy to leave behind.”
Be great today!
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