What I’ve Learned About Leadership Skills
I have spent the past three decades as a pioneer promoting Green Cleaning practices within the professional cleaning industry. Today, I am proud to say that I am the industry’s foremost leader in sustainability, helping businesses in many industry sectors understand and advance their environmental, social, and economic impacts through more sustainable operations.
Becoming a Green Cleaning and sustainability leader has taught me several valuable leadership lessons. I want to share some of these insights to help guide emerging professionals and leaders, or anyone seeking personal and professional growth in 2025 and beyond.
Learn Something New Every Day
Success depends on being a lifelong learner, actively seeking new knowledge daily. To grow, you must connect with mentors, read consistently, put down your phone and build meaningful relationships with colleagues and industry peers on a personal level, and, most importantly, step outside your comfort zone.
While daily routines provide comfort and security, they can limit your exposure to fresh perspectives and experiences. Each evening, I ask myself, “What did I learn today?” Without fail, this simple practice reveals insights that enhance both my personal and professional life.
Listening and Support
While presenting at conventions and seminars educates others, true impact comes from deeper engagement with people. Effective leaders know that transforming organizations — such as improving their sustainability practices and corporate efficiency — requires active listening, one-on-one conversations, and building strong relationships.
I’ve learned that this approach also creates a collaborative environment where everyone feels heard and supported, leading to better — and more collective — successes for the entire organization.
Be Willing to Change
This lesson could also be called, “Learn from Others and Stay Humble.” Effective leaders recognize that valuable ideas can emerge from anyone anytime, and they actively embrace these new perspectives and adopt them if they are worthy. By acknowledging and incorporating these innovative ideas into their personal and professional lives, leaders can more effectively empower teams and help organizations achieve more significant business growth.
Reflection and Caring
In his new memoir Sunny Boy, Al Pacino reflects on how personal connections shaped his path to success, particularly compared to his childhood friends from the rough and tumble South Bronx of the 1950s.
Pacino recalls his mother’s daily ritual of calling him home for dinner from their tenement rooftop: “Hey, Sonneeee, get up here, it’s time for supper.”
His close friends Cliffy, Bruce, and Petey would mock this maternal attention, masking their own yearning for similar care. Tragically, all three friends later succumbed to drug overdoses. Pacino attributes his different fate to knowing that someone genuinely cared about him.
This personal story illustrates a vital leadership principle: showing people that they matter can profoundly impact their lives. To be an effective leader, take time to reflect on the positive influences in your own life and actively demonstrate care for those you lead. This dual practice of self-reflection and genuine concern for others forms the foundation of strong leadership.
—Steve