How To Thrive As A Leader In An Uncertain World
Author: Sharon Schofield
Reading Time: 3 Minutes
The Situation
Today’s work environment is dynamic and continuously evolving – artificial intelligence, world politics, mental health, wealth distribution, etc. All contributing to a unique landscape that no one has worked in before. Challenges for leaders, new and old.
Considerations
There is no single definition of leadership in management literature. We can all describe what leadership means to us, but this tends to be devoid of a single, unified description.
If we were to define ‘Leadership’ as doing the right things, and ‘Management’ as doing things right, we can see how this view fits into our changing times.
Defining Leadership
Many senior leaders have developed their careers by learning from others, and following other senior leaders in a world where knowledge was power. They learned from their peers, the way they did it, and replicated that to become successful. This method of learning and leading people is now fast becoming outmoded.
Outmoded Learning
Growing a business in these dynamic and uncertain times requires less ‘Management’ and more ‘Leadership’.
Leaders need to drop their ego of “I know best” … “I know the answer” … “come to me with your problems and I will help you.”, and move towards a leadership style where they are more comfortable with the idea that no one has the answer and that solutions need to be found collaboratively.
New Leadership Approach
Teams must work around a common problem, goal or ambition. Ideas are developed, and tested. Embrace failure, allowing teams to learn and try again.
Ideas can come from anyone, regardless of their position in the organisation. Leadership must move away from the concept of a single person or senior group. Leadership is a mindset and culture of empowerment, focusing on actions and behaviours.
Collaborative Teams
Conclusions
This new way of working can be very different and uncomfortable for many leaders, taking them outside of their comfort zone.
To help leaders adapt to this different style of leadership, we have found that training leaders in coaching principles help foster a Coaching Culture – where leaders coach their teams and individuals, and teams coach themselves to develop ideas and solutions. In this way of working, the leader acts more as a facilitator for success than a manager of people.
Discomfort With Change
“We have not worked in an environment like this before”
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