Have you ever asked yourself, "What makes me stand out as a confident leader"? Recently I was challenged to ask myself this very question. I found it easy to make a list of leadership skills but challenging to grab a hold of the confidence behind it. I have over 20 years of leadership experience through positions at church organizations, being a management for a non-profit, a team leader at a mental health facility, a past President & Vice President of a local chapter within my sorority, and now as the CEO of my own business. Processing the leadership skills I developed through these different avenues and making a list only took me a matter of minutes. Why? Because the skills I have built have become a part of my character and I have embraced the ability to be empathetic, encouraging, organized, compassionate, and focused on my team's needs. The challenging part came with reassuring myself that "I AM" all these things with confidence.
I want to give you a couple of steps that you can use to identify your leadership skills, build on your skills, and develop that confidence.
Identify your leadership skills: If you are not sure what your leadership skills may be start with google. There is nothing wrong with starting by googling phrases like "examples of leadership skills", "ways to stand out as a leader", or "what makes someone a good leader". Sometimes we have the picture of where we want to go but don't have the words. Once you have your words now it's time to build on those skills!
Build on your skills: Being a great leader includes having a growth mindset. Telling yourself everyday what type of leader you are and doing things to confirm these words. You can do this by reading books or listening to podcast about leadership, finding a mentor in a leader you look up to within your community, or even asking others how your leadership has affected them. Whatever you do make sure you are consistent and you apply actions.
Let your confidence shine: This part is one of the major things that makes leaders stand out. I can have a list of skills I possess and I can develop them and apply them every chance I get, but if I don't have confidence in my value then my reach is limited. How can you develop that confidence? Just remember the word SHINE. The letters in the word SHINE stand for Survey, Heart, Improvement, Needs, Encourage. Survey: Ask your friends, family, cohorts, team, or customers to write down what leadership skills they feel as though you possess and how those skills have been effective. If you are really open minded ask what improvements you can make.
Heart: Know that what you are doing as a leader is in your heart. What is in your heart
shows in your actions/words.
Improvement: What areas have I improved in and what goals can I continue to work
towards as a leader.
Needs: Being able to identify and meet the needs of an individual/organization.
Encourage: At the end of the day or at the finish of a job take the time to encourage
yourself. Pour into your own cup so that it will never be empty.
Tiffany Mills-Howell
Growth Mindset Leader
Comments