How to be a leader and play to your strengths – words Al Woods
If you want to lead a team with confidence, there are a few things you should know. Being a team leader can be daunting, but it can also be very rewarding. Although it’s totally normal to be nervous, you can’t let those nerves get in the way.
Here’s what you need to know about leading a team with confidence:
Pick A Role Model
Pick somebody you look up to and admire to be your role model. This could be a past boss, an entrepreneur who is in the news now, or somebody else. Whenever you’re in doubt, try to channel your role model. Ask yourself what they would do in any given situation.
You can learn more about your role models by checking out resources online, including YouTube. You might find some clips from seminars or workshops that could help to give you a boost.
Know Your Strengths And Weaknesses
Being as self aware as you possibly can is crucial if you’re going to be a great team leader. You should have a good idea of what your strengths and weaknesses are so you can work on improving them. There are courses that could help to give you the skills you need to excel, such as a strategic leadership degree. There are many different paths to get to where you want to be, so look into all of your options and go from there.
Be Kind To Yourself
You’ll probably make mistakes when you’re just starting out. You’ll probably wish you had done things differently. Retrospect is a great thing, but you must be kind to yourself. There’s no point having regrets. Just learn from your mistakes and stay in a growth mindset so that you can continuously improve.
Learn To Listen To Your Gut
Have you ever heard of ‘leadership intuition’? If not, now is the time you learned about it. Many leaders consider themselves to be very logical, rationally minded people. That’s great – sometimes. To make better decisions, however, people often recommended that you simply pay attention to any feelings in your gut that crop up. It can be tough to do this if you’ve trained yourself not to let feelings get in the way, but it could help you to make better decisions in the long run.
Work On Your Communication Skills
A great leader always has great communication skills. Being able to get across what you want to say as clearly as possible is crucial, as well as being able to really listen to things that people are telling you. Both listening and speaking skills are a must for great communication overall. Whether you’re delegating tasks to other members of your team or attempting to help an employee with an issue they are facing, communication skills are essential.
Be Authentic
Being authentic allows your team to better relate to you. Sharing stories with them about obstacles and how you overcame them can be a great start. They like to see that you’re a real person too, just like them.
