Posts Tagged ‘Leading’

From the outside looking in, being a leader can sometimes seem to be all about strategy, the big picture and driving the organisation forward. In my experience, there are often many misconceptions about leading. Here are my top 5:

1. Misconception 1: It’s easy

   Contrary to what people often believe, leading is a huge challenge and is certainly not easy.

2. Misconception 2: You can rely on seniority

   There may have been a time when people in leadership roles could rely on their status to get others to come on board. The truth is this does not work anymore.

3. Misconception 3: Everyone will follow

   Leaders need followers. People only follow you if they believe that you are worth following. Don’t assume everyone will be on board with what you want to achieve.

4. Misconception 4: Leaders are born, not made.

   There is an idea that there is something genetically different which happens at birth to result in people being natural leaders. This is the biggest myth around.

5. Misconception 5: You need to be nasty

   All of the best leaders I ever worked with had one thing in common. They were genuinely nice people and really took an interest in others.

What other misconceptions do you have about leading?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

As a leader, you can be pushed, pulled or cajoled in many different directions.

One of the big challenges is to know what you stand for as a leader.

Take the time to determine:

• What really matters to you as a leader?
• What do you want to have a reputation for as a leader?
• What boundaries do you set on what you will or won’t do as a leader?

Becoming a leader is not about selling out but taking a stand for what matters to you.

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

Most people working in major organisations follow a pretty defined climb up the career ladder. As a result, people are often promoted to leadership and management roles based on what they have done in the past rather than future potential.

So do you really have what it takes to lead? Check out the following 10 questions to find out.

1. I am able to create a long term vision.
2. I am able to get others to buy in to my vision.
3. I can set specific objectives and milestones to achieve the vision.
4. I empower people to deliver and then get out of the way.
5. When I communicate, I listen as much as I speak.
6. I treat people well and help them to achieve.
7. I bring out the best in others.
8. I put results first, ahead of how I am seen or perceived by others.
9. I have the personal resilience to bounce back from setbacks.
10. I focus on what I do best.

I you can say “yes” to most of the above, you have the foundations for success as a leader in my view.

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

One of the biggest transitions that you will face in your career is successfully transitioning to a leadership role.

In this short video I will be sharing my tips on successfully transitioning to leadership.

If you have some great tips to add to make the transition successful please go ahead and leave a comment.

As anyone knows who is in, or has been in, a leadership role, it can often be hugely challenging and at the same time rewarding.

Over the years, I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to work with some great and not so great leaders.

For me, the things that differentiated the leaders who stood out included the following:

Genuine interest in others
• All of the leaders that I admired when working in big organisations genuinely had an interest in others. They were often people who made the time to help others progress, learn, grow and develop. At the same time, they still set and expected high standards of performance.

Inspiring

• I worked with one leader who, whilst highly driven personally, really inspired me and others to do what it took to get the best results. Their upbeat, ‘can do’ attitude really acted as a real source of inspiration. At the same time, they took the time to acknowledge when you had done a good job.

Sense of balance

• Most people who are in leadership roles have a certain level of drive. At the same time they are able to keep some sense of balance. They are often people who work hard and smartly when in the workplace but also make time for things outside work.

Do what they do best

• Good leaders don’t try to be great at everything. They know what they do best and build a team of people around them who complement the leader.

So what in your experience makes leaders stand out?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

As a leader, I guess that you ultimately want to achieve success. At the same time, you know that success as a leader is definitely not guaranteed.

So what traits do you want to avoid if you want to achieve success as a leader?

1. Trying to rely on status or seniority to get things done.
2. Never allowing others to have a go and try things out because of fear of failure.
3. Avoiding taking key decisions that need to be made.
4. Trying to do it all by yourself.
5. Failing to trust others in the team.

I wonder what else you would add to the list?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

Read one of the many excellent leadership books and you might think that it is a breeze. The reality is quite different.

So what are some common leadership myths that you need to avoid?

Myth 1: Leaders are born

Truth is we are all born and I am not aware of any distinction being made at birth so don’t buy into this way of thinking. If you do, you are sunk before you get started.

Myth 2: There is a right or wrong style

We all have our natural preferences or what I call ‘default style’. At the same time, the type of leadership style that you adopt depends on the circumstances you face. Be willing to adapt your style to fit the circumstances.

Myth 3: You need to be charismatic and an extrovert

Being a bit of an extrovert might help but people are generally good at looking below the surface. Truth is some of the most successful leaders in some of the biggest organisations are introverts. Again, don’t buy into the mindset trap.

Myth 4: You need to be smart

Yes, you need a certain level of intelligence but that in itself is not enough. What you do need to be smart about is how you invest your time and energies and to know the impact you have on others. Build all of your competencies, not just your IQ.

Myth 5: You need to be the fountain of all knowledge

Gone are the days when, as the leader, you know everything in detail. After all, that’s not what you are employed to do. What’s important is to recognise where you are weaker and then build a team around you with complementary skills.

The Bottom Line

If you want to prosper as a leader, make sure you don’t limit yourself by buying into some of the common myths.

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

I am starting a brand new series of blog posts on the A to Z of Leadership Success.

So what about the letter A? For me it is about:

• Action focus
• Acknowledging the contribution of others
• Acting with integrity
• Applying what you learn
• Accepting that you cannot be great at everything

What else would you add?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

I don’t know about you but I am continually amazed how some people automatically believe that successful people were always successful.

Truth is, in my experience, those that really achieved long term success were willing to go the distance.

What I mean by this is that they:

• Got clear about the results that they wanted.
• Found out what it would take to achieve them.
• Got the help and support to get there.
• Put in the effort and made the sacrifices to make it happen.

So my question to you is, are you willing to go the distance to get the success you want as a leader?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here

1. High levels of personal commitment and willing to do what it takes.
2. Ready and able to bounce back from setbacks and disappointments.
3. Able to keep hold of the bigger picture even when dealing with the here and now.
4. Committed to helping others to achieve success.
5. Willing to make the time for others.
6. Courageous and willing to make the tough calls, even if it might be unpopular.
7. Treat everyone fairly and with respect, whatever level they are at.

So what other attributes would you add to the list?

Duncan Brodie of Goals and Achievements helps accountants and health professionals to achieve success and realize their professional potential through being highly effective leaders and managers. For more information and to sign up for his free audio e-course click here