FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla.–Steve Gilliland has a question for every credit union leader: if he were to enter your credit union and talk to every employee and member, how many of those people would list you or your credit union as having made a difference in their lives?
“I want you to think about five people who made the biggest difference in your life,” Gilliland told the CUNA HR, Training and Development Council’s annual meeting here. “What you have to do is think of those five people and then write a word besides their name. What did they give you? My mother gave me strength. If you want to do something selfless, you make your list and then you write a letter saying I was challenged to know who had the biggest impact on my life. I want you to know you made that list.”
Quoting John Maxwell, author of “21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership,” Gilliland shared, “There is only one definition of leadership and there always has been: influence.”
Gilliland, who began his career as a sports writer before spending 11 years in the greeting card industry, is now the author of numerous books himself, including “Making a Difference,” which seeks to understand what separates and differentiates individuals, companies and industries.
“I’m not talking about strategic plans,” said Gilliland.
Why Organizations Fail
What Gilliland said he has discovered is that many organizations fail because “we hire to many people for where they’ve been instead of who they are.”
Gilliland, who is a board member at Piedmont Advantage Credit Union in North Carolina,” said it’s an issue he has become passionate about.
“Every day you wake up, and everybody has a chance to make an impression,” he said. “Those who understand that in a single moment you can change the trajectory of a person’s life, that’s the difference.”
It’s a difference he said he has really come to understand that is unique to credit unions.
“When I walk in to our credit union I want to see the smiles,” he said. “I want people to understand they do make a difference, that this industry does make a difference. This isn’t just an issue on Capitol Hill. This is an issue in our communities. This is an issue in making people’s lives better.”
Lessons from Margaret
Gilliland said he learned an important lesson in life when he was promoted to a job in which he also had a secretary for the first time in his life. That secretary, Margaret, was known to be a tough, strong-willed person (he joked that when he told someone that he planned to let Margaret know there was now “a new sheriff in town,” that person responded, “Good luck, deputy”). When he arrived on his first day on the job, he found out Margaret already had spent two weeks getting to know everything about him.
“She taught me that when you prepare hard it allows you to finish easy,” he said. “I want you to execute beyond the execution. I want you to think beyond today.”
But Margaret also taught him something that has become his guide, according to Guilliland.
“She gave me three words I hope you will take with you that are my mantra and that have served me well: Purpose, Passion, Pride,” said Guilliland. “Purpose is what should drive us. It’s why we do what we do,” said Gilliland. “Passion. That’s what fuels us. When you check into a hotel you want to be greeted warmly. You don’t want to hear ‘Do you have a reservation?’ How do you keep people from taking the passion from you? Stop giving people permission to ruin your day. No one ruins your day without permission. Pride is what defines you.”
Pride, he added, also means doing things differently than anyone else does. Guilliland said he serves on the marketing committee of his credit union’s board and he challenges Piedmont Advantage to not “copycat” anyone else but instead to “be different than everyone else and take pride in you do.”
The Little Things That Add Up
For Guilliland, that even includes little things, like how he tries to treat housekeeping staff in hotels.
“Why do you throw anything on the floor and leave it there?” he asked. “Do you throw your towels next to the toilet at home? Integrity is what you do when no one is watching; it’s what you do that you don’t have to. I don’t have to do it or need to do it, but it makes me feel good to make a difference. One of the most awesome responsibilities we have is to understand we influence people every day and a single moment can influence the trajectory of that person’s life.”
Guilliland, who in sharing his life story referenced what a rock his mother has been to him throughout his life, quoted his mother for saying “When you go through life you get bitter or better, stronger or weaker.”
“Making a difference is a matter of purpose, passion and pride,” he told the meeting. “If I were to go to your credit union and ask every person who worked there and every member, how many of you would be on their lists for having made a difference? When you wake up, make a difference.”