Shawn Murphy (<a title="Shawn Murphy on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/shawmu">Twitter</a>, LinkedIn, <a title="Achieved Strategies Blog" href="http://achievedstrategies.com/blog">Blog</a>) is hosting a series of posts on the need to shake things up in the leadership space.  The series is called <a title="Wake Up and Shake It Up Intro Post" href="http://achievedstrategies.com/blog/get-ready-to-shake-up-your-leadership/">Wake Up! and Shake It Up</a>.  He's had posts from great bloggers (besides himself) like <a href="http://www.e-quidam.com/theblog/">Monica Diaz</a>, <a title="The Leader Lab blog by David Burkus" href="http://theleaderlab.org/">David Burkus</a>, <a title="Lolly Daskal's website" href="http://www.lollydaskal.com">Lolly Daskal</a>,  Jason Moore and <a title="The Baby Gorillas blog by Ed McLaughlin" href="http://babygorillas.com/">Ed McLaughlin</a>.  And he'll have more great posts as the series goes on for a few days.

But today, he's got me.  <a title="Wake Up and Sacrifice - What? at Achieved Strategies" href="http://achievedstrategies.com/blog/wake-up-and-sacrifice-what/">My post</a> is about a critical element in building trust: sacrifice.  We don't like that word much.  Not many people wake up each day planning to go out and make sacrifices.  But when you can make a sacrifice, even one so small<!--more--> as writing a handwritten thank you note, you show people that you are <em>for </em>them.

I once managed a small trucking company.  A driver had to lay over to get a load that no one else could get. When I asked him to do it, he said, well, my wife should be getting out of the hospital on a certain day and that would mean that I'm not there to take her home.

Shame overtook me.  I didn't know his wife was <em>even in the hospital</em>.  Knowledge changes things... and people.  It changed me.  I learned a lesson that day.  (<em>The rest of the story's not in the post.  Suffice it to say that things  got taken care of.</em>)

Trust must be earned. Sacrifice is often the barter.  If you get a minute, check out the post.  Don't sleep through another day.  Wake up and make a difference!

<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Yellow Alarm Photo by <a title="Yellow Alarm on Flickr" href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/h_is_for_home/3494382794/">h is for home</a></span>