It's not about the title when it comes to leadership. It's not about the size of your office when it comes to leadership. It is not about having official power to be a leader. Leadership is a way of life that you live every day. Leadership is about how you interact with people and with the world. Leadership is a way of being. Leadership is a mindset!
Mindset is a critical factor in dictating how one operates in the world. It drives every opinion you have, every decision you make, and every action you take. For leaders, mindset influences the culture they foster and sets the tone of your team. It shapes how you focus your group/organisation’s efforts on creating, marketing, and delivering products and services, as well as the expectations you create for your team.
But what are the attributes of a leadership mindset? In this edition of the CIO Look magazine – ‘Champions of Change 2021’, we attempt at dissecting the moves and decisions of the six excellent leaders featured in this edition to get a better understanding of the leadership mindset.
Leadership is tough. The very nature of leadership demands the will to face challenges head-on. Problems will arise and a leader’s role is to successfully help his/her team overcome them. Having a leadership mindset means seeing problems as opportunities and recognising that every challenge provides an opportunity to learn and grow.
The leadership attitude necessitates the capacity to make judgements swiftly, communicate them confidently and stand behind them come what may. While impulsiveness undermines leadership, the capacity to quickly filter through information in order to make an educated and timely choice saves the team and the business from becoming engulfed in concerns and anxieties. Leaders need to be decisive.
People like to see humility in their leaders – someone who will admit what they don’t know and work quickly to fill in those gaps. A humble leader values and recognises the abilities and efforts of people around them, and freely credits the achievement to the entire team.
Growing accustomed to change is an important part of developing the leadership attitude. Leaders who have a fixed mindset begin to miss crucial changes and might soon fall behind.
Being a strong leader entails being open to a variety of techniques and information sources. A growth mentality entails not only seeking guidance from industry experts but also waling that extra mile to find a variety of sources of information and inspiration. Successful leaders are resourceful. They are willing to learn from anyone and keep their eyes and minds open to solutions and approaches.
There are a few things people hate more than being lied to. Especially in business situations, team members need to know that their leaders are being honest and transparent. Honesty breeds trust, happiness and inspires employees or group members to work harder.
So many qualities and still we are not even close to exhausting the list of factors that make a great leader. Read through the pages of this special edition to learn about some of the fascinating leaders and changemakers of the 21st century.