Are We Great Leaders?
Effective leadership takes hard work, determination, and a strong vision; it is not a prize. As we continue to navigate the profound impact of COVID-19, leaders play a significant role in looking out for their team, understanding unique circumstances, and creating an open and supportive environment.
To lead, you must get your most important work done, have hard conversations, create accountability, and inspire action regardless of your role, title, position, profession, or status.
According to Peter Bregman, great leaders demonstrate four elements to inspire action, which will be discussed in this article.
Great leaders are Confident in themselves, Connected to others, Committed to purpose, and Emotionally courageous. Most of us are great at only one or maybe two of the four elements. However, we must excel simultaneously in all four areas to be a powerful presence.
This article will discuss these four elements that can inspire great leaders for the road ahead.
Confidence is being secure enough to be wrong, listening to others' positions, and being open to how others approach things. Confident leaders can let others win and prioritize the best idea over their own.
Being connected to others is trusting others enough to give them space to own things fully. We must be curious about people and problems and be slow to conclude.
Committed to purpose, being clear on what needs to be done, and staying focused on the strategy and plan are significant strengths in this area—having a reliable purpose for staying focused on the most important things, ensuring accountability, and driving follow-through. Most leaders excel in this area.
Emotionally courageous leadership is accomplished by not avoiding vulnerability, resisting the unknown, and intentionally avoiding uncomfortable situations. This will make it hard to tell others the hard truths and make hard decisions quickly which can stall actions.
Peter would say: "To lead effectively, really, to live effectively, you must be confident in yourself, connected to others, committed to purpose, and emotionally courageous."
In conclusion, if you're confident in yourself but disconnected from others, everything will be about you, and you'll alienate the people around you. If you're connected to others but lack confidence in yourself, you will betray your needs and perspectives to please everyone else. It would be best if you were committed to a purpose, something bigger than yourself and others, or else you'll flounder, losing the respect of those around you as you act aimlessly, failing to impact what matters most. And if you fail to act powerfully, decisively, and boldly with emotional courage, your ideas will remain idle thoughts, and your goals will remain unfulfilled fantasies.
