When you are the leader, it is important that you lead by example. The way you lead by example permeates your team, coworkers, management, customers, and everyone you come in contact. When you set a good example, it has a positive impact. If, however, you set a bad example, it has a very negative impact.
How Not To Lead By Example
Several years ago I had an experience where I had a leader that wasn’t a leader at all. When I worked under him he was responsible for training, leading by example, and giving a vision. As part of that responsibility, he was supposed to give us direction on what to do and how to do it. 
This was very important because we were all very new and he was the one with the most experience. His training and guidance was especially important because in the environment we worked in, we had very strict and specific rules and regulations that we had to follow. If we didn’t follow the rules with exactness, it would lead to major problems down the road. His guidance was very important.
Shirking Responsibilities
My leader regularly fell short on his responsibilities to the whole team. He didn’t lead by example and wouldn’t do his job because he was lazy and didn’t want to put forth the effort. When he would try to do his job, he would go on a power trip and become a dictator.
Negativity
He would put people down as he told them to do exactly what he said. When he got on his power trips, he would constantly say we needed to follow his “example” of how to get the job done. He would get an arrogant attitude as if he had been setting the perfect example all along.
Lack of Motivation
As I worked under him, there were many times where I found that I had to prod him to do his job and fulfill his responsibilities. I understand that no one is perfect and everyone has their shortfalls, but as a leader he didn’t even put forth an effort to lead by example. In no way was he an example that we could follow.
Summary
As you can see from the example above, the way you lead by example has a great impact on others. My leader’s poor example had a big impact on me and everyone around me. If he were to lead by example in a good way, it would have had a much different impact on everyone.
Have you ever gone through a situation like this? How did you handle the situation? How do you set the example for your people to follow? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below!