Good body language is the underestimated art of using your body to enhance your message. Whether you are talking to one or one thousand, your body language can support or deduct from your message. Like a book being read aloud, your audience can hear your unspoken words via your body language.

Here is a question for you. Who would you select for a job?

A.  A person who slouches while giving a presentation, speaks timidly and looks down to the ground when they are approached?

Or

B. A person who stands up tall, looks at you in the eye when talking to you and speaks loudly and clearly?

If you chose B, then you are in the majority. Most people would pick the later candidate because of the effective body language.

Good communication

While you may have thought that what you say with words matters, there is a substantial part of your intention that remains unsaid but is spoken without words. Some have said that up to 53 to 93% of all communication is exchanged through non verbal cues. I am not going to argue about percentages. However, I can assure you that those who have mastered the art of deliberately using your body during communication get ahead and remain ahead. Excellent communication skills which includes body language is essential for effective leadership.

Importance of body language

Your body language can betray your true intentions. However, you can also use you body as a means of making more impact with your message. Let me show you how you can do this.

5 simple tips for using your body language to communicate better.

#1. Smile more

Something as simple as a smile can improve your own mood and make you get along better with the people around you. When you smile, your brain and nervous system adapts your emotional state to mirror your physical state, thus putting you in a better mood.

Your smile will communicate the feeling that you are more approachable, cooperative and trustworthy. Others are encouraged to smile back at you and there facial expression will trigger a positive feeling towards you.

#2. Hand gestures

The parts of the brain that you use for hand gestures are the same ones used for speech. By using hand gestures while speaking, you stimulate the parts of the brain used for speech and get it more active. Research has shown that while using physical hand gestures, people get clearer thoughts and their verbal content improves. In other words, by using your hands, you not only get your message through nonverbally, but you also become a better speaker.

#3. Get people to like you by mirroring them

When people copy your body language, they are non verbally saying that they like you or agree with you. By mirroring others body language, you can make the other person feel better understood and accepted. This helps to build a better relationship.

#4. Boost your confidence with power poses

Research has shown that holding you body in a “power poses” such as leaning back with your hands behind your head can have a major effect on your hormones and behaviour. Holding your body in power poses can stimulate testosterone which is a hormone linked to power and dominance. Not only that, but this power positions will also lower your level of cortisol, a stress hormone. These hormonal changes have been linked to better performance and more confident and assertive behaviour. In addition to you feeling better about yourself, you will have a bigger impact with what you are saying. This is because it has been found that people are influenced by how you feel about yourself.

#5. Maintain eye contact

Eye contact is an important part of communicating your message effectively. Eye contact makes the other person feel special. They get the feeling that you are talking directly to them and as such will give you their attention.

When I can see your eyes, I know that you have nothing to hide and so I can trust you, like you and I am more likely to be influenced by you. You will however need to consider the cultural setting in which you are as it is unacceptable in some cultures to look directly at people.

Why not try to one of these simple tips and see if it makes any difference in you getting your message across. Leave a comment below with your feedback.

Christmas is the day that holds all time together ~ Alexander Smith

Today on Christmas day, we thank you for being an avid reader and supporter of LeadingLikeAChampion.

Thank you for your ongoing support. We are encouraged by it.

Thank you for your comments on our blog. We truly appreciate you taking the time to share your insights with our readers.

Thank you for your feedback. Now we know how we can serve you better.

Thank you for spreading the word about us. We are grateful to you for sharing our articles with your friends.

Enjoy your break.

We at leading like a champion look forward to sharing more practical, purposeful and useful content with you in the new year.

We wish you a happy holiday season, a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

From the team at LeadingLikeAChampion.

Have you ever been in a situation where you wanted to speak up, but the fear of what people at the workplace would think silenced your voice?

Have you ever decided to let someone go down the wrong path because you were afraid of how people would look at you for disagreeing?

You are not alone

The issue of being assertive is one that many people struggle with in the workplace.

Assertiveness is the ability to honestly express your opinions, feelings, attitudes, and right, without undue anxiety, in a way that doesn’t infringe on the rights of others.

Assertiveness is an extremely beneficial leadership characteristic to have, and these benefits extend to the workplace. For example, being assertive can lead to improved job satisfaction, improve your decision making skills, and help you to gain confidence and self-esteem. However, many people find it very difficult to be assertive. Thankfully, there are ways in which you can conquer your fears and become more assertive, thereby boosting your chances of success within the workplace.

Here are seven helpful tips on being more assertive:

#1. Practice being assertive

By constantly looking for situations where you can practice being assertive, you will be able to bring out your assertive behaviour whenever the need arises. Because assertiveness is a skill that can be developed, by practicing you further strengthen your assertive attitude.  For example, practice with a friend or by yourself in front of a mirror, paying special attention to your body language and vocal tone. Through practice, you will be able to feel more comfortable and be able to be assertive in the workplace without experiencing stress or other related negative emotions that often come with the idea of being assertive.

#2. Make a plan/have a script

Don’t just try to be assertive spontaneously – instead, plan ahead for situations where you can be assertive. Figure out exactly what you intend to say and how you are going to deliver your assertive language and behaviour. By already knowing what you are going to say and how you will say it, you will be more likely to keep an assertive frame of mind and ensure that your assertive message is delivered as effectively as possible.

#3. Pick your battles

Don’t look to be assertive all the time. There may be instances where assertiveness simply does not fit into that particular situation. Instead, pick your battles wisely and choose to be assertive when the situation allows for it and in a situation where your assertiveness will likely to pay off. Concentrate on being assertive on issues that truly matter to you and avoid constantly making a fuss. By doing so, you will seem far more reasonable and level headed when you do display assertive behaviours.

#4. Use positive body language

It is very important to use positive body language when being assertive. By using positive body language, you will be able to increase the effectiveness of your assertive message and ensure that what you are saying is interpreted in the correct manner. Maintaining eye contact, monitoring your voice tone, and keeping an upright posture are all types of positive body language that will assist you in coming across as more assertive.

#5. Control your emotions

Controlling your emotions is important in striking the right balance of being assertive. Being too emotional will lead to your message not being effective. If you do find yourself getting too emotional, take a time out and respectfully ask to be excused, or take slow and relaxing breathes  in order to calm your emotions.

#6. Learn to say no

Learning to say no to unreasonable requests is an important part of being assertive. By saying no to unreasonable requests, you are then teaching others limits and boundaries for the types of behaviour to expect from you. As a result, people will be more likely to respect you for being upfront and assertive. Learn to say no without feeling guilty and do not apologise for standing up for yourself.

#7. Be direct and clear 

When being assertive, it is important to be direct and clear on the issue being discussed.  By being clear about what is being discussed, you can avoid confusion and make sure that you don’t appear to be overly passive, ensuring that your message is delivered with maximum efficiency.

If you’d like to know more about being assertive, have a look at this course which will help you to overcome negative behaviours and give you a renewed sense of confidence.

Have you any additional tips for being assertive at work? Why not leave a comment.

The ability to be truly creative is a prized and cherished asset of a leader.

According to a study of corporate executives around the world, creativity was found to be the most important leadership quality needed to succeed in todays business world. This view is supported by what is experience daily in the workplace. You regularly have to come up with novel ideas and solutions to challenges at almost a moment’s notice.

However, for many people the creative mood is not something that can be generated with the snap of a finger. It seems that creativity strikes when we least expect. And when we want to be creative, we find it difficult to summon that creative mood.

Thankfully, there are ways in which creativity can be nurtured and you can increase your ability to be creative at all times.

So here are 7 methods for increasing your creative spark.

#1. Get Regular Exercise

Studies have shown that exercise has a major effect in boosting creative thinking, and that this effect can last for several hours.

It is believed that the ability of exercise to put people into a positive mood is linked with the promotion of creativity. Whatever the case, engage in regular exercise to get both the physical and creative stimulation that your body and mind needs to get the creative juices flowing.

#2. Idea-Storm

Another way to boost creativity is to come up with as many ideas as possible about the issue or challenge you are examining. Don’t worry about whether or not these ideas are applicable. Your primary objective is to come up with as many ideas as you can dream up.

The more ideas you come up with, the more you are likely to find a creative solution to your challenge.

#3. Take a Break When Stuck 

You can jump start the creative process by taking a break whenever you hit a roadblock. When you return to the problem you will suddenly be able to approach it with a fresh point of view. This is known as the  incubation effect, where illumination or insight often takes place on resumption of a task that you have taken a mental break from.

The next time you are in a creative rut, take a break from the task at hand, and you will be surprised to realise that you suddenly have a creative solution to a problem that you previously found challenging.

#4. Adopt a Creative Community 

Creativity can be infectious. The more creative people around you, the more likely you are to catch the creative bug.

By surrounding yourself with people who are themselves creative, and by promoting creativity in the workplace and other environs, you too will be inspired to become more creative.

#5. Grow Your Experiences 

Having a wide range of varied experiences can make you more creative.

Steve Jobs believed that you can draw creativity from experiences you have personally gone through. It follows therefore that your creative potential will increase with an increase in the number and diversity of your personal experience.

Seek out new experiences. Put yourself in different environments and suddenly your creativity will flourish.

#6. Embrace Absurdity

By letting your mind run wild and by thinking of radical or even absurd ways of addressing an issue, you can jump start creativity.

Because of the restrictive rules and norms that have been imposed on us by society, we often limit our creativity unconsciously. Using your imagination and not letting yourself be bound by every day limitations allows your mind to shift and you see things in novel ways.

#7. Project Yourself Into The Future

Projecting yourself or your issue into the future is another way to boost your creativity. By visualising yourself in the future with the problem solved, you can connect the dots and creatively figure out what you need to do to achieve your goals.

Creativity isn’t something that can be studied in a book or memorised. Your creative mind must be used and exercised regularly to enable it to continue turning out solutions to your everyday problems. These 7 simple steps will help you unleash your creative potential. And your ability to lead your team and your business will increase.

For more information, check out this course that will help to build your creative muscle.

Being an inspirational leader is important in unlocking the potential of your team in achieving shared goals. Within the workplace, inspirational leaders motivate employees to work harder and become more efficient at their jobs.  In addition, workers are happier and they receive enjoyment and intrinsic satisfaction with their increased output.

Because of these benefits, it’s easy to see why leaders would want to become inspirational. However, it isn’t always easy to become an inspirational leader, and many people try and fail to successfully inspire their workers.

Thankfully, the ability to become an inspirational leader is something that can be developed. Here are 7 things you can do to becoming a more inspirational leader:

#1. Engage Your Team

Successfully engaging and connecting with your team is critical in developing your inspirational skills. By engaging your followers, you will ensure that you are constantly communicating with them in order to hear their concerns and gain feedback. Your regular engagement will establish a deeper connection  which leads to a better understanding of their needs and feelings.

#2. Be a Role Model

To inspire people, you must display the same behaviour and work ethic you would like to see. It is almost impossible to inspire others from a distance, or without you openly displaying the same behaviours you would like others to emulate. By being a leader who is on the front lines and engaging in necessary but undesirable tasks, followers will in turn be inspired to do the same, and will raise their output in order to match yours.

#3. Display Energy

People are naturally inspired by others who display a high level of energy and enthusiasm. They will often be driven to perform by being inspired by the energy and enthusiasm around them. Research has shown that leaders displaying high levels of energy can be directly responsible for increasing sales and productivity. By openly displaying high energy levels, your employees or followers will be inspired to get fired up and work harder.

#4. Develop a Vision

To be an inspirational leader, you need to have a vision about where you would like to take your team or organisation. The vision will focus on the future. The vision should present an image with words of the desired future. By focusing on the future and developing a vision, you have a goal which everyone can aspire to achieve.

#5. Be Enthusiastic About What You Do

You must be passionate and enthusiastic about your leadership position in order to inspire that passion in others. If you are not passionate, it will be difficult to inspire others. Team members will sense that you are not authentic and may become distrustful of or demotivated by your efforts to get them to be more productive and efficient. However, by committing yourself to your role as a leader and by believing in and loving what you do, then you will find that others will be naturally inspired by you.

#6. Use Positive Reinforcement

By paying attention to what your workers or followers are doing right and rewarding them for it, then you will be able to inspire them to be more productive. While the reward doesn’t have to be material, providing positive reinforcement for a job well done will encourage your workers to push even harder in doing their tasks well.

#7. Turn Your Work into a Story

By turning what you need your followers to do into a compelling story, you will be able to give your worker’s efforts a bigger meaning. By turning your work into a compelling story, your workers can see themselves as important within the whole process of the work or business. In addition, they will also get a sense of meaning and purpose in their jobs as they see how they can make a material difference through a powerful story.

Being an inspirational leader isn’t always easy. However, truly inspirational leaders are often fulfilled by the fact that they have inspired other to contribute more to their cause. By being an inspiring leader, you are able to influence others to achieve your common goals quickly and effectively. This leads to higher levels of professional development for both yourself and those you are leading.

Sight

It is special,

It aids speech,

It‚s transmission is spontaneous,

As it moves through space,

And we appreciate our sight,

All because we can see.

Sight

On the surface, our sight can be a rather physical treasure,

It is galvanised into a powerful weapon, only when basic sight is transformed by assets such as insight, foresight and oversight.

Those few individuals who have cultivated the assets of insight, foresight and oversight, display extreme qualities of effective leadership and are sometimes referred to as possessing Vision.

Successful leaders in charge of corporations, Generals in military institutions, National Leaders, and political chieftains are distinguished from their followers and often earn their leadership through the far-reaching effects of their vision.

Foresight is the unique ability to foresee future events and scenarios prior to those events or scenarios playing themselves out in reality.

It has been said that a people would languish endlessly without direction if their leaders lack foresight and demonstrate elements of the foresight through expressed vision.

Insight is illustrated by the possession of unique knowledge or understanding about the advantage of concise expression of some or all elements associated with a defined event.

Oversight is the unique ability of bringing together the various aspects of foresight and insight towards the effective delivery of expressed vision.

Those with foresight are often misunderstood by observers and thought of as living on another planet. For example the Nobel prize-winning scientist and inventor, Guglielmo Marconi, when he discovered how wireless telegraphs could be transmitted between vast distances, and shared this invention with friends, these friends organised that he be committed to a sanatorium for reasons of insanity. Those blessed with the world’s foresight can be particularly odd people, simply because they have a restless disposition handling multiple existence between the distant possibilities of tomorrow’s future and the limitations of today’s reality.

Modern-day software developers, such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Michael Dell re-defined science and impacted the world’s development by the application of deep insight transforming once distant technologies, affordable only by the world’s largest Corporations, now accessible to common people the world-over through the advent of the mobile personal computer (lap-top) and application of other electronic gadgets.

Samsung may be a relatively new entrant to the mobile phone market, but has displayed remarkable oversight by capturing considerable global market share by the introduction of innovative products and very effective marketing campaigns in bringing products to market.

As an old-hand in the car manufacturing business, Toyota has consistently bucked Industry trend by delivering practical products to the global car market by its management oversight.

The best illustration at the disposal of the young manager in respect of vision and sight is better understanding of how nature has endowed the eagle with these very special qualities; namely piercing vision, vitality, attention to nurturing the youth and the natural ability to renew its strength after hibernation.

Once you are in the field, emotional intelligence emerges as a much stronger predictor of who will be most successful, because it is how well we handle ourselves in our relationships that determines how well we do once we are in a given job ~ Daniel Goleman

Far from being an unimportant aspect of leadership, Emotional intelligence  is an essential skill for a well rounded leader. Daniel Goleman, the world renowned authority on Emotional Intelligence in his study of over 200 large companies found that the effective leaders are distinguished by a high degree of emotional intelligence which includes self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skill. So what is Emotional Intelligence?

Emotional Intelligence is the ability to recognise and understand the emotions in yourself and in others. This awareness is then used to manage your behaviour and relationships.

Emotional intelligence is said to be twice as important as IQ and technical skills for excelling at your job. The higher and more influential your position is, the more critical emotional intelligence is at excelling in your work.

A high emotional intelligence presents a range of benefits for you as a leader. It boosts your chances of career success, enhances your entrepreneurial potential and increases your leadership effectiveness. In addition, a high emotional intelligence will increase your ability to manage stress and reduce your chances of suffering from stress induced diseases.

Improving Your Emotional Intelligence

Improving emotional intelligence should be a priority of every leader and aspiring leader. So here are 7 simple ways to improve your emotional intelligence:

#1. Practice Self-Awareness.

Increased self-awareness is the foundation for improving you emotional intelligence. To connect with others on an emotional level, you must first be aware of your own emotions. Self-awareness helps you discover your true self. And this can be an unpleasant exercise because we almost alway present a masked version of ourself to the outside world.

Here are some things you can do to increase your self-awareness:

• Know who and what pushes your buttons
• Stop treating your feelings as good or bad
• Keep a Journal about your emotions
• Stop and ask yourself why you do the things you do
• Spot your emotions in books, movies and music

#2. Get an Emotional Intelligence Coach

Emotional Intelligence coaching has been shown to make a significant impact in recognising and managing your emotions. With coaching, you are able to improve your interpersonal skills, negotiation skills and social etiquette. Coaching will increase your ability to manage stress and improve your leadership performance under pressure.

#3. Get Accurate Feedback

People looking to improve their emotional intelligence need to have accurate feedback on their improvements. Measuring your own progress yourself will undoubtable introduce some form of bias. So you need an impartial source of feedback and information to help track progress and initiate necessary changes.

Using personality tests or seeking opinions from unbiased persons about your emotional competency is a great way to know what aspects of your EI that needs working on.

#4. Be Willing to Change

To increase your emotional intelligence and improve your relational effectiveness, you must be willing to change some of your behaviours. Many of the interventions designed to build your emotional intelligence will be ineffective if you are simply unwilling to make the necessary changes. It is a known fact that those who need the boost most are those who are unwilling to change. By accepting the fact that there are areas of your emotional intelligence that can be improved will make a big difference in your success in raising your emotional intelligence.

#5. Put Yourself in Other’s Shoes

Putting yourself in other’s shoes or empathising will help you build your emotional intelligence. Try to put yourself in someones situation and examine how you would feel if you were in that situation. Think of some of the different issues that person may be going through.

Now try and figure out how you would appreciate being treated if you were in that situation. All these actions will help in empathising, and go along way in developing your emotional intelligence.

#6. Write Your Thoughts

Writing down your thoughts and feelings is another way to develop your emotional intelligence.  We may not always be consciously aware of our moods and feelings, but by writing things down, we examine what goes through our minds and how and why it gets there.

Writing your emotions down allows you to spot patterns of behaviour and serves as a guide to what needs to change and when changes need to be made.

#7. Effective Verbal and Nonverbal Communication

Effective communication is needed to for developing and improving emotional intelligence. Learning to identify and respond appropriately to nonverbal cues is important. This is because nonverbal communication often conveys more information than verbal communication. Observe peoples body language and facial expressions to get an insight into their thoughts and feelings.

Having a high Emotional Intelligence is important in your life as a leader and as an individual. High emotional intelligence provides a number of benefits at work and in social settings.

By adopting some or all of these seven simple steps, you can raise your emotional intelligence and contribute to your own success as a leader.

Are you emotionally aware? Why not leave a comment below.

I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen. ~ Ernest Hemingway

It has taken me many years of conscious practice to develop my listening skills. But taking the listening skills test has shown there is room for improvement.

Are you a good listener? Do you know that you can improve your listening skills? or are you of the assumption that since we have ears, hearing is synonymous to listening.

Take the Listening Skills Test

Listening vs Hearing

Hearing is one of the physical senses we have as human beings. It helps us to be aware of or to perceive sound. Once we have achieved this awareness, we have a choice to pay attention to what we are hearing; that is to listen or not. It is only by listening that meaning can be made of the sound we hear.

Benefits of Listening

You can make more friends in two weeks by becoming a good listener than you can in two years trying to get people interested in you~ Dale Carnegie

Is there any milage in learning to listen? If you are the kind of person who likes to dominate the conversation or feels that he or she has an important point to make, then you may already know all you want to know about listening. For the rest of us, here are some of the benefits of improving our listening skills.

#1. Improved Relationships

Think of all the heated arguments you have had with friends and relatives that has ended up on strained relationships. If one of the parties had stopped talking and listened, it is quite possible that the relationship would not have deteriorated.

Improving your listening will go a long way at helping you improve your relationships at home or at work. You become the go to person when others have something to say. This helps you make huge deposits in other peoples emotional bank accounts. When you have something to say, everyone listens to you and you increases your chances of being heard and understood.

Steven Covey in his book the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People talked about the principles of Empathic Communication of which Empathic Listening is a component. With Empathic listening, you seek first to understand before being understood.

#2. Improved Learning

As a life long learner, you will increase your knowledge when you become an avid listener. Like a sponge soaking up water, you absorb everything that is said and you position yourself to acquire knowledge and improve learning.

Think back to all the meetings, seminars and training you have attended and all the tips, contacts and sales leads you picked up at conversations during the breaks and over lunch.

Think of the conversations you have on the bus, train or airplane. Do you learn anything new by listening? If you do, then keep on listening and keep on learning. You never know what gem you will pick up next.

#3. Improved Problem Solving

If you have ever been part of a brainstorming session, you will know that to get the best solution for a problem, you need to come up with many ideas. This means you have to create an atmosphere where participants are free to talk about their ideas without being interrupted or judged.

One feedback I got from the listening test was that I have to be willing to listen to some remarkably bad opinions and silly ideas without making a judgement or interrupting.

How good are you at allowing others to freely express their opinion especially when it is contrary to yours. The solution to that problem that has plagued your business for a long time may be contained in that out of the box and out of this world idea that is being expressed.

Why not take the listening test and get some feedback on your listening skills.

You don’t drown by falling in water; you only drown if you stay there ~ Zig Ziglar

Need for Empowering Leadership

Our planet appears to have spurned out of its course in terms of stability and many people don’t know what to do next, as the fear of known and unknown forces play havoc on their minds. Someone recently drove this point home in a rather ironic way by suggesting that the only safe place now for anyone is heaven, but in reality not many people want to die and go to heaven in a hurry. I suppose that means that the only choice for the living is to build more capacity and increase resilience, in order to adapt to the tough times now and in the future. That is one of the critical purposes of visionary and inspirational leadership.

Build Individual Capacity

The greatest leaders are those that support people to build capacity by stretching themselves through their positive belief, improved personal awareness and increased energy, to do what people regard as nearly impossible. And, not only must they be able to achieve these feats, they must be able to do so repeatedly and enthusiastically each time.

There are no better ways to empower people than this, and the special role that a true leader gives himself, is that of empowering people, by teaching, training, coaching and modelling them. Leadership may begin with employing a person, but it reaches its zenith by empowering that person. That is what empowering leadership is all about.

Model Selfless Leadership

The important point that needs to be made here is that empowering leadership is possible only when the leader is determined to be selfless. When and where that happens, people would always respond with equal selflessness and loyalty. As a leader, you must therefore start to build your team by carefully choosing the people that show promise that they would be teachable and trainable. It is those people that you should thereafter expose to the soft skills development processes of coaching and mentoring, as you remain a leader that is worthy of being modelled by his protégés.

As a leader, you will need to focus on transformation of the core values, behaviours, attitudes, beliefs and capacities of your people, essentially because you know that each individual in your team has great potentials to succeed. It is a belief that people can be what they want to be in life, if they have the right environment to express themselves, and a believing leader that would facilitate the unleashing of their genius.

Challenge to Change

As a leader for all seasons therefore, you must challenge your people to stretch themselves well beyond their limits and comfort zones. You must focus them on issues that would make them – reach for things that are ordinarily well beyond their grasp. The truth is that they would never want to do this, but as a leader acting also as their coach, making them believe in the ultimate benefit for them and the influence they would wield as a result is a realistic currency of motivation. The interesting thing is that they would eventually love what they are doing and also love you for making them do it.

That is what develops their minds, as they have to think of ways and means of achieving the set goals, as long as they have the belief that they can achieve, and retain a strong focusing system along the way.

Maintain Integrity

To truly succeed in life, people must face reality and they must face it on a sound moral and spiritual basis. As you face the challenges of management today and get ready for the bigger ones ahead, you must practise integrity in all that you do. Start with yourself as the leader and be sure to model integrity, not only in the workplace put also beyond there. Practise it alone and practise it with your top team. Let integrity be the one thing that no one would be unsure of whether you have or do not have. The key is to be transparent to the point of people acknowledging that you are indeed a trustworthy and competent leader. Let people experience what you have experienced as a leader.

Promote Experiential Learning

Experiential learning overshadows classroom style learning. This is because experiential learning engages the head, heart and body of the learners. What is learnt only with the head is hardly ever sustainable. It is not to be compared with what is inspired from the inside of a person through passion. That is more transformational and sustainable, because it is from the heart – the core of the person. Therefore, as an all season leader, you must teach, train and coach your people to be above the fray of questionable morals, behaviours and actions. That is one of the characteristics of a strong all-seasons’ team.

Tell me your thoughts about empowering leadership by leaving a comment.

Survival! This is a commonly used words today. Individuals need to survive, just as much as companies, families, businesses, relationships, economies, governments and political institutions. There is great need for survival by many people around the world today. People have to survive growing economic hardships, security challenges and unpredictable environmental conditions. No country or continent seems to be spared the challenge of survival.

Most successful people can identify one moment when their lives changed, and it usually occurred in times of adversity ~ Willie Jolley

In turbulent times,people look more to their leaders for answers to every problem that they have. While the leaders may not have the answers and solutions at hand, they owe it to their followers to communicate a feeling of assurance and confidence that the challenges are not insurmountable.

3 Ways To Assure Your Team That All Is Well.

• Remain calm while others around you are agitated.
• Be open minded when people proffer solutions
• Show restraint and humility when pressured to act irrationally.

From George W Bush

When asked how he was able to remain calm and focused when the terrorist planes hit the twin towers in the 9/11 attacks, President George W. Bush replied that it was the most difficult and practical thing to do.

I had to show a kind of understanding that the generality of people would not be required to show G W Bush

He had to appreciate that he was thrust by circumstances beyond his control to lead an angry, traumatised and confused people through what would be a very difficult period, which he chose to call a season of travail. It was indeed a tough season for America, but it soon passed away, even though the pain and anger was still felt several years after.

Different seasons of life

In life there are different seasons and times. That’s as a leader, your followers and every member of your team must not be under any false  illusion about the season and time that they are in. As a matter of fact, the greatest leaders are thrust forward into the saddle of leadership during tough times and seasons. It is these challenges that bring out the leadership qualities that have been latent and can now be unlocked for the benefit of the people.

Crucible of Fire

10 Wonderful Qualities That Can Be Fully Developed As You Rise Up To The Challenges Life Throws At You.

1. Discipline
2. Courage
3. Decisiveness
4. Grace
5. Humility
6. Passion
7. Energy
8. Selflessness
9. Integrity
10. Faith

The resultant effect is that you become a “rounded” or “balanced” person because you have had the privilege of seeing possibly several extremes of many pleasant and unpleasant situations. You turn out to be more objective, less self-magnifying and more people-oriented. You earn your stripes as an all-season leaders, with the capacity to build and lead an all-season team.

Lessons From The All Season Leader

It is an all-season team that can withstand storms  and remain focused and united in purpose. You teach and show by your leadership example that:

1. What you go through has the potential to shape you into a person of character and grace.
2. Circumstances do not make you, but rather reveals what you are made of.
3. Proactively anticipate and expect change. Welcome change as a good thing that can only reveal your potential.
4. When you are selfless, people will respond with equal selflessness and loyalty.

Start building your all-seasons’ team today. It makes sense to start preparing for winter while it is still summer, and to anticipate the harvest time only after there has been a time of successful sowing and cultivation. The way of empowering leadership is to be selfless.

Let me know your thoughts by the comments you leave below.