Great Leaders Break the Rules (CareerZOT Talk)

Look back and remember the times when you felt really successful. You probably had a lot to do at that time, right? Lots of projects, people to manage, meetings to lead, strategic plans to develop.

Here's the question. What were you doing that for? Was it just for the money? Or was it just because you were following the Jones's and participating in the daily grind? Reflect—was obeying all of the rules really something that you wanted to do?

If you're looking for a change of business scenery, there's a solution. Check out Ricardo Semler, Brazilian CEO at Semco Group, who presented “How to Run a Company with (Almost) No Rules.” He suggests a very different way to operate by eliminating the traditional rules of business and the boarding school mentality.

His idea is basic; find alternative ways to inspire creativity, ingenuity, and productivity—while altering the rudimentary expectations of time spent at the desk or sitting in meetings. This becomes an effort to trust your people to do their jobs, while at the same time giving them some (or a lot) of freedom.

Thankfully, technology has made flexibility in the workplace possible. With technology, employees no longer need to clock in and out if they can complete their work efficiently and effectively. And with that, the rules can be changed.

Think about it this way, this is your opportunity to give back and take care of the well being of your people. You can remove the constraints and create a new spirit of business.

As a leader you might consider this new way of thinking as building (or maybe rebuilding) your legacy. What do you want to be remembered for and why do you want to be remembered? It's the possibility of releasing yourself from the antiquated way of thinking about work and the prospect of trying something new, something unheard of.

Peter Drucker once said, “What you have to do and the way you have to do it is incredibly simple. Whether you are willing to do it is another matter.”

So ask yourself, why are you doing what you're doing, and what for?