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Are you in a position of leadership, either in your place of work or perhaps among your friends?

Do you influence others around you?

Do you wish be an empowering person? Lifting others up and helping them achieve their greatness?

Leadership:

noun

1. the position or function of a leader, a person who guides or directs a group
2. ability to lead
3. an act or instance of leading, guidance or direction

There’s a lot of books out there you can read on being a great leader (anything by John C Maxwell is a great place to start!) … But I recently ran across this article written by Tara Jaye Frank on the Be Leaderly site a friend forwarded to me.

These 10 Killer Leadership Skills are things that every leader needs to possess and hone if they wish to be effective, set a high bar for greatness, and lead the way for others to do the same.

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 10 Killer Leadership Skills

 

Killer Leadership Skill #1:  Empathy

People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.

Be an ACTIVE listener! Don’t think about what you’ll say next.

Understand yourself as well as those around you.

Although discerning a mutually beneficial path may be tumultuous, it’s better to ensure all parties involved get what they need than for you to be right.

The most effective leaders are very emotionally intelligent, and make others feel not only understood and respected, but also empowered.

Killer Leadership Skill #2:  Vision

As a leader, you must be able to effectively cast your vision. If you are not able to communicate and openly share this with others, who will want to follow you?

Whether it’s a new singular product idea or new business, a strong vision outlines the big picture. Hard work fills it in.

Killer Leadership Skill #3:  Agility

Agility is the ability to fluidly take in new information and be able to re-examine goals and plans.

What once was a good decision yesterday may not be so today.

Great leaders can quickly change course without causing extraneous drama.

Killer Leadership Skill #4:  Story

Great storytellers are able to inspire others and get people to buy into their vision. Not in a negative way like a slimy salesperson, but in such a way that other people see it and want to be a part of it.

Are you able to understand context, create a point of view that compels others, and tell a memorable tale about it?

Killer Leadership Skill #5:  Strategy

Great leaders are able to identify pertinent information and form related (and often times to others unrelated) patterns into opportunities. They see meaning and options where others don’t.

And then they take action.

Killer Leadership Skill #6:  Inspiration

If you are a great leader, you inspire others. They willingly will take personal risks for you. They buy into your vision, believe in you and what you stand for, and trust you.

When you inspire others, it is your vision, your integrity, and your ability to be open and honest that instills in others the craving to be part of something greater than themselves.

Killer Leadership Skill #7:  Creative Problem Solving

“Think outside the box.”

We’ve all heard this term, right? While this term may be a bit out dated, it’s basically telling you to develop the skill to be able to view a problem from new or different angles.

Sometimes you must experiment with multiple paths in order to sharpen a team’s ability to uncover relevant solutions for whatever problem (or as Zig Ziglar likes to call them opportunities) lie before you.

Killer Leadership Skill #8:  Presence

Poise. Posture. The “EF Hutton” effect.

Whatever you want to call it, it is the certain je nai sais qua that happens when a leader walks into a room … You just know they do. Their stance, the way they talk, the way they interact with others …

When a leader speaks up, people lean forward to listen. The people around them are trying to get every little drop of knowledge and wisdom they can from them.

It’s as if these people carry gravity you can feel with the things they say, do and think.

Killer Leadership Skill #9:  Authenticity

You must be transparent in times of change if you wish to be a great leader.

You must be vulnerable in times of loss and not hide it. People need to know you’re human – not some robot.

You must always be honest and genuine. If you’re not? People see through that crap eventually.

Be relateable. Be trustworthy.

Be someone of integrity.

When you are an effective leader with authenticity? You will mobilize teams faster because they know you are someone of your word they can trust.

Killer Leadership Skill #10:  Courage

Question your own assumptions. Sometimes the things you believe to be true are in fact the complete opposite. Always question and strive for better, even when the times get tough or you may be ridiculed.

Great leaders ask tough questions, tell the truth, and expect the best of themselves and others.

Bust up the norm! Don’t be afraid to be different.

It’s sad and true that the average person leads an average life because they do average things.

A true leader is not average. But in order to be above average (or to even excel) you must do, say, and think things that the average person won’t. And sometimes this can cause issues with friends, family, and loved ones. But take courage!

Be the leader they’re looking for … Because everyone is looking for someone to follow to greatness …

Be bold! Inspire boldness in others around you.

 

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Now, obviously 10 is not a magic number and there are a ton of traits one admires in the people they follow … So!

What are your thoughts? What’s missing from this list, in your amazing opinion? 😀

Leave a comment at the bottom and let me hear from YOU!

And if you would like to improve your leadership skills, definitely check out the presentation below.

Seems like it should be common sense … But even if it is common sense, is it common action?

I have been involved in personal development for many years, and it actually apparently began with a previous manager.

In some form or another, my previous employers wanted me to excel and some of them had me focus on things outside of technical skills. One of these wonderful people introduced me to Stephen Covey’s book called The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change (25th Anniversary Edition) … It’s absolutely wonderful, and I believe absolutely everyone should read it!

But I was reminded of this book today by a tweet from this cool cat >>>>>>

<<<<< @DavidKatzEO

>>>> Here’s the TWEET! <<<<

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And here’s my breakdown of:

Habit 1:  Be Proactive

If you aren’t constantly looking for ways to improve or eliminate waste, then you are already dying.

If you’re not proactive, then you may miss opportunities to prosper – either because you waited too long or someone beat you to the punch first.

If you’re proactive, you’re keeping your mind open to new opportunities!

Habit 2:  Begin with the End in Mind

What you focus on expands! If you begin with the end in mind, you’ll know where you need to put your focus on and because it IS your focus, your brain will want to grow more and figure things out in such a way as to achieve that outcome!

Habit 3:  Put First Things First

“Eat that Frog!” as Brian Tracy would say from his book. Basically do what needs to be done first! Even if it’s something you dread, you’ll not only have completed the task but you also won’t be worrying about it all day. And after you’ve put first things first, the important items will be taken care of and there’s more room and time for the things you WANT to do, not just HAVE to do!

Habit 4:  Think WIN-WIN

If you are always thinking in terms of WIN-WIN you are contributing to prosperity, even if it’s monetary. You are seeking to find a way to not only make all parties successful but that no one gets burned in the process!

Habit 5:  Seek first to UNDERSTAND, and THEN be understood!

We all want to be heard and understood. But more often than not, we all forget (or are ignorant of) the ways of people.

Instead of focusing on being right or being understood, if you can understand the other party or get a better idea of their stance, then you will find common ground instead of dissension and opposition.

Habit 6:  Synergize

Most people are taught from a young age to “share” … And it can have a compound effect on one’s life if this habit is understood early in life.

“Teamwork makes the dream work.” — Jefferson Santos

Habit 7:  Sharpen the Saw

Also known as PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT, you need to be constantly sharpening your saw. Become more knowledgeable in things that will help you to achieve success and stay consistent.

Sharpening the saw could be surrounding yourself with the people who are successful in the places that you want to be in.

It is reading 10 pages of a book that stimulates you and helps you grow, like “The Magic of Believing” or “What to Say When You Talk to Yourself”.

It is listening to 30 minutes a day of outstanding audios or presentations of successful, influential and powerful people — like Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar, Scott Ross, or Jefferson Santos!

It’s giving you the edge you need to be better than the average person. And it can even cut down the time it will take to achieve the goals you desire!

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I suppose that’s all from me for today. If you like the information I provided, please be sure to comment on this post at the bottom of the page! And if you want to automatically be notified as to when I have more information like this, then click >> here << and you will get occasional emails from me on more like this!