Put the growth of others first
Start from "how do I help this person succeed?" rather than "how do they help me succeed?"
Key takeaways
- What it is: Start from "how do I help this person succeed?" rather than "how do they help me succeed?"
- Why it works: When a leader’s default move is to develop the person rather than extract output, it satisfies the basic psychological need for support and growth, which self-determination research links to intrinsic motivation. People reciprocate genuine investment with commitment — the norm of reciprocity turns service into discretionary effort.
- Evidence: Backed by observational / correlational evidence.
- Avoid: Treating "serve first" as self-erasure — neglecting results and your own needs until you burn out and resent the people you meant to help.
Why it works
When a leader’s default move is to develop the person rather than extract output, it satisfies the basic psychological need for support and growth, which self-determination research links to intrinsic motivation. People reciprocate genuine investment with commitment — the norm of reciprocity turns service into discretionary effort.
How to do it
- 1Before a one-on-one, ask yourself what would help this person grow, not just what you need.
- 2Spend real time understanding each person’s goals, not only their tasks.
- 3Measure your success partly by how much the people around you are developing.
What the evidence says
ObservationalMeta-analytic work finds servant leadership positively associated with follower job attitudes, performance, and organizational citizenship behavior, often above and beyond transformational leadership.
Honest caveat: The literature is largely cross-sectional and self-report; it shows association, not clean causation, and is vulnerable to common-method bias.
- — Eva et al. (2019), "Servant Leadership: A systematic review", The Leadership Quarterly
Common mistake
Treating "serve first" as self-erasure — neglecting results and your own needs until you burn out and resent the people you meant to help.
IX Coach helps you prepare for each report with their development in mind, surfacing the growth question you’d otherwise skip under task pressure.
Practice this with IX Coach →