George Washington was the first Presidential leader of our great nation. And as Thomas Jefferson once said about him, he was, indeed, in every sense of the words, a wise, a good, and a great man.

Today, on Presidents Day, we honor the birthday of our founding father, and as leaders, we draw upon his example to learn, grow, and challenge ourselves to be better.

In an address to the Officers of the Virginia Regiment in 1756, George Washington said, Remember that it is the actions, and not the commission, that make the officer, and that there is more expected from him, than the title.

Leadership is not an end-game to be achieved for a title or position. There’s no one point where you can stop and say, I’m finally at the top, so now I can sit back and do nothing while everyone below me does the work. That’s not leadership; it’s self-serving power-mongering. If prestige, status, and a position of control is your goal in being a leader, you’re a DUD, and you’re certainly no George Washington.

To be a WOW in your current or future positions, you need to focus on what you do, not on who you are or on which rung you’ve climbed to on the corporate ladder.

If you want to be a WOW, like Washington, here are a few things you must DO:

• Motivate and inspire others
• Actively develop and implement strategies
• Maintain the highest level of integrity and honesty
• Lead by example and positive attitude, not negativity
• Keep communication free-flowing and reciprocal (not just top-down)
• Act with courage and fearlessness in your own beliefs
• Encourage and help facilitate the growth and advancement of those you lead
• Make decisions that benefit the company and the team, and not just yourself

When we think of Washington, one of the undisputed greatest leaders of all time, it’s what was within the man that made the man…it was more than him being chosen as the first President, it was how he chose to lead.

In his book, Washington: The Indispensable Man (1984), James Thomas Flexner noted that, “In all history few men who possessed unassailable power have used that power so gently and self-effacingly for what their best instincts told them was the welfare of their neighbors and all mankind.”

Like Washington, be a leader whose actions illustrate your greatness. To be a WOW, you don’t necessarily have to have a “WOW” title, but you need to demonstrate WOW qualities and back them up by doing WOW things.

–Sheri Staak