How can you be a stronger leader?
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— The LinkedIn Team
Being a strong leader is not only about having the right skills, knowledge, and experience, but also about having the right mindset, attitude, and values. In this article, you will learn how to develop some of the key aspects of leadership that can help you become more effective, influential, and ethical in your role.
Know your purpose
A strong leader has a clear vision of what they want to achieve and why it matters. They communicate their purpose with passion and conviction, and inspire others to join them in pursuing a common goal. To know your purpose, you need to reflect on your strengths, passions, and values, and how they align with the mission and vision of your organization. You also need to identify the needs and expectations of your stakeholders, and how you can serve them better.
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The most impactful leaders are those who grasp that their influence isn't defined by their position, but by the resonance they create within their team. While purpose holds significance, there are instances where a collective team endeavor proves more instrumental in shaping it, as opposed to it being solely dictated by the leader. Understanding that leadership is a team sport makes a major difference.
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When I work with leaders, I like to start with a values discovery exercise. It's one thing to tell people they need to reflect on their values but showing them how is where the real value is.
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Build your credibility
A strong leader earns the trust and respect of others by being consistent, reliable, and honest. They demonstrate their competence and expertise, and deliver on their promises. They also admit their mistakes, learn from feedback, and seek to improve themselves. To build your credibility, you need to show your commitment and accountability, and follow through on your actions. You also need to be transparent and authentic, and share your successes and challenges with others.
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In my opinion, credibility is hinged on your ability to know your blindspots. You can build a great resume of reasons why someone should consider you to be credible. But they are in jeopardy of crumbling if you are not aware of and can eliminate the things you struggle with in the dark. Credibility is built brick by brick, minute by minute over a period of time.
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Build credibility as a strong nursing leader involves a combination of qualities,actions,& behaviours that demonstrate competence, integrity,& commitment to the nursing profession -Maintain a high level of clinical excellence -Demonstrate work ethic,dedication, professionalism,&strong commitment to patient care -Communicate clearly,openly,& empathetically,Listen actively&address -Uphold the highest Ethical Standards -Support professional growth -Problem solving mindset & ability to effectively address issues -Foster a collaborative & inclusive environment -Display confidence &continuous improvement - Be Resilient&Patient centered Focus -Establish connections with other leaders.Be open to receiving constructive feedback
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Develop your emotional intelligence
A strong leader understands and manages their own emotions, and recognizes and responds to the emotions of others. They have empathy and compassion, and build positive and supportive relationships. They also have self-awareness and self-regulation, and adapt to different situations and people. To develop your emotional intelligence, you need to practice mindfulness and self-reflection, and identify your triggers and reactions. You also need to listen actively and respectfully, and express your feelings and needs clearly.
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Emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills to sharpen in order to be a successful leader. We need to build our EQ in order to develop into our best selves for our organizations, our followers and for ourselves. Having self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, social skills, solid communication skills, adaptability, being motivational, displaying thoughtful problem solving skills, calm conflict resolution, and a strategic vision are some of the necessities for being emotionally intelligent leaders. Once we have these skills in place, good leaders can become good coaches by not only serving as good role models, but by cultivating others’ contributions to everyone's success.
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Emotional intelligence is a key competency for any leader. In my experience self awareness enables a leader to know snd acknowledged their strengths and weaknesses. I allows them to bring others in who have strengths that are different than theirs. This humility and vulnerability shows the team that they are on this journey together and the leader needs their diverse skills and capabilities to do the job well. Social Awareness and Relationship Building are also extremely important skills a leader needs. The best leaders bring the best out of everyone. They build strong inclusive and psychological safe environments. They know their people well. They challenge, support and coach them to reach their full potential.
Empower your team
A strong leader delegates tasks and responsibilities to their team members, and gives them the autonomy and resources to perform well. They coach and mentor them, and help them grow and develop their skills and potential. They also recognize and appreciate their contributions, and celebrate their achievements. To empower your team, you need to set clear and realistic expectations, and provide regular and constructive feedback. You also need to encourage collaboration and innovation, and foster a culture of learning and trust.
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I've found there are three essential steps to develop an engaged and empowered team, ready to achieve big goals: 1. Provide clarity on what’s expected – be clear on what decisions they can make without checking back in with you and which ones they need to elevate. 2. Give your team access to what they need to do the job – not just resources, but also information and opportunities to be part of senior management conversations. 3. Give people freedom to act – be open to other ways of doing things, give people room to make mistakes and help them recover. What step will you take to empower your team?
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Team #empowerment is a powerful way to inspire #confidence, #collaboration, and #community! Leaders must remember that talent is one of their greatest differentiators in a crowded marketplace! Mentoring and coaching in the moment will solidify behaviors that drive #metrics!!! When you team believes in themselves armed with robust tools 🧰 and strategies, they become unstoppable! #LeadLoudly #voice #value #visibility #entrepreneurship #leadership
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Lead by example
A strong leader models the behaviors and values that they expect from others, and acts as a role model and a mentor. They show integrity and ethics, and uphold the standards and principles of their organization. They also show courage and resilience, and face challenges and risks with confidence and optimism. To lead by example, you need to align your actions and words, and be consistent and coherent. You also need to challenge yourself and others, and seek new opportunities and experiences.
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Modeling is important from both neuroscience & behaviour science perspectives with mirror neurons firing when we observe actions, leading to imitating behaviours. Witnessing strong leaders consistently demonstrating desired values mirror neurons activate developing the environment. Behaviour science emphasises social learning theory, highlighting how observing & imitating role models enhances learning. Leader’s creating cognitive consistency & reducing cognitive dissonance bolster trust, engagement & cooperation & ultimately organisational success. thro repetition neural pathways strengthen & leaders consistently showcasing integrity, resilience & ethical conduct helps wire these traits & promotes successful change within their teams.
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Leadership to me is how at the moment of defeat or a win the leader acts either as part of pack, leads from front or backs the team to move forward from the current situation. Most leaders understand the current and future challanges and prepare the team to handle such opportunities or situations. Leadership defines the path and confidence of the team to embrace situations
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Keep learning
A strong leader never stops learning and growing, and embraces change and uncertainty. They seek new knowledge and skills, and update their perspectives and assumptions. They also seek feedback and advice, and learn from their successes and failures. To keep learning, you need to be curious and open-minded, and explore new ideas and possibilities. You also need to be humble and willing to change, and acknowledge your gaps and limitations.
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Continuous Learning & Embracing Change : In today's day & age its of paramount importance to continuously learn & upgrade yourself. There is no better leadership trait than this, which is to do it yourself and demonstrate to your team. This is the best way to get your team to also be on their toes, upgrade themselves, be relevant to the organization and contribute meaningfully. Learning is actually wonderful, it takes you away from pitty corp politics, back biting, cribbing, and negativity and allows you to channelize your energy to more constructive and newer learnings. Learning gets you to tap into your innate potential to do more, go beyond your assigned work, puts you on fast track to growth and make you a top asset for the company.
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Learning is an act of vulnerability because you admit you are imperfect. Share your learning plan with your team to see the following benefits: 1. Deeper trust: your team will view your openness as a sign of psychological safety. "If my leader can admit weakness, so can I." 2. Appreciation: you can reinforce your team members' strengths. "You're great at this skill! Can you show me the tools you use?" 3. Collective up-leveling: your team will know you value time spent on personal development and feel empowered to prioritize themselves. "If my leader invests time to take a course, I should find a course to help with my development plan, too." A strong leader has a growth mindset - always bettering themselves, their team, and their work.
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Here’s what else to consider
This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?
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Leading with heart and kindness so critical for people and yet not up there in today's economic space that focuses on output drive society. Kindness to self first, others then the environment we operate in. This will bring a shared sense of humanity and purpose.
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The purpose holds a multilevel meaning for a leader. “Thy-Why” to “Tribe-Why” a leader needs to create, recreate and keep it alive. Leading with purpose starts with two things Earning Trust & igniting passion Interestingly you can't buy “trust” it has to be earned every day as a leader at every scale. Same for passion, you can't pump passion into your employees. The absense of passion shows up as stress, and burnout. And last but not least, finding strength champions who can hold this emotional state and translate it into actions is super important. Leadership with purpose is a loving infinite game.
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