5 Proven Steps to Success Through Development
The most impressive leaders continue developing after they succeed.
The thing that makes you spectacular is what you’re reaching for.
5 proven steps to success through development:
- Evaluate on a scale of one to ten, not ‘yes or no’. Don’t ask, “Are you good at energizing teams?’ Ask, “On a scale of one to ten, how good are you at energizing teams?”
- Reach for better, not perfect. If you are a “7” when it comes to energizing teams, how might you become an “8”. (Hint: Trying harder usually isn’t the answer.)
- Adopt a “one new behavior” approach. What one new behavior will you try this week/month?
- Include an accountability partner. Two go further than one.
- Reflect, adapt, start again.
The “who” of development:
The answer to many leadership opportunities isn’t what or how, it’s who.
- Connect with leaders who love learning. Smug contentment is slow death when it comes to growth. One challenge of growth is the acknowledgement that there’s room for improvement.
- Develop relationships with people who develop themselves. Someone said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Look around and see your future.
- Find individuals who respect your talent and strengths, but aren’t enamored by them. A team of fawning admirers is a millstone about the neck. People who challenge you to grow believe in you. More importantly, they believe you could be more.
- Hang with people who try new things, while protecting gains. Reasonable caution is responsible leadership. Being governed by caution signals the end. The number one strategy for personal growth is trying something new and reflecting on what happened.
- Hire a coach who helps you see yourself. The context of personal development is the double-edged sword of personal discovery. The process includes resistance.
What factors are central to leadership development?
What prevents people from developing their leadership skills?
Nice, Dan. Strive for EXCELLENCE and remember the concept of CONTINUOUS continuous improvement that came from the Department of Redundancy Department. Model new choices from watching those leaders who make change a natural part of growing up and building their organizations.
And for many of us, “Get out of the ditch and get up on the road,” remembering that there exists twice as much ditch as road…
Many stats show that respect is hard to find in a lot of organizations, and perspective is so useful in all things. What you see ISN’T all there is and there are lots of opportunities to see things differently and make small changes. Your list is solid and actionable, if only people would actually act on good ideas.
Thanks Dr. Scott. Your “Department of Redundancy Department” makes me laugh every time I read it. 🙂 Although, the concept of continuous continuous improvement is no laughing matter. Happy New Year
What factors are central to leadership development?
Opportunity.
What prevents people from developing their leadership skills?
Dealing with the day job. If you are 100% occupied delivering the results you are commanded to produce, there is no space to grow in. If you can’t risk changing something because there is no margin for failure, you cannot develop. Of course this is generic: whether it’s leadership or technical excellence, this applies.
I think what prevents people from developing their leadership skills is the elephant in the room no one wants to address – incertitude.
Continual growth is the key and finding people around and above you who are not scared of your talents is the determining factor as to how well you can ‘change’ an organization for the better. Reward and acceptance is what we all strive for but In larger organizations this is not always distributed evenly, no matter how well you fulfill your role.
We strive to better ourselves, “not always is recognition desired or required”, but would be nice sometimes to be recognized, helps boost morale. If you are fortunate to do what you truly love doing then your already there. Have far do we go is the question? We all have different aspirations to get to the top, what’s left when you get there? How do we reach the clouds? The goals we set are factors in the ascent during ones journey, reach high and “go the extra mile” and your journey may continue, if your willing and able to take the plunge.!
Sometimes the larger the corporation the less is known what goes on behind closed doors, the key is to open the doors, get management to see the whole picture, aspire growth in everyone’s corner, “leave no monkey in the closet”, offer incentives to create unity, the system is flawed fix it, Identify the components and work to the top of the mountain. Be prepared for resistance, because it’s always present! So do what you do well and keep doing it, pay attention to what you do poorly and improve it is the message. We all can improve the most if we just challenge ourselves fist and challenge others along the way.