It’s the September edition of The Inbox Coach, and in the UK, summer has finally arrived! Better late than never. This month’s dose of coaching straight to your inbox is all about Leadership.
I’ve been carrying out a Career Development Survey to find out how people are feeling about their careers at the moment and what support they are looking for over the coming months. A topic that has come up in the survey, and with several clients recently, is Leadership; the impact of poor leadership on your work and how to step up into a leadership mindset to further your career. If you haven’t filled in the survey yet, there is still time to do so, just click on the link here.
A time for great leadership
Over the last 18 months, good leadership has been the difference between making people feel good about their career and leaving them feeling undervalued and overworked. It’s been a tough time all round, but those who have experienced great leadership are feeling much more positive about their careers. For those who are in a leadership position, as well as thinking about keeping the business going when the world was turned upside, you have also had to think about the well-being of your staff and adapting to new ways of working. It’s been a lot.
Follow my lead
I believe leadership is about having a vision for your work that is bigger than just your job role and how you support, motivate and inspire other people to work towards that bigger vision. It’s about looking at the organisation you work for and drawing a line between your role and the bigger objectives of the company. I think it is also about challenging the status quo and helping to create a future of work that is more diverse, more inclusive and makes a positive impact on the world.
We tend to think of leaders as those with the most senior job titles in the organisation, or those who have responsibility for a large team of people. Whilst those individuals have leadership as part of their role, I think it is possible for anyone to be a leader at work.
Reflection
*If you can’t do the exercises from this email now, then don’t forget to pick a time when you are going to do them and add this email to your calendar
Stepping into a leadership role at work is more than just the job title you have; it’s about how you approach your work and how you lead the way for others to buy into your vision. Whatever role you have in an organisation, there are opportunities for you to demonstrate leadership every day.
If you are looking to develop your leadership skills, ask yourself the following questions…
What type of leader do I want to be?
How do I want to show up at work as a leader?
What leadership qualities do I want to embody?
Who do I admire as a leader that I can learn from?
How do I want to make people feel?
Being a leader is a privileged position to be in. You not only get to influence your day, but you lead by example for other people, and you can help them to achieve more than they would have on their own. Spend some time thinking about what sort of leader you want to be and what impact you want to have in the world.
Action
You don’t have to be the CEO of a company to be a leader, you don’t even have to be part of a leadership team to make a difference. You can choose a small area of work that you want to lead on and encourage others to do the same.
It could be putting your customers at the centre of your work, using data to drive decision making, valuing the voices of all team members, showing compassion and kindness to your colleagues. Whatever it is, you get to decide how you lead in that area of your work and how you want to show up.
Task
Pick an area of your work that you want to be seen as a leader for and look for opportunities to demonstrate leadership qualities. Think about how you can not only lead by example, but also encourage others to do the same.
If you can’t do the exercises from this email now, then don’t forget to pick a time when you are going to do them and add the prompts in this email to your calendar.
Inspiration
“You can't morph into somebody else in order to succeed at work.” – Karen Blackett OBE
Karen Blackett OBE is one of the most powerful women in advertising. She is currently the GroupM UK CEO and was previously chair of MediaCom UK and has had a lot of successes in her career, featuring in Management Today's 35 most powerful women under 35 in 2003 and 2005 as well topping the Black Powerlist in 2015. And she hasn't kept that success to herself, she has helped to start an apprenticeship scheme in her organisation and she sits on the boards of several charities and social ventures.
As a black woman, Karen is well aware of the sexism and racism that may have got in the way of her success, although she has been fortunate to work with many people who were able to see past any labels about her and just recognise her talent. She does however talk about hearing directly from a client that they wouldn't hire a black female business director and how hurtful this was. Karen goes on to say that being herself at work is important to her own wellbeing, and if someone doesn't want to work with her because of her gender and ethnicity she doesn't want to work with them. She describes her leadership style as authentic and highlights the importance of finding your own style and approach so that you don't end up miserable at work.
The Drum published a great piece by Karen last year which you can read here.
If you follow me on LinkedIn and Instagram you will have seen that I’m running 30 Days of Career Support, offering up a question or piece of advice every day in September to help you to create a career you love. I’d love it if you could get involved by liking, sharing or commenting on the posts. If you have something specific you are working on this month, let me know and I’ll include it in the questions
