When I speak with managers and supervisors in my workshops around the country, I’m often asked this question: “What skills do I need to take my career to the next level?”
Obviously, if your job requires a unique set of technical or software skills, that’s number one. Let’s face it, it’s tough to get your staff behind you if you don’t have the ability to use — or at least understand — the tools they need to do their jobs.
But if technical skills are #1, then leadership skills are #1a. Even if you don’t necessarily see yourself in a leadership position, developing your leadership skills can set you apart from the crowd, get you noticed for a promotion, and help you to work more smoothly and efficiently with colleagues, co-workers, and even clients.
In general, when you’re evaluating your innate leadership abilities (don’t worry — you definitely have them), take your personality into account. Are you most comfortable standing in the spotlight, or would you rather work behind the scenes? Either way is perfectly fine, as long as you also exhibit certain specific behaviors that create a path to success.
Here’s a quick rundown of six that I believe are most important:
- Set goals
Yes, it’s a bit obvious, but you’d be amazed at how many people I work with who haven’t completed this first, most basic step. What motivates you the most? Is it money, attention, career, family? What do you really want? Design your own definition of success, so you’ll know when you arrive. Ask yourself where you want to be in one year. In two years? In five? Create a “success map”—your personal plan for reaching your career destination.
Within your success map, which is really just a fancy term for your master plan, include small steps you can take using your current leadership skills (remember, you already have some — you just have to become aware of them), in order to feel immediately successful. And write your master plan down to give it permanence. Make it something you glance at every morning as a sort of daily affirmation. And remember to sit down every four to six months to re-evaluate all your goals.
- Embrace your failures as well as your successes
Believe it or not, it’s the older generations who have the most trouble embracing failure. It’s most likely due to that “failure is not an option” mentality our parents talked about during our childhoods. However, successful leaders are willing to take risks and make mistakes. Go beyond your fear of being wrong and tap into your rich intuitive sense of leadership. Consider each mistake you make an unplanned learning opportunity. Focus on what you learned from the experience — not on being wrong — and decide how you’d do it differently next time.
- Find ways to “toot your own horn” (without being obnoxious!)
Let’s look at a fictional senior supervisor (based upon someone I actually know), named Eldonna. She originally believed, “If I work really hard, the right people will notice.” But it didn’t take long for Eldonna to realize that no one was paying any attention to her — no matter how productive or successful she was.
Last year, Eldonna received an award for her freelance contributions to a not-for-profit community newsletter. Unfortunately, although she’d written several outstanding articles and a great fundraising letter, no one in her company ever saw them. She came to realize what many successful leaders already know: If you wait for someone to notice your achievements, you’ll likely wait forever. You must find a way to gently point them out.
To fix the situation, Eldonna distributed copies of the newsletters throughout her office, including the break room. Next, she wrote an article about her fundraising work (and her award) for the online newsletter on the company website. Voila! Her boss gave her a warm shout-out at the next all-staff meeting, she was asked to take on more responsibilities in her department (which resulted in a higher pay bracket), and Eldonna received the praise and attention she deserved.
If this story makes you feel a teensy bit uncomfortable, you’re not alone! But it’s important to know that creating an awareness of your achievements is not egotistical. You’re modeling leadership behavior, and you are setting an example for others to follow. (Just remember not to overdo it, or you’ll be labeled as pretentious or a braggard.)
- No matter where you are on the corporate ladder, find — and be — a mentor
In today’s lightning-fast work place, a mentor isn’t a luxury — it’s a necessity! You wouldn’t travel a foreign country without a map, so why try to discover your company’s leadership paths without a guide or mentor? A mentor offers you support, encouragement, and insight. You, in turn, can make your mentor look good by being a standout employee. Look for someone who has the right positional power and experience — someone who can help you reach your goals. (And it doesn’t hurt to look for someone you actually like and admire!)
Always remember that you can also be a mentor to someone else … even if you’re newly hired and just starting out. And reverse mentoring — where younger employees assist older co-workers in how to use today’s technology more effectively — is growing in popularity again.
- There is no such thing as job security, so plan accordingly
No, I definitely don’t mean to scare you. What I mean is that you can’t get too comfortable in your current position and let your skills slide. Therefore, your leadership path must include plans for increasing your promotability and marketability. Continue your education (both formal and informal), take on projects in your company that’ll get you noticed (even if it’s organizing a meeting or a social event), join in professional organizations, volunteer in your community at large, and work on broadening your networking group.
- Keep expanding your professional contacts
When the piles of work on your desk seemingly never stop growing, this is the one step that many managers and supervisors neglect. But even when your time is tight, take the opportunity to step outside your comfort zone and talk to people in other departments, other buildings, and other organizations — including people you don’t know well. Begin your networking by bringing people information they can use, or by helping them with a project. Rather than focusing on what you can get from others, concentrate on what you have to share. Your expertise, your conversational skills, your knowledge of people and/or your industry, your good old-fashioned friendship … these are gifts you can give to others. Consider every person you interact with as someone you can assist — and in exchange, they just might become a valuable resource, further down the career road.
Embracing and adopting these six behaviors will help you become the kind of leader others will respect and follow. Good luck and enjoy your journey toward success and reaching your career destination!