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Collaborative Post

If you are thinking of trying to make more of where you are, or even perhaps moving jobs and trying to make the most of that, you might be curious about how to become more of a leader. That could mean stepping into a leadership role, or even just working harder to be a better leader in the role you are already in. In either case, it’s something that can bring about great changes for you if you do it right, and which a lot of us could do with learning more and more.

Pic Credit - CCO License

In this post, we are going to take a look at some of the things that you can do to ensure that you become a leader at work. The following are all really helpful to bear in mind and could help you greatly, so let’s take a look and see what they might be - and how you can start to incorporate them much more readily into your daily life.

Own Your Work

One of the main qualities that good leaders are known for is their reliability. If you want to be a leader, you therefore need to make sure that you are showcasing this particular quality. When you consistently follow through, manage your time well, solve problems instead of passing them along, and generally own your work in this manner, people are going to begin to see you as someone they can trust to be reliable through and through. Accountability is often one of the first signals that someone is ready for more responsibility, so this is something that you should definitely work on first of all.

Communicate With Intention

Communication is another really important quality in a leader. You need to be able to communicate clearly and with intention, and this is something that you are able to practice wherever you are if you really want to make it work. Clear communication is actually one of the fastest ways to elevate your presence, and it’s something that you will find really important to consider all in all. Share information transparently, listen actively, and make sure that you are easy to collaborate with. Leaders speak well, but they also make other people feel heard, so you should aim to do both of these if you want to really excel here.

shallow-focus-photo-of-people-discussing

Pic Credit - CCO License

Build Positive Influence

Influence grows from how you treat people, and you are going to need to make sure that you are doing this right if you want to effectively build your position as a leader. Support your coworkers, offer help wherever you can, and acknowledge the contribution of others as well as possible too. A reputation for fairness and generosity goes further than any sense of authority ever could. And if you do then rise the ranks, people will remember and appreciate how fair you have always been, which is going to help in giving you even more influence further down the line.

Look For Better Roles

Bear in mind that you might not necessarily look to stay in your current organisation. It could be that you set your sights on something better, look for better and more fulfilling roles, and that you are going to be able to really get a lot out of this if you do it right. It’s worth keeping one eye on job boards and looking at executive search teams, whether or not you are presently looking for work, just in case something comes up. Then, the moment it does, you can grab it - another quality of a strong leader.

Strengthen Your Decision-Making

This is another quality that is always going to be really important when you are trying to become a leader, and it’s something that you will definitely want to make sure you are aware of and thinking about. Leaders aren’t expected to be right all the time, but they do need to be able to think critically. Gather information, weigh the trade-offs, and make thoughtful choices. When you make a call, own the outcome and learn from it. This is the kind of approach you need to ensure that you are going to be a great leader every time. All in all, it’s the kind of thing that is really important to consider.

Pic Credit - CCO License

Develop Emotional Awareness

It used to be that we thought of our leaders as somehow above feelings. But we now know that the most effective leaders are fully human, in touch with their feelings, and therefore able to navigate different personalities, pressures, and conflicts with relative ease. Understanding your own reactions - and being able to read the room - helps you respond with clarity instead of impulse, so this is something that you should make sure you are fully aware of too. Emotional steadiness is a quiet superpower, and one that will serve you very well.

Ask For Opportunities

Instead of simply waiting for things to fall in your lap, try to get into the habit of asking for opportunities. This is a much more direct and proactive approach, and it’s likely going to have a much better effect and result for you on the whole as well. If there is a project that you want to lead, or a skill you want to grow, say so. Initiative signals ambition and readiness, and it’s something that you should make sure you are bearing in mind. Even if you don’t get the exact opportunity you asked for, people will remember your eagerness to stretch. And that in itself can help a lot.

If you can do all that, and keep on learning and evolving too, you are going to find that you are so much more likely to be able to become a leader at work. Whether it’s now or in the future, it is a lot more likely to happen.

—End of collaborative post—

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