Kimberly Palmer, Supervisor, Collin County CSCD
To date, I have attended 12 different servant leadership sessions and each time I enter into the leadership development expecting to come away with something meaningful. The leadership development at Southwest Airlines on June 12, 2013 was yet another training that led me further down the road to personal growth. I was particularly moved by our main speaker, Executive Vice President, Jeff Lamb. He stressed the importance of knowing your team inside and outside of the office. He said, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” The personal ownership that he and each employee took in the company was amazing. Walking through the halls of the Southwest building made me want to aspire to do greater things in life and in my office.
Newly Designed SWA Culture Center
With that thought in mind, I began to think about each team member in my office. My thoughts began to go deeper. What are their personal struggles? How may I serve them in those areas? How can I show love in action? How can I demonstrate this love in my daily interactions with them? I received several answers in our group discussion titled “The Power of Love.” My take-aways from this group discussion were to celebrate my team, make time for them on a personal and professional level, and strive to know them and their families.
It was in that moment I realized that I love them by being transparent, fostering an environment of accountability and excellence, and by celebrating their leadership qualities. Two things I’ve learned throughout this SL journey are that it takes gracefulness to lead and delivery is everything. So many times my gracefulness was lacking. I would raise my voice in a heated dialogue, I would become defensive when my ideas were challenged and I would beat myself up whenever I made mistakes along the way. I found comfort in Jeff’s words when he said, “You learn from reflecting on your mistakes. If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not making anything.” Before this journey, I wanted to forget my mistakes immediately and I could not understand why I would continue to make the same mistakes over and over again. As a result of servant leadership, I have begun to look at my mistakes as opportunities for growth.
When I returned from Southwest Airlines, I told my team about the experience and while doing so it resonated with me that SL is not about perfection, it’s about building REAL relationships. Relationships that are lasting and genuine regardless of your title. Relationships that battle through difficult times in order to continuously improve and grow. My team was particularly interested in transforming our break room into a culture center. We are working on our first puzzle and are putting our heads together regarding a design for the room. I look forward to the next servant leadership experience!
Written by Kimberly Palmer, Supervisor for Collin County Community Supervision & Corrections Department. Kimberly has been with Collin County CSCD since AMCA first began working with this organization on Servant Leadership Development in 2008 and has attended at least 12 different seminars focused on Servant Leadership Development. Kimberly represented Collin County CSCD at our most recent Dallas Servant Leadership Learning Community meeting.
"I worked with AMCA during the 1980's and mid 1990's as a group executive for one of the world's largest engineering and construction companies. Ann and her team helped me achieve a personal cultural transformation; helped me develop a successful team of business unit leaders; and helped build teaming relationships among the corporation's executive management."