A fresh take on Leadership - preparing for your first day. Some practical tips.

Do you remember your first day in a leadership role?

Think back to that moment. Did it make you feel and act a bit different? Were you a bit anxious or excited? In our work, I get involved with people across all phases of the career cycle with our project work - from first timers just starting out, to the next wave of new leaders developing, right through to CEOs/MDs who are in the hot seat today.

• Perhaps you stepped into a leadership role before you were ready?

• Perhaps you were ready, but your people didn’t immediately accept you and you had some challenges?

• Perhaps you had some disgruntled colleagues next to you who thought they should have got the gig?

• Perhaps it was easy and just flowed naturally for you?

I get asked about it a lot – mainly in terms of career progression and the steps people should take to evolve their career and help them make more money for the bigger, better job.

 The main thing I always say first with leadership is…

It chooses you.

Sure, you have to even get on the radar or short list to be even considered. And yes, you need to show interest for when the moment arrives. But most leaders are asked to step into the hot seat and not just expect it or demand it…that’s not how it works.

The transition from team member to team leader is a big jump. So, imagine how big the shift is from being part of the team, to running a function, to then running the whole company!

Whether it just comes naturally, or even if you have to fake it a little (!) to be the leader you can be and the leader your people need. I think there is actually a sort of ‘leader persona’ you take on – for yourself and for your people.

Whether you like it or not, to be a great and effective leader there is an element of stepping into this ‘part persona’…of what people expect to see and how you need to be.

Sure, you are still you, and you do and say things in your way, but all the best leaders I have ever worked with really step into the role and own it as we expect to see. They create the environment, they set the style of the place, they create the momentum and the rhythm, and they set the priorities and deadlines to step up to and be your best…for your team, your brand, your customer, and your company.

Here’s 3 Major Elements I think a leader needs to be effective – which are some of the part-persona’s to step into if it doesn’t come immediately to you.

#1 High Awareness of Everything

Great leaders have a heightened sense of awareness of what’s happening, reading situations and connecting with people. Awareness helps you gauge the room and the environment you are operating in. Seeing everything helps you ask the right questions, review the right information and formulate the right plan and decisions.

You need to think very laterally and merge the words, the numbers, the facts, the feelings, and formulate the steps to get from current to future state, with a clear decision and reasoning for your people. More importantly, you can see the unseen - what's deeper beneath the surface - and not just what is said or presented to you. There are biases everywhere and you need to uncover the true intent, the true motivation and what's best for the company in this moment...like a friendly detective...that see's and remembers everything and can absorb mountains of information and condense it into a simple concept.

 #2 Create the Rhythm

I think this one doesn’t get talked about enough, but getting the right flow of all the elements within your control (relative to the external environment that is not in your control) helps to create momentum. Having the right people in place, driving the right systems and processes, a good flow of ‘voice of customer’ and ‘voice of people’ to help adjust. It’s not just speed…it’s making all the parts work together as one, as effortlessly and efficiently as possible to create great things. 

Like a Formula 1 team, or a golf or tennis swing...anything that has many variables...things work better then they are humming or flowing together as one. And when it’s humming, you should not be needed as much. 

#3 Be Consistent

‘Everything operates on a lifecycle’

Think about it…just like the tides, the weather, the economic cycle, people’s moods!...you see the same up and down pattern over time...a lifecycle. People come and go, new products or versions of products launch then fade out, new services become old…competitors come and go, who is leading today is not usually who’s leading tomorrow.

The one thing that ultimately rewards is…consistency over time. Yes, sometimes the best decision is to ‘do nothing’, as the great comedian Jerry Seinfeld used to say!

Think building a brand – the same consistent message across all available mediums/channels builds up over time…your story, like chapters of a book, with your brand on the front cover.

So, as the go-to-leader of the organisation, how you act, what you say and importantly what you do – consistently each day – makes all the difference!

Which Leadership Framework is the best one to follow?

There is sooo much of the same sort of material written on leadership! I think a lot of it is more theory vs practical…high IQ, high EQ, be approachable, listen, question, be authentic, be curious, act, lead from the front etc etc…this is all great stuff and you need most of that, but it’s not always as easy to put into practice and meld into your part persona – especially on day one!

I love all the classic leadership and management books and research and I love some of the newer thinking frameworks - most of which are a refreshing new take on the same timeless principles.

But here’s something a little different – some small bite size prompts to remember when you are in the hot seat, on the job.

Let's break down the word ‘Leadership’ as a little guide to some important areas to help you. Now stay with me, as this might seem a bit out there...but as you absorb it it will start to make more sense.

LEA-DER-SHIP...let start with the first bit...

LEA-der-ship, or LEAD-er-ship

Let’s break down the word into syllables and come up with some easy to remember points to guide you from day 1 in your new leader role.

Lea

Lean in…listening and questioning to soak it all up to assess the situation and make the best decision.

Learn….you need to know a bit about everything to be truly effective. Have an awesome team of experts around you, but you’ve got to make the effort to know the basics of most areas you operate.

Lean…you need to manage resources well to serve your customer and create winning sustainable results for the company.

Lead…step into your ‘leader part persona’ from out front and from behind, to set the pace, set the priorities, track the progress and support and adapt as needed.

Lead…as in the metal!...always be rock solid and consistent. Yes, you carry the weight and yes you absorb the weight of others…the big things and the little things…that’s the job! And your rock solid, calm demeanour, and clear-thinking feedback helps to keep the wheels rolling along.

Lea-DER-ship

Der

Derrrr!…as in, be open and even a bit naive to things! As a lot of the time when you act as if you don’t know, it gives others the moment to shine and explain things to you and other people – it’s a great way to capture everyones perspectives. And your people love it when their leader has a few real gaps.

“The cleverest people pretend to be stupid, so the stupid people feel comfortable revealing themselves.” (Leo Tolstoy)

Disruption…your job is to create ‘constructive pressure’ to make things happen and get things done. Humans work better under positive pressure…pushing harder, thinking deeper…delivering excellence. Now the softer side of leadership might disagree, but the proof is in the real-world results and the actual progress that flows. Being ‘firm but fair’ and setting goals that stretch people to succeed personally and professionally, whilst hitting the company’s objectives, is a great formula to strive for. 

Demand…how to effectively create demand for your brand / your product / your service. The leader helps shape the brand - listening to the ‘voice of customer’ and responding with clear and unique benefit-led messaging. Balancing the demand side and supply side internally is 80% of the battle…when you go from too little sales to too many not forecasted sales, the supply side has to react and it does create internal friction.

Delivery…how to effectively organise your operations to deliver value to your customers and make money along the way. Your service levels, the customer promise you meet…all these little things shape the final customer experience and determine future repeat sustainable sales and referrals.

Lea-der-SHIP

Ship

You are the captain, the one go-to person, out in the middle of the ocean.

With a team, a physical (or non-physical) vessel, limited resources / budget, moving towards a specific destination, amongst choppy changing market conditions and competitive challenges along the way…it’s a journey, it’s a lifecycle of ups and downs, and wins and losses.

Some things you can control, a lot you cannot - but every day you need to be your best and monitor all the elements and inspire greatness from your crew.

It means doing what’s right and doing what needs to be done for the benefit of the crew and the company, especially the tough decisions…trimming expenses in quiet times, letting people go that are not working out, dealing with upset customers and suppliers etc…usually lots of problems!...all to keep the ship afloat and moving along for the greater good.

The biggest tip for the tougher people discussions and decisions is…do it as humanely as possible. Managing people is too important to leave only to HR...you’re the leader - lead - don’t shy away from it. Your solid performers expect you to act to maintain the standards of the enterprise.

Top 10 ‘Be The Leader’ Tips

In summary, here’s my Top 10 Tips to quickly become the leader you didn’t think you can be! 

1. It’s about them – not you

2. Every decision to become the vision

3. Plan and act from current to future state

4. Focus on the Big Hits first

5. Explain what matters most vs less important vs no’s/not now’s

6. Zoom in, zoom out constantly

7. Set and forget – build processes that give predictable outcomes

8. Move fast in slow motion – the right decisions and direction

9. Expect anything each day to stay in a calm steady state

10. Set the standard constantly to each person and to what is the high performance level - character in people, above-the-line attitudes, positive motivators

There is no doubt, the first one in this list is the biggest make or break transformation you will have to take, as before this, everything has been about you, your tasks, your wins, your losses...so keep this one very much front of mind.

It's about them - not you.

Top 3 ‘Be The Leader’ Principles

When you really think about it, a leaders job is actually impossible!…you can’t actually do everything asked of you, so a lot of what you do is…. 

1. Set the left and right side of the road (the boundaries and expectations)

2. Set the end result destination (vision, strategy, direction), and importantly;

3. Set the speed / pace / rhythm of how all the elements work together as one

I hope this helps give you some practical tips to evolve in your career and help you become the full leader you aspire to be or are afraid to become.

#leadership #leader #leadershiptips #bebetter