Not everyone is born with leadership skills. It is always possible to gain them during the course of self-growth. It does not matter if one is running a business, managing a team, or teaching a class-- leadership skills are important since it is required in every stage of a job. It is not just something that can be pulled off anytime like a rabbit out of the magician's hat. It is something to be nurtured from a very early stage.
Great leadership is dynamic; it compounds a variety of unique skills into an integrated whole; and is also founded in a person's general habits. Following are some of the essential habits that exceptional leaders rely on every day that youths can follow.
Seeking new experiences and ways of thinking
They love getting ahead of the curve and are interested in what is next, take a spin on new technology, meet new people and chat easily about what people are passionate about. This attribute constitutes to a person's communication and people skills.
Adhering to the golden rule
The golden rule- "Treat others as you want to be treated"- assumes that all people are the same. But great leaders do not treat people how they themselves want to be treated and instead, treat each person as he or she would like to be treated. Great leaders learn what makes people tick, recognise their needs in the moment, and adapt their leadership style accordingly.
They see opportunities where others see challenges
They do not give up when the going gets tough and they keep on improvising. Before Harry Potter became a success, JK Rowling was a divorced mother, living on welfare, going to school and trying to write a novel in her spare time. She titled herself as the "biggest failure I knew," but now credits a lot of her success to her failure.
Taking risks thoughtfully
Great leaders see opportunity where others do not. But their every move is researched and the risks associated are weighed beforehand. Hence, they always have plans but are also willing to instantly drop certain plans if the risks seem too unrealistic.
They dare to fail
"The difference between winners and losers is how they handle losing," Harvard Business School Professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter wrote in Harvard Business Review in 2016.
To lead well is to risk failure, and resilience helps leaders to bounce back from the inevitable hardships and setbacks. Great leaders know this well, and they learn to use failure.
They give themselves a break
Great leaders have ambitious goals, and they work hard to achieve them. But they also know that workaholism and burnout will not get them very far. So they take time to rest and recharge in order to boost their creativity and mental sharpness. Break time is important to them for productivity as well as mental health like small breaks throughout the day, and even some vacation time during the year.
Some people seem to be born knowing what to do to inspire and lead people, but for most of the majority, it does not come naturally. Luckily for them, leadership is not a magical gift but a set of skills that can be acquired and practiced. It may come more easily to some than to others, but it is within the reach of everyone. Unlocking one's greatness is not about big gestures, but about making a habit out of the little things that ultimately translate into a huge impact; as Aristotle said,"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."
The writer is a student at Northern University Bangladesh. She can be reached at [email protected]
