If someone were to ask you about your childhood leadership, how would you answer? What lessons did you learn about leading when you were a child? Who influenced your leadership and why? Do you remember always being a leader or were there specific events or challenges that helped build your leadership reservoir?

During many of my leadership workshops these kinds of questions emerge. They oftentimes come out of nowhere, yet when answered, play a pivotal role in how our leadership looks today.

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Linking back to the “child leader” in us can provide great insights into the type of leader we are today. It can help us understand why we act and behave in a certain way. For instance, I remember a sixth grade teacher who believed in my writing abilities. She encouraged me not to only be a creative writer, but helped me see my early leadership possibilities as I assisted other classmates with their writing.

Here are six reasons why childhood leadership lessons matter:

 1. REVEAL OUR TRUE AND POSSIBLY HIDDEN STRENGTHS

During childhood we try out many new skills and activities that we may be afraid to tackle as adults. That curiosity leads to finding what we excel at and may want to cultivate. We need to take these strengths into our leadership today. Ask yourself:

• What did people in my childhood tell me about my talents?
• What did I receive praise for?
• What came naturally to me?
• Where did I display my strengths- at school, sports, dance, volunteer work, with friends?

2. REMIND US WHAT WE LOVE TO DO

Another helpful insight into our childhood is identifying what we loved to do. Some of us enjoyed making model airplanes or art and crafts or riding our bikes. Think about what transformed you during your childhood days. Are you smiling yet? We need to bring those activities or behaviors into our present day leadership.

3. POINT OUT OUR MOST IMPORTANT ROLE MODELS

We all have childhood “heroes”- people who made a difference in our lives. They saw us for who we were and accepted us completely. They may be our parents, relatives, friends, teachers, coaches or even authors. These role models taught us critical lessons and shared honest, but respectful feedback. It is now up to us to become role models to future leaders by paying-it-forward.

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4. EMPOWER RESILIENCE

The knowledge we gained from our childhood leadership lessons is the fuel for resiliency. Children learn that just because we may fail at trying a new skill, doesn’t mean we are failures. It just may mean we need to try a different approach or strategy. I took many falls on my bike and got a bunch of bruises before I mastered the technique. Even if we never learned to bike, that’s ok too. That taught us important coping mechanisms that we can use in our adult leadership.

5. EXPLAIN OUR BEHAVIOR AND ACTIONS WITH PEOPLE

We experiment a great deal as children in how to connect with others. Those areas that were successful we bring to our leadership today.

• If we learned to share, we lead by giving others credit
• If we were belittled, we may either belittle our teammates or remind ourselves how painful that was and treat others with respect
• If we received praise for contributing ideas and speaking up, we may be strong communicators
• If we built our own newspaper route or shoveled snow to make money or babysat, we bring an entrepreneurial spirit to our leadership

6. MAP OUT OUR LEADERSHIP TODAY

The leaders we grew into as adults reflect the many childhood leadership experiences we had. Look to your childhood leadership lessons to explain your leadership actions today. Remind yourself of the impactful stories that taught you important skills and strategies. Write out the stories to remember them more vividly. Then apply them to how you want your leadership to be today.

What leadership lessons in childhood made a difference in your leadership today?