The 6 Most Common Questions Around Servant Leadership
1. What is Servant Leadership?
Servant leadership is a style that flips the traditional leadership model. Instead of leading by power or position, you lead by serving, focusing on the growth and success of your team first.
Robert K. Greenleaf (WISL, 2025) formally introduced the concept in his 1970 essay, The Servant as Leader. It’s built on principles like:
- Listening and empathy
- Empowering others
- Ethical decision-making
- Putting people before profits
[Ghahremani et al., 2024] describe it as leadership that “prioritizes the needs of employees over other concerns”, aiming to create “win–win” environments that benefit both people and the organization.
You can learn more about what servant leadership is and how it differs from other leadership styles here.
2. How is Servant Leadership Different from Other Leadership Styles?
Unlike authoritative or transformational leaders, who often focus on vision and results, servant leaders focus on people first.
WISL has a dedicated article that breaks down the comparison of servant leadership to other leadership styles, where you can dive into Autocratic leadership, Transformational leadership, Democratic leadership, and Transactional leadership.
3. Can Servant Leadership Help Your Career?
Yes—surprisingly, it helps a lot.
A recent field study (Ghahremani et al., 2024) showed that employees under servant leaders:
- They were more likely to get promoted
- Had a lower voluntary turnover
- Developed a stronger belief in their future with the company (aka career progression expectations)
Instead of pushing people out the door, servant leaders retain and grow top talent. The study found that servant leadership created a positive “psychological climate” where people felt valued and supported, and wanted to stay (WISL, 2025).
4. Does Servant Leadership Help or Hurt Career Growth and Retention?
One of the most debated questions for aspiring servant leaders (and their organizations) is how this style impacts career outcomes. Does putting others first help or hinder employees’ career growth and willingness to stay with the company? Early-career professionals might worry: “If I focus on serving my team, will I fall behind in my advancement?”
A 2024 longitudinal study (Ghahremani et al., 2024) explored exactly this issue, examining whether servant leadership encourages employees to advance within their current organization or prompts them to leave for better opportunities. There has been a theoretical debate: does servant leadership create loyal top performers, or does it inadvertently create “free agents” who take their talents on the road?
In the year-long field study, employees who perceived high servant leadership from their managers ended up with greater internal career success – they were more likely to receive promotions and less likely to quit their organization. Servant leaders achieved this by fostering a positive workplace climate and outlook: they signaled that the organization genuinely cares for employees’ well-being and growth (a caring climate), and reduced fears that the company is just out for itself (reducing an overly instrumental climate). This supportive environment boosted employees’ career progression expectations.
This directly counters the fear that developing employees (or mentees) will only make them leave. The opposite happened: employees under servant leaders forged stronger ties to the company and were less inclined to leave because they saw a promising path forward. From a young professional’s standpoint, this means that adopting servant leadership behaviors is not a career-limiting move; it can enhance your team’s success and your opportunities.
5. How Can Young Professionals Start Adopting Servant Leadership?
Adopting servant leadership early in your career can set you apart as a collaborative, effective leader, even if you don’t have a formal management title. You don’t need permission to be a servant leader. Servant leadership is about mindset and daily actions that anyone can practice.
Here are some practical ways young professionals can embrace servant leadership in their daily work:
- Practice active listening and empathy: Make a habit of truly listening to colleagues. Seek to understand their challenges and needs. By prioritizing the needs of others and showing empathy, you build trust. Something as simple as asking “How can I help?” or checking in on a teammate’s workload shows servant leadership in action.
- Put your team’s success first: Servant leaders empower those around them. Look for opportunities to support and develop others. This can be as informal as helping a peer learn a new skill, sharing knowledge, or giving credit to others.
- Enable collaboration and inclusion: Encourage a sense of community. Servant leadership essentially is facilitating a collaborative environment where everyone’s voice is valued. In meetings, you can practice this by inviting quieter team members to share their ideas and acknowledging contributions.
- Lead by example with integrity and humility: Demonstrate high ethical standards, honesty, and accountability in your work; this inspires others to do the same. Servant leaders hold themselves accountable just as much as (if not more than) others. For instance, if a mistake happens, own up to your part in it and focus on solutions. Showing humility and being willing to admit you don’t have all the answers also facilitates a growth mindset.
- Invite feedback and help others grow: Proactively ask for feedback on how you can better support your team or improve as a colleague (Staffing Support Specialists, 2025). This signals that you are there to serve the team’s needs, not just your own agenda.
6. How Can I Start Practicing Servant Leadership?
As said before, you don’t need a title to be a servant leader. Here’s how to start:
- ✅ Listen more than you speak
- ✅ Look for ways to support your teammates
- ✅ Share credit and lift others up
- ✅ Ask: “How can I help?”
- ✅ Model ethical behavior and humility
- ✅ Join roundtables or leadership communities to grow your mindset (check out WISL!)
Servant leadership is like a muscle—it grows the more you use it. Start small and stay consistent. You can learn more about how to implement Servant Leadership Core Values in Your Daily Life here.
Explore Servant Leadership Opportunities with WISL
There are numerous Benefits of Attending Wisconsin Servant Leadership Roundtables & Events, and we encourage you to join us at an upcoming roundtable or Milwaukee City-wide event!
Servant leadership isn’t just about being nice. It’s about leading with purpose, empowering others, and building a better culture—one conversation, one decision, one person at a time. That is what we strive for at Wisconsin Servant Leadership (WISL).
You can also stay informed by signing up for our Newsletter here! Looking forward to connecting with you.
References
Ghahremani, H., Lemoine, G. J., & Hartnell, C. A. (2024). The influence of servant leadership on internal career success: An examination of psychological climates and career progression expectations. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 31(2), 125–145. https://doi.org/10.1177/15480518241248217
WISL. (2025a, July 2). Tips to Build Trust & Collaboration Through Servant Leadership. Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/tips-to-build-trust-and-collaboration-servant-leadership/
Specialists, S. S. (2025, June 3). How to receive feedback from peers or employers | Staffing Support Specialists. Staffing Support Specialists. https://staffing-support.com/how-to-receive-feedback-from-peers-or-employers/
Wisconsin Servant Leadership. (2024, December 2). Newsletter – Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/newsletter/
Wisconsin Servant Leadership. (2025a, June 24). About Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/about/
Wisconsin Servant Leadership. (2025b, July 3). Roundtables – Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/roundtable-discussions/
Wisl. (2025c, May 1). How to implement servant leadership core values in your daily life. Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/how-to-implement-servant-leadership-core-values-in-daily-life/
Wisl. (2025d, May 1). What is Servant Leadership? How is it Different from Other Leadership Styles? Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/what-is-servant-leadership-how-it-is-different-from-other-leadership-styles/
Wisl. (2025e, May 28). Benefits of Attending Wisconsin Servant Leadership Roundtables & Events. Wisconsin Servant Leadership. https://wisconsinservantleadership.org/benefits-of-attending-servant-leadership-roundtables-and-events/