One Of The Greatest Servant Leaders You Have Never Heard Of

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”
Have you ever met someone like that?  Have you ever met someone who approaches their job with such joy and excellence, that they ultimately do their job as well as anyone else does their job?  I recently did.  Her name was Gail.
Let me tell you a story about Gail.
Friday morning July 1st was just a normal morning in a Hampton Inn hotel.  I enjoy Hampton Inns.  They are my hotel of choice when traveling.
This particular Hampton Inn was located in Lynchburg, VA.  My family was in town for a Friendly Friday event at Liberty University.  Friendly Fridays are a chance for parents and prospective students to take a guided tour of the campus.
With my family waiting in the lobby, I needed to make a fast trip back up to the room to retrieve something I had forgotten.  As I got off the elevator and began walking down the hallway towards my room, I passed a lady from the cleaning and maintenance staff.  The following conversation ensued:

“Good morning”, she said.

As I casually walked by towards my room, I responded, “Good morning ma’am. How are you today?” not expect any reply.

She said in an unusually joyful voice, “I’m great!  How was your room?”

Surprised by the second question, I looked up and said, “It was very good.  Thank you for asking.  How is your day going?”

“It’s going very well.  I hope you have a blessed day” she said.

As I walked into my room I responded, “Thank you ma’am.  I will.  I hope you do as well.”

I thought, “That is the nicest cleaning lady I have ever met.”  As I quickly grab a few things out of my room, I walked back past her cleaning cart towards the elevator and saw the following:

 You will notice in her cleaning cart a book entitled, “Walking With Giants: The Extraordinary Life Of An Ordinary Man” by Dr. Elmer Towns.  Dr. Towns is the co-founder of Liberty University.  He also authored more than 175 books on prayer, spirituality, and the church.  The return on his investment in the lives of men and women who long to be exceptional for the cause of Christ will never be fully known until we get to Heaven.  This book was being carried by this sweet lady in her cleaning cart and obviously being read throughout the day.

When I arrived back down in the lobby I told the hotel manager and front desk personnel how nice this lady was.  The manager said with a smile, “That’s Gail.  She’s great!”  I said, “Yes, she is.”

The following are 8 Leadership Lessons I gleaned from my brief but impactful encounter with Gail:

1. You can make a BIG impact in someones life ‘s a short period of time.  My time with Gail was less than 20 seconds.
2. The people who are the best at what they do are artists, not employees.  Their occupation is their craft, not their job.  And they take an appropriate level of pride and preparation in what they do.
3. To be extraordinary all you need to do is be ordinary and provide a little extra.  Ask the 2nd question.  Smile.  We had two twin beds in our room.  Gail could obviously tell which one my teenage daughter slept in.  The bed had an extra blanket when we returned.  Just a little extra takes something from ordinary to extraordinary.
4. Know your audience.  As they told us on the tour, when Liberty shuts down, the city of Lynchburg shuts down.  Therefore, many people who stay in the hotel are likely connected to the college in some form or fashion.  Gail was reading about its cofounder.
5. Always be learning and growing.  Gail is a reader.
6. Greatness is found in the margins.  I imagine that during Gail’s breaks, she is reading this leadership book.  What do you do during your marginal time?  Also, taking the time to slow down and have a brief conversation can greatly improve your day.
7. Attitude matters.  Happy people are just more pleasurable to be around.
8. Preach the Gospel every day.  Use words if you have to.  You should be easily able to tell if a person is a Christian.  You should intuitively know if they love Jesus or not.  Gail did not have to tell me she was Christian.  In fact, we did not discuss one spiritual item.  But I knew about her faith after only eight words.

May we all approach life like Gail.  May we all approach our work like Gail.  May we all have the ability to impact others like Gail.  And my we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ with our lives every day…and use words when we have to.
If you want to see what servant leadership looks like, visit the Hampton Inn by the airport in Lynchburg, VA.  Stay on the 5th floor and ask to meet Gail.  She will show you how it’s done.

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