In a recent survey 86 % of people interviewed felt that there was currently an international crisis of leadership. Leadership is no longer inspirational but polarising, people are being divided into angry camps by the rhetoric of high profile leaders seeking greater personal power. so when one encounters good or great leadership it breathes life and purpose into any business.
Often one only realises how good a leader actually was when they have left or moved on. It always amazes me how people regularly reminisce about being under good, quality leadership in business. How a certain leader inspired them to be better, grew their capacity and skill, coached and encouraged and ultimately…brought out the best in them.
Pillar 1: Empower People
The ability to truly empower people is as much an art as it is a skill. It takes a secure, gifted leader to equip, raise and release people to to truly reach their potential. Empowering people takes sacrifice, trust, skill and most of all patience. It takes a gifted, EQ savvy leader to see where someone is and then see beyond that to what they could become.
We empower people by:
- Listening to them: Truly finding out who they are and what their passion is.
- Helping to uncover the gem: Their passion, sweet spot, where there best life lies. Their place of fulfillment
- Living our best life: Being an inspiration to others of life and positivity, passion and determination.
- Trusting them: This one is huge. We need to trust people. This allows them space to grow, dream and take hold of a part of the company vision. When we trust them, even through failure we create a secure environment for them to grow.
- Allowing the to find the answers: When we give our teams space to explore problems, devise solutions and taste success, we birth in them a hunger for exploration and we cultivate enquiring minds that have learned to problem solve.
Pillar 2: Inspire People
Inspiring people in your company is about attitude, vision, belief and humility. Rather than telling them WHAT, we need to show them WHY. We inspire them when we lead them by doing, train by showing, teach by explaining, then allowing them to savour the sweet taste of success. Inspiration breeds commitment and loyalty. It brings a positivity to any space and allows a team of people to grow way beyond the sum of their individual parts.
Pillar 3: Lead Change
The saying “constant change is here to stay” is so true. Many people hate the insecurity of change. They struggle not just with change itself, but their part in it. When we teach our staff team to embrace change, to not fear strategic well planned change, but to welcome positive growth and change, we create a breeding ground for exciting breakthroughs. These positive changes lead the company into new opportunities and arenas of future success. Embracing change is made easier by leaders who bring people along with them into the new.
Pillar 4: Empart and Embrace a Shared Vision
Vision is not a few inspirational words on a wall of a company. It is not a simply strapline or cliched quote. Vision is “The ability to think about or plan the future with imagination and wisdom”. Genuine vision has a power all of its own. When vision is shared by people, embraced by them and focussed on, it breeds unity and success. Emparting vision is done in many ways. These times of sharing the strategic vision with our staff is often overlooked and neglected, even though it is so incredibly vital. People can TOTALLY lose their understanding of the company vision in 7 days. That is why we need to constantly empart and share the vision and direction with them. This shared vision is basis of future success.
