Let's continue where we left off in Part 1 of this article.
Quick Overview from Part 1:
Assuming you’re in a leadership role at work—or even your own leader at work or home—what type of leader are you? Would you want to work for or follow someone like you?
Aligning with who you are today as a leader and who you want to be, if a gap exists, is an essential and necessary step. Here are some ideas to get you going.
In part 1, we discussed these ideas...
Mentor & Sponsor Others
Develop Your Team
Monitor Your Management Style
Be Flexible
Look Ahead
In Part 2, let's take a look at four more ideas.
Be Introspective
What qualities do you admire in people who have led you?
Whatever those qualities are, do more of that.
Personally, when I think of the leaders I admire most, they are those who appreciate and value my work. It’s those who I can connect with and get to know on a human level, those who elevate me through their support, belief, and trust in me.
Elevate Others
Let me ask you, how do you elevate others around you?
Early in my management career, I didn’t realize that I wasn’t showing my team members that I trusted them.
At the time, my perspective was that as the leader of the team, I was ultimately responsible for the quality of the team’s work.
When they showed me their work, rather than review it and hand it back to them with my suggestions, I would take it upon myself to make it better, to add more value.
Without realizing it, I was not enabling them to succeed and inadvertently watering down their contributions.
A resource that I find priceless and recommend to leaders is Marshall Goldsmith and Mark Reiter’s book, What Got You Here, Won’t Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful. The authors call this behavior “adding too much value.”
In my example, it may take a little extra time to finalize the work, but that short extra time is worth it as your team members get to own the final product.
Bring Out Their Best
As a leader, how do you bring out the best in your employees?
These strategies are some of my favorites.
I let them know what I see in them, what I appreciate about them.
When in meetings, I let others contribute their ideas without shooting them down.
Give credit where credit is due, generously. This is important in a team environment. It lets your team know you value and appreciate their efforts.
When you don’t hear ideas from your team, ask yourself, “How am I contributing to this situation?” Check in and ask yourself, “How am I reacting when a team member shares? What kind of comments do I make?” And you may learn that you’re the culprit, your reactions or follow-up comments.
Solicit input from the team and encourage team members to share their ideas, especially women, who when outnumbered by men, sometimes tend to hold back.
According to an MIT study on collective intelligence, one of the three vital factors that drive group collective intelligence is shared participation by team members.
In other words, having a group of intelligent individuals where only two or three dominate the conversation does not lead to better results.
The other two factors influencing collective intelligence are social perceptiveness or social sensitivity of group members, and the number of women in the group, who on average score higher on social perceptiveness. I will be writing about this in a future article, stay tuned.
Face the Elephant in the Room
And how do you handle conflict?
Do you avoid it at all costs even when it's evident that conflict exists among team members?
Or, do you face the discomfort and nip it in the bud, clear the air, and move on?
Another reference I recommend regarding team dysfunctions is a book by Patric Lencioni titled, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. Lencioni’s model highlights fear of conflict as one of the five dysfunctions.
How to become the inspiring leader you desire to be in a nutshell
When you get clear on the qualities you admire in a leader, ask yourself, “How am I embodying and living those qualities with my team?”
What you learn about yourself and the gaps you discover are invaluable feedback to expand what works or pivot to implement more productive strategies.
With this insight, now you can influence and impact your outcome, whether it is to continue doing what you’ve been doing or to start doing something different, and become a highly effective leader.
As a leader, every day is a new opportunity to make the world a better place. How? Lead yourself and others toward a more peaceful, abundant, and connected existence.
As someone who leads your own life, know your preferences and how you influence and impact those around you, including your family, team, clients, and community.
What is your current outlook when you envision your leadership style and the life you want to create?
If you enjoyed this article, share it with your network. Leave us a comment below to share your wisdom and ideas on how you've become a fearless, inspiring leader.
In the meantime…
Be fearless! (act despite the fear)
With love and appreciation,
Ginny
Dr. Ginny Baro is a certified, international executive coach, motivational speaker, and #1 bestselling author of Fearless Women at Work.
Ginny specializes in helping executives develop leaders, maximize performance, and increase profits. As a career strategist, she partners with talented individuals who are navigating a corporate hierarchy or transitioning into an entirely new phase of their professional careers.
Where do you want to be 12-months from now? Schedule a Complimentary Strategy Session and learn for yourself how she can support you to begin creating the results you want.
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