For those in leadership positions, it’s important not to take your authority for granted. If you want to inspire others and create the conditions for success, you’ll need to read up, practice what you preach and inspire others to do the same - here are a few tips to get you started.
Reading
There are plenty of books, articles, and speeches available online to help you learn more about strong leadership.
- From Sun Tzu to Warren Bennis, much of the most valuable wisdom on leadership comes from books
- Taking a short form, you can read articles by journalists or business people on how to lead well
- If you’re more of a visual learner, try these videos on leadership that will be sure to help inspire you to inspire others
Practicing
Leading in theory and leading in practice are two different things. Here’s how to apply your knowledge in a real-life context.
- Leadership seminars can be a useful way to pick up tips and methods of inspiring others
- Toastmasters has long been heralded as one of the best ways to master the art of public speaking, which is an important aspect of leadership
- Experience and genuine knowledge are key when it comes to leading by example - you may want to consider going back to school to pick up a degree in your chosen field, be it law-related or business-inclined
Inspiration
Finding a role model or successful examples of leaders will help to give you a frame of reference moving forward.
- Within sports, there are many stars whose philosophies and work through philanthropy have helped many others
- In the context of business, you’ll find many individuals whose hard work sets a positive example
- You’ll find no shortage of empowering female role models making a difference across the country today, and they’re not all famous! Try reading some of their stories
Great leadership always comes from within. If you want to set a positive tone and get the best out of your team, make sure you’ve worked on yourself before putting them to work.
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