A potential leader may be within many of you. Some of you worked and even struggled to become one now. But is that all?
Are you now a ‘Leader’ in the full essence of the term?
You too can be Senior Management, but when it comes to ‘Leadership’ does the buck stop there?
Well, not necessarily! There is still another career to climb: becoming an ‘Effective Leader’.
Simply growing from one flight of the leadership ladder to another does not by itself define your effectiveness. There is a small but distinctive line between being a ‘Leader’ and being an ‘Effective Leader’.
Very few achieve the latter. Those who have done it so successfully are actually the ones you try to emulate even after you achieve your own leadership status.
How many other leaders emulate you today? If you have a positive answer to that, you are on the right track and probably an ‘Effective Leader’
You can take any number of management courses, but the one thing you’ll never learn from any of these is that an effective leader is actually built on being more “true to who you really are” and creating a clear, focused approach to a ‘ specific objective’, so imperative to understanding your mission in your current position.
I have seen many people take leadership roles and thereafter immediately try to apply their ‘book’ knowledge to their work. Similarly, many try to apply their previous experience and methodology in the ‘newer environment’ assuming its applicability in any leadership role.
The truth is this: education and previous experience only give you a ‘direction’, not the ‘method’.
Did you know that it is almost an art? know how to adapt to change, when and where to use the knowledge gained, build on the building blocks established through your education and experience (which also includes ‘Life’ experience)?
I appreciated the message in the Oscar winner, “Slumdog Millionaire,” in which the protagonist built his knowledge from experience. Few of us ever try to savor these experiences and, more importantly, apply them effectively at the right time.
Understand that the actual process of adapting to different and changing environments affects leadership style and methods.
The simple truth about being an effective and respected leader is tapping into your own inner self to understand your capabilities. Attempting to do things that you are not capable of, simply because you were taught to do so or are expected to do so; it would rarely lead to effective leadership. Knowing yourself involves identifying your personality without others doing one for you, identifying your own weaknesses and working on them proactively before others point them out to you, capitalizing on your strengths and using them well regardless of whether others think it’s a sham or they have it too.
As a leader today, I have used these 5 principles with the goal of being more effective.
1) Know and clearly understand your Goal
2) Know, Understand and Respect your Resources
3) Do not create too many limits
4) Have an absorbing and open mind
5) Know yourself well.
It’s as simple as that: no big time ‘mantra’ here!
However… easy and maybe for some of you even ridiculous as the above may sound, believe me when I say that applying this is not that easy and that is where you can realize its impact in the form of achievement.
The best part of my 5-Principle Plan is that it’s not only so doable, but it applies to anyone, in any type of leadership role, from a team leader to a CEO to a political leader.
Many of us think we know our goals, it’s obvious and defined. That’s not true.
Did you know that in addition to the obvious Objective, your responsibility also includes a significant degree of ‘Value Addition’ and this is not defined?
This added value will always vary from individual to individual based solely on their capabilities and focus. Your Goal also includes established evidence of Improvement, Optimization and Foresight.
A leader is no longer required to only have one task accomplished through a team. That’s child’s play in a corporate world. Anyone can do that. Just because your team under your guidance achieved great quality or timely delivery or customer satisfaction; it does not alone define the success of her role as a leader. That’s to be expected, you get paid well for it and it’s only a small part of your profile. Building on previous success and creating newer and more advanced ones from it is really what the challenge is all about.
Leadership is a constantly evolving role. Just as you reach one objective, you find newer and more challenging ones already queued up in front of you. And when you see that there is no queue, even so, there is always more to do, since the good can be better, the best can be the best, the best can be perfect, the perfect can be… well… . let’s just say ‘Better than perfect’. Don’t get satisfied so easily. Create new goals. As long as you’re healthy and still working, remember that you can always go one step further.
There is an amazing quote that says that “true leaders create more leaders, not followers.” This really gives you a direction to understand your mission. If you dig into this quote and then look at much of the current crop of our political leaders or maybe even a few ‘Top Shots’ within your own organization; You will see exactly where the difference between a ‘Leader’ and an ‘Effective Leader’ lies.
Being a leader is not enough. We have enough of them. Try to stand out. YOU, your name, your work should have made an impact in one way or another such that there are others who are happy to emulate you.
Be an effective leader and leave your mark!