Leading When It Matters. You’re It | by Todd DeVoe |

You’re It

After reading You’re It: Crisis, Change, and How to Lead When It Matters Most, I started to think about what is leadership and how can you become a leader and how can you boost your potential.

Leadership can be both formal and informal. It takes hard work, courage, and taking risks to be a leader. You have to be able to find solutions to problems and make things better while not falling apart yourself. Being a leader means being a role model for people to follow and doing things that will help the community, your team, or even the world be improved.

Boost Your Potential and Your Influence

The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority. ~ Ken Blanchard

The job of a good leader is to help others do their best by demonstrating specific attitudes, behaviors, and skills that inspire and guide others to follow you.

Leadership has changed a great deal in the past few years. In the past leadership was viewed as you being the expert and everyone following you. Leaders of today not only build their business but create products and services that help improve the world or at least a small portion of the world.

For example, Steve Jobs built the Apple empire where the products are used worldwide. The same for Mark Zuckerberg and his social network, Facebook. He led the company to become a network that connects nearly 2 billion people worldwide.

“We gain strength and courage, and confidence by each experience in which we really stop to look fear in the face … we must do that which we think we cannot.” — Eleanor Roosevelt

Leadership requires courage, confidence, and communication. A good leader is passionate and committed, with a strong positive attitude. Leaders say affirmations daily to build their confidence and leadership skills.

Affirmations like:

I am an inspiration as a leader and a person
I act, talk, and think like a leader

Being a leader is different from being a manager. Managers make sure the day-to-day things are being taken care of. Leadership is more about being confident, setting good examples, and being a good listener. Leadership skills are not just for the workplace. Your personal and social life also benefits from having good leadership skills.

Together, we’ll look at what makes a good leader and why leadership skills are necessary for every area of your life. Then we’ll move on the why the old way of leading is no longer the best way to be a leader. Next, we delve into how to develop your leadership skills along with the common mistakes you might make and how to fix them.

Let’s get started.

5 Features of A Good Leader

Before we talk about why leadership skills are important in life, you need to know what makes a good leader. There are many characteristics of a good leader. Here we look at 5 of the top features.

Strong communication skills. Being an effective communicator is necessary to be a good leader. You need to be able to convey to your team or others what your vision is so they can carry it out. Being able to describe what you want to be done helps your team's efforts in moving forward.

You also need to have an open-door policy where you are accessible to discuss openly what is happening between you and others, your team members, or anything going on in your business.

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” - Bernard Baruch

Self Confidence. Being self-confident is the foundation in anything, but especially in leadership skills. Leaders have followers and if you doubt your own skills and competence, no one will follow you. People look for leaders who believe in themselves and their abilities.

“Self-confidence is the fundamental basis from which leadership grows. Trying to teach leadership without first building confidence is like building a house on a foundation of sand. It may have a nice coat of paint, but it is ultimately shaky at best.” Francisco Dao, leadership strategist for INC.com

Self-confident leaders possess other skills like decision-making, good communication, and courage.

A Positive Attitude. A positive attitude can be contagious. When you lead with a happy and positive attitude, people tend to work harder and are happier themselves. People don’t want to follow someone who is negative and only sees the problems. Leadership means motivating and inspiring your followers in a positive way.
Good Decision-making skills. Leaders will be faced with many decisions. Some will be small while others will have an impact on many others. Leaders trust in their decisions and stand by them.

“Trust yourself — you know more than you think you do.” — Benjamin Spock

Strong Morals. People with strong morals have good leadership abilities. They are accountable for their actions, have humility, and honest integrity. Moral leaders are more likable and will have more followers because of it. They don’t make excuses, lie, or brag about what they have accomplished.

Moral leaders share the spotlight of their successes with those who helped them. They are honest and follow through on what they say they will do. They have the courage and face their fears. To be a leader with strong morals repeat the affirmation of I gain power when I share power with others. And put it into practice.

“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain

Why Leadership Skills are Important in Life

Now we are going to look at why leadership skills are an important part of everyday life.

It’s not something we really think about but having good leadership skills is important in every part of our life. Leadership skills are needed when we are going through challenges and difficulties. They are necessary when we need to solve problems or make decisions.

Leadership skills play a role in how we raise our kids, deal with taking care of elderly parents, and how we manage our money. As parents, for instance, we want to raise our kids to be confident, well-adjusted adults. In order to do that, we must first have the leadership skills that will inspire them to follow our example.

“Man, often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end up really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.” — Mahatama Gandhi

How leadership works in different areas of life

“Positivity, confidence, and persistence are key in life, so never give up on yourself.” Khalid

Career. Good leadership skills help you advance your career, go after the career you want and while doing so, inspire others to follow you. Skills like having humility, good communication skills and integrity all go hand in hand in pursuing a satisfying career.

Example: When you take charge of your life and the success you have in it.

Business. Owning your own business or managing a business requires many skills. Those who succeed have good leadership skills. They are taking care of their finances. They hold themselves accountable and take responsibility for their actions. They have good negotiation skills and inspire others.

Example: When others say that it’s not possible or they can’t do it and there are too many problems and you and your team come up with an idea or solution that is leadership.

Parenting. Parenting is not just about bringing a child into the world and hoping they grow up okay. It’s about guiding, leading, inspiring, and showing the child the skills such as responsibility, confidence, humility, managing their time, and helping others.

Example: When parents take responsibility to prepare food for kids, get kids ready for school, and organize the home they are showing leadership skills.

Friendship. Leadership skills in your friendships do not mean everyone always does what you want or say. Instead, it means following your own morals and inspiring others to do the right thing. It means not criticizing others for being different from yourself.

Example: When you guide, inspire or lead others to follow and do what is right instead of following the crowd, it is a form of leadership.

Students. Leadership skills are found in the way you participate in sports, clubs, participate in classroom discussions, and help others.

Example: When you complete your assignments and your to-do lists each day, it is leadership.

Social: Leadership skills play an important part in your social and environmental life as well. By taking a stand against or for something, finding a solution to a problem that affects many, or by helping those less advantageous as you.

Example: Finding a way to reduce or clean pollution from your area and taking action to do it, is leadership. Another example is when you provide your seat to an elderly person on the bus.

“I’ve learned to ignore the negative people and just be a living example of confidence and self-love.” Khoudia Diop

Why Traditional Leadership Fails

Traditional leadership models, also known as Authoritative/Directive leadership, is a management style that’s been used for many years.

The definition of an authoritative leadership style, according to Wikipedia (source), is exemplified when a leader dictates policies and procedures, decides what goals are to be achieved, and directs and controls all activities without any meaningful participation by the subordinates. Such a leader has full control of the team, leaving low autonomy within the group.

This type of total control is outdated and often leaves employees feeling like their opinions don’t matter, they are being led by a dictatorship and feel resentment.

Traditional leadership is:

Controlled
Dominates without interaction
Independently sets policies and procedures
Has one-way communication
Are often poor listeners and problem solvers

This type of leadership fails in today’s business world. It doesn’t allow room for constructive feedback, creative thinking, and innovation. Employees might feel like they don’t have any input and are powerless to change things. The success or failure of the business/project depends on the manager’s knowledge and expertise. And finally, it limits the growth of employees with experience, making them potentially look for work elsewhere.

Instead, a newer type of leadership allows for more flexibility, inspiring workers, and sharing control and responsibility of projects while trusting workers to work independently without being micromanaged.

Developing your leadership skills

“Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy.” — Norman Vincent Peale

The skills you need to be a successful leader (or individual), are more than just having the natural talent to be a leader. Many of the skills can be developed and honed with time and practice. Simple practices you can do in your everyday life will help you build leadership abilities.

Learn to listen and communicate. Listening is an essential skill for being a good leader. Put away your phone or another gadget, look others in the eye and really listen to what they are saying. Nod and communicate with them in a way the other person knows you are really listening to and understand them.

Communicating and listening can be tough, especially with certain people in your personal life. Learning this skill even when it’s difficult builds your leadership skills and helps you relate to other people.

Get involved with the causes you care about. Raise your hand when an opportunity to lead others becomes available. Volunteering is a great way to learn leadership skills that might include strategic planning, interviewing others, and learning procedures and processes.
Be more intentional in making decisions in your personal life. Thinking about what you’re doing and deciding if it’s the best choice, whether it’s in your relationships, finances, or some other area of your life builds skills that are necessary for leaders.

Being more mindful in your actions and decisions, helps you develop a strong sense of identity-making us a better leaders not only in our own lives but in the lives of others as well.

Have a diverse group of people with varied life experiences and backgrounds in your life. Become involved in community organizations, churches, or other groups to meet people with different experiences and ideas than your own. This can expand your way of thinking and teach you to learn to value the opinions of all.
Take responsibility for your own actions. Did you forget to do something important for someone? Own up to it and make amends. Don’t make excuses for your actions. Follow through when you give your word. Don’t lie and procrastinate.

Another thing you can do daily is to begin saying affirmations that help you build your leadership skills. Here are a few examples to get you started:

My story inspires others to change
I set trends and think outside the box that others follow.
I shape my own future. What I believe, I become.
I am an outstanding, confident leader
I lead others by being a good example
I inspire and motivate others to reach their goals
I do the difficult and challenging tasks with strength and resolve.

Everyday actions from paying your bills on time to treating others with respect are lessons to learn in building your leadership skills.

Common Mistakes and how to fix them

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. Helen Keller

7 Leader Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Many new leaders jump into their roles without considering the mistakes they may be making. Leadership comes with responsibilities that include setting good examples and handling issues within the workplace. Once they recognize the mistakes they are making, leaders grab the chance to learn and grow to become better leaders.

Here are 7 common mistakes many leaders make and how you can avoid them.

Not having humility.

A position of leadership is no doubt good for your ego. It’s important to remember that you are not above having shortcomings. We all fail or make mistakes. A successful leader takes the blame for the mistakes of himself and his team while giving more than his share of credit to the team for jobs well done. Admit to your mistakes.

Taking on too much work.

Leaders know what needs to be done and how to do it. They might also be prone to the mentality of “if you want something done right, do it yourself.” This can be disastrous to a leader. When you complete or redo your employee's work because you don’t like it, creates more work for you and keeps your team from reaching its potential.

Instead, delegate to your team members and encourage them to do the work beyond only satisfactory.

Not believing in your own abilities.

A leader gets their position because someone else trusts and believes in their judgment. Second-guessing yourself not only puts doubts in your mind but the minds of others. Soon those who trust you begin to lose faith in your abilities as well. Instead, trust your first instinct.

Lack of Integrity.

Successful leaders are honest and sincere. This helps build lasting trust among others. Strong values and ethics play a role as well. When you tell your employees one thing and then do something else, or lie to them, or cheat them in some way, people begin to lose trust in you. Instead always do what you say you will, be honest and sincere in all your dealings, and have strong morals.

No vision.

A company needs vision to progress during difficult times. The leader’s responsibility is to set goals and expectations for the organization and its team members. Not having a vision results in projects that are not clear and poor planning for resources. Create a clear vision of what you want to create with your business, team, project.

Poor communication.

Communication is a top priority for any leadership role. Leaders who do not communicate their expectations, feelings, or shortfalls will find team members hesitant and confused by what you want and need. Leaders who rarely ask about the needs and feelings of their members won’t have happy employees. Have clear lines of communication between you and others. Make it an open-door policy where members aren’t afraid to let you know how they feel or what they need.

Lack of creativity.

Lack of creativity keeps a leader from thinking outside the box, finding solutions to problems, and coping with any future changes. Being creative helps leaders motivate their teammates to do their jobs under any circumstance. Find ways to build on your creative thinking skills.

No matter how prepared you think you are for the role of leadership, you are human, and will no doubt make some mistakes. The trick is to learn from them and make the changes needed.

Do This Next

Now that you’ve discovered what leadership is and how it affects every aspect of your life it’s time to begin developing the skills to be a good leader. It takes hard work, responsibility, and working on building your skills daily to become a good (or better leader).

Leadership is a skill that begins early. We learn how to be humble, have confidence, and to care about others as children and young adults. We’re taught to be responsible and honest as well.

Later, we learn that leadership skills are necessary for every area of our lives. We use them in raising kids, success at our careers, job hunting, and as volunteers.

To have good leadership skills you must continually work on improving yourself. Learn how to communicate better by taking classes on it. Become more creative by practicing your creative thinking skills.

Become self-confident in your abilities. One way to do this is to repeat affirmations like “I am confident in my abilities.”

Leadership isn’t about being a manager. It’s about setting a good example, guiding and helping others, and inspiring others to do their best.

The Emergency Management Network

Leading When It Matters. You’re It