--- title: "The Leadership Playbook: Five Cool Things Leaders Do | The Sales Blog" description: "Find and fund cool projects: Leaders get to find cool projects. When leaders are open to listening to the people inside their organization (often deep, deep inside their organization), they can often find ideas that allow them to create something new, something better, or something that makes a difference for their clients. One of the […]" image: https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Screen-Shot-2014-11-30-at-8_53_19-PM.png --- ### [Now booking SKO meetings for 2026/27! 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When leaders are open to listening to the people inside their organization (often deep, deep inside their organization), they can often find ideas that allow them to create something new, something better, or something that makes a difference for their clients. One of the great things about being a leader is having the checkbook and the ability to put the resources behind those cool ideas. 2. **Building leaders**: There aren’t too many things cooler than [building the next generation of leaders](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2014/09/14/the-leadership-playbook-leaders-build-leaders/). As a leader, you can help hire future leaders. And when you spot talent, you can give that talent increasing levels of responsibility to help them develop into the leader your organization is going to need. This is your legacy. 3. **Helping others to grow**. A leader doesn’t only make a difference in the life of future leaders. If she is at her best, she gets to do the work of helping the people she leads grow and develop into their full [potential](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2013/04/19/the-potential-engine-a-note-to-sales-leadership/). This work is one of the things that separates the leader from the manager (and a good manager is almost always a good leader). 4. **Focusing on the future**. So much of what you do in business is about the here and [now](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2011/07/03/the-curse-of-short-term-goals-and-misaligned-values/). There are always urgent issues requiring your attention. But one of the coolest things about being a leader is being able to focus on the future. As a leader you need to spend your time exercising your imagination, and deciding what the future is going to look like. You get to focus on the big picture strategy. 5. **Go to war with the status quo**. There are plenty of people inside an organization who will do everything in their power to defend the status quo, much of it [worth defending](http://thesalesblog.com/blog/2014/01/03/on-leaders-and-culture/). But it takes a leader to decide to make change and overthrow the status quo. Leaders don’t make change for the sake of change. But they do make the changes necessary to help the people and the organization they lead reach its full potential. And what could be cooler than that? Leadership is challenging, difficult work. But is also rewarding and full of cool things to do. ###### Tags: [Leadership](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/tag/leadership) Post by [Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/blog/author/anthony-iannarino) on November 30, 2014 Written and edited by human brains and human hands. ![Anthony Iannarino](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hubfs/ai-blog-profile-crop.jpg) Anthony Iannarino is an American writer. He has published daily at [thesalesblog.com](https://www.thesalesblog.com) for more than 14 years, amassing over 5,300 articles and making this platform a destination for salespeople and sales leaders. Anthony is also the author of four best-selling books documenting modern sales methodologies and a fifth book for sales leaders seeking revenue growth. His latest book for an even wider audience is titled, The Negativity Fast: Proven Techniques to Increase Positivity, Reduce Fear, and Boost Success. Anthony speaks to sales organizations worldwide, delivering cutting-edge sales strategies and tactics that work in this ever-evolving B2B landscape. He also provides workshops and seminars. Connect with Anthony on LinkedIn, X or Youtube. You can email Anthony at [iannarino@gmail.com](mailto:iannarino@gmail.com) [Follow me on my website](https://www.thesalesblog.com/anthony-iannarino) [Follow me on Facebook ](https://www.facebook.com/thesalesblog) [Follow me on LinkedIn ](https://www.linkedin.com/in/iannarino/) [Follow me on Twitter ](http://www.twitter.com/iannarino) [![AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg?width=400&height=400&name=AISA-square-ad-SKOs-26-27.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/authority) [![ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg?width=318&height=179&name=ai-cold-calling-video-sidebar-offer-1.jpg)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/free-cold-calling-video) ![how-to-lead-ebook-v3-1-cover (3)](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/how-to-lead-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(3).jpg?width=768&height=994&name=how-to-lead-ebook-v3-1-cover%20(3).jpg) ### How to Lead: The Leadership E-Book As leaders, we're faced with decisions everyday—not all of which are easy to make. Learn how to make those tough decisions, hold yourself and your team accountable, and build a legacy with How to Lead: The Leadership E-Book. [![DOWNLOAD EBOOK](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d345d648-812a-428a-81e4-53ce30822212.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d345d648-812a-428a-81e4-53ce30822212) ## Are You Ready To Solve Your Sales Challenges? ![Anthony-Solve-Sales](https://www.thesalesblog.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Anthony-Solve-Sales.png?width=290&height=221&name=Anthony-Solve-Sales.png) Hi, I’m Anthony. I help sales teams make the changes needed to create more opportunities & crush their sales targets. What we’re doing right now **is working**, even in this challenging economy. **Would you like some help?** [![Solve for Sales](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2922376/d3a4938b-2008-4a27-8b44-7b2223f6d035) ### Join my Weekly Newsletter for Sales Tips Join 100,000+ sales professionals in my weekly newsletter and get my *Guide to Becoming a Sales Hustler* eBook for FREE! --- ```json { "@context" : "http://schema.org/", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Anthony Iannarino" }, "dateModified" : "2022-01-22T2:22:18 PM", "datePublished" : "2014-11-30 21:19:54", "description" : "Find and fund cool projects: Leaders get to find cool projects. 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