I do. 

In the 70's, I remember my parents always getting gas at our local Sears store (that's right...Sears used to sell gas!).  A service attendant would come out, fill up the car, check the oil, clean the windshield, and check the tires (all with a pleasant demeanor, I might add).

The 80's saw the demise of the "free" service that came with gasoline.  You could still get the service, but you were going to pay for it with higher prices at the pump.

The 90's ushered in self-service as the only option to get gas...

Has leadership gone the way of the Service Station?

As a leader, should you serve others?  Many famous leaders say you should.

Let's start with the secular leaders...

"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others." - Mahatma Ghandi 

"Only a life lived in the service to others is worth living." - Albert Einstein

"...the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found how to serve." - Albert Schweitzer 

And continue with the spiritual leaders...

"For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many". - Mark 10:45

"Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms". -1 Peter 4:10

"Whoever wants to become great must be a servant to others". - Matthew 20:26

Good leaders today tend to focus on what they can get, what they can have and what they deserve.

Great leaders are servant leaders, and get their reward by putting others first. 

Robert Greenleaf, who coined the term 'servant leader,' puts it this way:  "The servant leader is servant first...It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first."

This week, go ahead and put service first with your employees.  You just may turn them into your loyal customers.