Understanding Ourselves As A Leader Is The First Step To Becoming A Better Leader.
Leadership is the accomplishment of a goal through the direction of human assistants. The man who successfully marshals his human collaborators to achieve particular ends is a leader. A great leader is one who can do so day after day, and year after year, in a wide variety of circumstances.
Who Is an Informal Leader?
An informal leader is an individual within an organization who is worth listening to because of their perceived experience and reputation among peers. They influence the decisions of others, although they hold no formal position of authority and have no power over those who choose to follow their lead.
Enhance your Reputation - It starts with being seen as credible – the reason people consider you to be worth listening to. Do it now before you go any further.
Alright!
It takes time – but you can build credibility – which, in turn, fuels your reputation by focusing on these five essentials:
Being Accurate - Ensure that your emails, memos, presentations, etc., are
error-free and based on facts and data.
Be Genuine and Willing to Master - When you appear to be a ‘know-it-all,’ you are sure to lose credibility. No one knows everything, so at some point, you’re bound to be wrong. If you present yourself as a person who is always willing to learn (because you know that you don’t know everything), you will walk with
authenticity.
Anchor on Solutions - Informal leaders are problem solvers. They are great at
uncovering problems and at seeking solutions to address them.
Exhibit Creativity and Innovation - A typical problem solver considers the use of existing resources. A creative and innovative problem solver thinks about ideas, concepts, and resources that may not currently exist. They think ‘outside the box.’
Teamwork - Ensure that you are building reciprocal relationships that work toward a shared goal. People have to believe what you say, and your actions have to be aligned with your message.
You can use the above essentials in you day to day life. As it will help you more to improve your reputation in a firm, you wish to work.
Start from Where You Are
The first step is to assess your informal leadership strengths and areas for improvement.
Crave on Prize
Now that you have your two strengths and three areas for improvement, think about where you see yourself in in the next year, and the next five years. Write your short-term and long-term goals to keep you grounded as you build your competencies as an informal leader. When you have goals, you can stay focused.
By setting goals for yourself, you will become a better informal leader. It’s one of the competencies.
Watch out Before You Leap
You need to do more than just developing your competencies to become an extraordinary informal leader. You will always need other people to help you as you grow during the career lifecycle. Know the one’s that might be willing to help you. Think twice before taking the decision.
Recapitulation
“Under stress, people react more favorably to trusted messengers or individuals they know and respect. People tend to judge the messenger before they judge the message itself. So choosing messengers who have demonstrated credibility, and have been effective in past situations, becomes imperative.”
You must be ready to understand and embrace group dynamics in order to achieve success and move both team and key initiatives forward. You must also learn to communicate your good works credibly to avoid being sabotaged. Leading those who are directly under you is not really easy but knowing how to influence others without formal authority is key to both job and career success.
Written by - Jesvin Joseph
Edited by - Prachi Raheja
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