3 Simple Leadership Lessons from Cynthia Magnus

Leadership doesn’t have to be big or complicated. Often, the most meaningful leadership is also the simplest.

And many times, all it takes is just taking notice of simple ways you can serve others and improve your community.

For example, the New York Times published this story about how one woman, Cynthia Magnus, made a big difference with very little effort.

After finding bags of “unworn but mutilated clothing that had been thrown away by [clothing retailer] H & M on West 35th Street,” Ms. Magnus contacted H & M’s headquarters in Sweden. She wondered why they couldn’t donate their clothing, rather than destroy it.

When she didn’t receive a response, she contacted the New York Times, which reported finding more slashed clothing in the same location.

This prompted the following response from H & M spokeswoman Nicole Christie:

“It will not happen again. We are committed 100 percent to make sure this practice is not happening anywhere else, as it is not our standard practice.”

According to Ms. Christie, H & M’s policy is to donate unworn clothing to charitable groups. The story reports that “She said that she did not know why the store on 34th Street was slashing the clothes, and that the company was checking to make sure that none of its other stores were doing so.”

A few lessons on leadership we can learn from Ms. Magnus:

Lesson #1: Look for opportunities

First, she had the frame of mind to even recognize the problem, whereas most people probably wouldn’t even take notice. We’re too busy to be attuned to the simple ways we can make a difference on a daily basis.

We need to train ourselves to always be on the lookout for ways to improve our communities.

Lesson #2: Act

Secondly, she acted. We don’t know how savvy she is and how clear she was on what would be the most effective strategy, but we know she acted.

How often do we not take action because we’re not clear on what our strategy should be?

But Cynthia’s actions show that we should just DO something — anything — and learn effectiveness as we go. We’ll have more impact by acting and learning from mistakes than not acting and never making mistakes.

Lesson #3: Leverage Media

Cynthia was smart to leverage the power of media.

In the social economy, power has shifted from institutions/companies to individuals/consumers. We trust peers now more than we trust companies and celebrity endorsements. We have more tools than ever before to make companies transparent and hold them accountable.

Cynthia’s actions demonstrate just how much power the average consumer has. Our feelings of powerlessness defeat us before we ever get into the game.

We need to recognize our power and leverage it through media channels, including traditional media outlets, social networks, blogs, and all forms of peer-to-peer interaction.

So what are your thoughts on this story?