That sounds like a really simple question and most business leaders will say they serve their customers. But, if you don’t have your WHY, WHAT and HOW is place, the perception (at least), may be that you are serving yourself. The practice of understanding who you serve starts with YOU as an individual. You can’t fake it.

So, are you ready to ask some practical questions about your priorities and who you really serve. The first and most practical way to look at who you serve is by looking at your budget. Where does most of your money go? The second is to look at your calendar. Where is your time spent?

Once you’ve reflected on where you are investing your money and time, consider the priorities of these investments. In his book Creating Your Personal Life Plan, Michael Hyatt explains that he actually puts himself high on the list. If you’re surprised, don’t be. He explains like this:

“I have to attend to myself first (second only to God) in order to be spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and physically available to others. If you have trouble with the semantics of putting yourself second, think of it as preparation to serve others.”

You should probably write out your OWN list of who you serve and your priorities, you should be able to be very specific. For example, my list of those I serve is as follows:

God

Self

Victoria

Children & Grandkids

Clients

Church

Friends

OK, enough about me, let’s get back to business…Once you get a better understanding of who you personally serve, it’s time to better understand the needs of your customers and even your team. We just need to take more time to define the audience we want to serve and be more strategic about serving them with excellence. We also need to focus on serving our team with the same amount of energy. Corporate teams that feel loved and served, in turn, serve our clients with a higher level of commitment. This all sounds so obvious I know, but still, I see SO many organizations that don’t take the time to do this. A lot of assumptions are made and we miss the opportunities to meet those we influence where they are.

So, what about you? Does God come first? Where does your family, friends, clients, and team members land on your list? Are YOU read to build in regular strategy sessions to be relevant to those YOU serve?

Knowing who you serve, and in what priority you serve them, is critical to being a successful leader. If you’re not certain, I challenge you to spend some time thinking and praying about it this week, so you can live, love and lead like Jesus better in the future!

Join me next week as I discuss some practical ways to get the ball rolling for your organization!