Recently a trade deal was announced by Canada’s Minister of Agriculture that would see the doors open up for British Columbia cherries to be shipped to China.  Long anticipated, this deal was 7 years in the making.  China obviously represents a huge market for cherry growers, so this was good news indeed.

As many people across North America and around the world already know, the Okanagan Valley, where we have the pleasure of living, is a beautiful valley resplendent with fruit of all kinds.  Apples, cherries, grapes, peaches, pears, and plums are all plentiful.  In fact, for the past 3 summers my sons have worked in one of Canada’s largest cherry processing facilities right here in the Okanagan.

Cherries are one of the most delightful tastes of summer.  You just can’t beat a gorgeous sun ripened Okanagan cherry.  So sweet, juicy and delicious, and they can grow to almost the size of ping pong balls.

Mmmmmm, I love Okanagan cherries.

This recent cherry trade deal got me thinking more about leadership than cherries though.  Every leader produces ‘fruit’.  The ‘fruit’ you produce as a leader is the ‘result’ of your leadership – that which you are producing in the lives of those you lead.

There is an old adage that states, “Judge a man by his fruit.”

What that means is that we need to take a look at what a person produces in their life and through their leadership.  Don’t size up a person by what they say per se; take a look at what they do and what the result of their actions is.

A good leader produces good fruit.  A bad leader produces bad fruit.  We need only look at the course of human history to see the fruit of hate, prejudice, war, murder, greed and the like that has been produced by some of mankind’s most infamous and notorious leaders.

Good leaders produce good fruit in the lives of the people they lead.  What kind of fruit is that?  Well, vision, hope, diligence, engagement, empathy, compassion, unity, synergy, teamwork, patience, determination, kindness, joy, peace, faithfulness, trust, respect, love, etc.  These are all good fruit that we can produce through our leadership.

For example:  a seagull leader does not produce order, trust, respect and peace.  What is a seagull leader you ask?  A seagull leader is the kind of leader who swoops in, makes a lot of noise, craps all over everything and then leaves.  The fruit of that kind of leadership is disorder, mistrust, resentment, anger, disrespect and the like.

How about a mushroom leader?  A mushroom leader keeps their people in the dark and feeds them manure.  The fruit of that kind of leadership is a lack of initiative, a lack of creativity, a lack of trust – no vision, no hope, no deeper engagement.

However, the fruit of good leader – a wholehearted leader – is powerful indeed.  A leader who understands that the purpose of their leadership is to ‘help people be better’ can literally change the course of someone’s life, and therefore, human history.

Helping people be better is more than just helping them ‘do’ better.  Yes, performing our tasks at work with excellence is critically important, but if all we focus on is the task we can miss the truly profound aspects of our leadership.  If we can provide leadership that not only equips the mind, but also engages the heart and inspires the person we will be fruitful indeed.

Are the people you lead equipped, engaged and inspired?  Do you see the fruit of vision, hope, diligence, engagement, empathy, compassion, unity, synergy, teamwork, etc growing in your organization?  If not, it may be time to analyse your leadership, decide the kind of fruit you want to be producing and then determine the actions you have to take to see that happen.

So the next time you enjoy a sumptuous piece of fruit – hopefully some Okanagan cherries – use that as a reminder to analyse the ‘fruit’ of your leadership.

What kind of ‘fruit’ are you producing in your life and in your leadership?