Getting your first leadership position is possibly one of the most exciting career moves you’ll ever make. Here’s how to maximise the chances of it happening.
1. In the words of Stephen Covey, start with the end in mind. Acknowledge your ambition and develop a vision of where you’d like to be in the short and medium term. Based on a realistic understanding of the industry in which you’re working, set yourself some time framed goals for achieving that vision. For example, where would you like to be in 18 months, and three years? Timescales will vary according to your sector.
2. Begin with the end in mind part two – how would you act if you had that role now? This is important, especially if there’s a chance you’ll be leading or managing peers. Others may find it hard to get the image of you in your younger years, getting drunk at the Christmas party, out of their heads in meetings when you’re trying to maximise your impact or talking to another member of staff about their conduct. Pre-empt this by avoiding those situations in the first place. Your reputation will stick with you – make sure it’s something you’re happy with.
3. If there are limited opportunities for getting the kind of experience you need at work, then look outside. Volunteer for a charity work for example, in order to develop the skills you need to become a leader. Jo Cox Brown, CEO of The Malt Cross Trust, says she did just that. Early on in her career, she became a Girl Guide leader, leading a team of 30 people and five Guide leaders. ” I motivated them, took them away on trips and developed training programmes for them so that I could prove I had those skills, even though I didn’t use them in the workplace.”
4. Develop a growth mind-set and see yourself as a lifelong learner. Carol Dweck, in her excellent book, Mind-set: The New Psychology of Success, talks about the importance of accepting that we don’t have to know everything, or be a perfectionist. This is a vital mind-set to develop from the beginning. There will be times when you make mistakes – learning not to dwell on them and see them instead as opportunities to learn, will be key to your success. Too many people ruminate over real or imagined transgressions, and in doing so, effectively sabotage their careers. Don’t let this happen to you. Reflect, accept, learn, make any changes and then move on.
5. In the same vein, develop ‘Learning agility’, specifically with regards to being an innovator. Learning agility is defined as ‘…a mind-set and corresponding collection of practices that allow leaders to continually develop, grow and utilise new strategies that will equip them for the increasingly complex problems they face in their organisations.” HBR, June 2015. While this article is aimed at senior leaders, the ‘enabler’ of being an innovator means that you will be good at looking at things from new angles and generating fresh ideas. New ideas will make you more visible at work and bring you to the attention of those who make the promoting decisions.
6. Learn to listen more than you talk. Read this book – Time to Think by Nancy Kline. Put some of the ideas into action and you’ll stand out head and shoulders above your colleagues.
7. Understand how others like to communicate and then be flexible enough in your own style to accommodate this. particularly pay attention to your boss. If her style is short, sharp and to the point, then yours should be too. This builds rapport and will help you be heard.
What do you think?
Later in the week I’ll be sharing another 7 points.
If you would like more help in developing yourself as a leader – whether you have the title yet or not – this free 30 page guide, 5 Steps To Developing Your Leadership Presence can be downloaded by clicking on the link here.
I’m Susan Ritchie and I help emerging female leaders to develop their leadership presence by raising their profile, creating more impact and become more influential. This means they become relaxed, happy and confident leaders who enjoy their role and excel at it! If you’d like to find out more about working with me, you can contact me at hello@susanritchie.co.uk