The New Year is here and that means it is time for leaders to cross over to a new beginning with a hop in their step. The evaluation of the good, the bad and the ugly of the past year is now behind us and the worst thing we can do is keep our feet stuck in “what was”. Shake it off and look straight ahead to 2018. Even if we had our best year ever we need to look at the New Year with fresh eyes and scope.
Are you ready to propel forward?
Six kick-ass leadership moves for 2018:
1. CREATE YOUR NEW YEAR VISION
Our first kick-ass leadership move has to be defining our purpose and direction. Make sure to write out your vision in depth and maybe even include visuals. Here are some questions that might help you mold your leadership vision:
- What path makes the most sense to me now?
- Why do I want to make that choice?
- What new trends in my industry might I want to include in my new vision?
- How will my vision be different from last year? Does it need to be different?
Also, make sure to share your well though-out vision. According to Jack Welch, “Leaders make sure people not only see the vision, but they also live and breathe it.”
2. IRON OUT CLEAR GOALS THAT STRETCH YOU
Our next kick-ass leadership move involves establishing SMART goals that are clear, specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic and possess timeframes. It’s not good enough to just list what steps we want to take. We need to make them measurable so we will know when we arrive. We need to also make them challenging enough so that we can grow as leaders.
[Tweet “When leaders set stretch goals they challenge their routines and ultimately grow.”]
3. PICK A NEW AREA TO EXPLORE
Was there an article or book you read this past year that excited you? Is there a concept that piqued your interest and you just didn’t have the time to pursue? Your next kick-ass leadership move is to follow your fascination.
- Read more about this new area of interest
- Talk to someone who may already be involved in this trend
- Sign up for a course or conference to dig deeper
- Don’t just let it pass you by
4. ADDRESS YOUR BLIND SPOT
We all faced some struggles last year and trying to overcome our blind spots is critical for our fourth kick-ass leadership move. First acknowledge that there are specific changes we can make to strengthen our leadership then commit to tackling them. Maybe it’s about how we are communicating. Or perhaps we need to get trained in a particular technical area. Whatever it is, take action to grow your leadership skills and knowledge.
5. FIND A MENTOR AND BECOME A MENTOR
Another helpful kick-ass leadership move is reaching out for some good mentoring in helping us enrich our leadership. Before you approach that individual think about:
- Can I trust this person with confidential information?
- Will this individual have my best interests at heart?
- Does this leader have the expertise I am looking for?
- Is this person easy to talk to and willing to share?
Then it is your turn to offer to be a mentor for someone you work with or know may need your help and guidance.
[Tweet “A kick-ass leadership move for 2018 is to find a mentor and become a mentor.”]
6. BE HAPPIER
The final kick-ass leadership move for the New Year is to find what brings you happiness and make it part of your life. Many of us are missing that “happy factor” and we need it to be our strongest and kindest. This is the year to do it.
What additional kick-ass leadership moves do you have?
Great post, Terri! I really believe your first point is right-on…January is an excellent time to revisit the vision we have for ourselves and our businesses. We can then move forward with more clarity as we set our goals…
It is so helpful to have our vision set out clearly before embarking on any goal-setting or decision making. I have found that keeping our vision and values in front of us keeps our choices and direction easy to make. If we want to pursue a certain path and it really doesn’t support our vision we should analyze whether our leadership should move in that direction.
Thanks LaRae for your great suggestions!
For me, the one that pops out on my to-do list is to address my blind spots. Not only my truly blind spots but the ones that I’ve happily let lie quietly in the shadows. I’m a big believer in building on strengths as opposed to closing gaps but it doesn’t mean letting bad behaviors that are holding us back linger.
Here’s to a kick-ass 2018, Terri!
Alli
Yes it is so true that focusing on our strengths is most important but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t tackle some of the areas that we need to grow our leadership. I love your thoughts about-“it doesn’t mean letting bad behaviors that are holding us back linger”! If we are in need of a “tune-up” in a particular area then just do it and find ways to overcome that blind spot.
Thanks Alli and hoping 2018 is your best year ever!
Terri;
These are excellent, especially number 4 – we often overlook that as an impediment to better leadership.
Thanks Jim! I agree that when we don’t address our blind spots we are sometimes held back or not able to follow a particular path. There are so many different ways to overcome an obstacle- take a course, speak with an expert, read up on the subject.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your comments!
Love this post Terri! YES! In order to ‘kick ass’ this year we need to look at all of these! The one that resonates for me is address that blind spot. We can not grow if we continue to just look at our strengths. We’ve got to be willing to look at the challenges, things we need to improve. Thank you for your awesome leadership Terri! Let’s make this an awesome year!
Addressing our blind spots can help grow our leadership in areas that we may not feel as experienced. Working with emerging leaders I encourage them to play to their strengths while also choosing an area to develop. It just takes commitment and focus to work on skills that we aren’t as strong but will help us in our careers.
Thanks Cynthia for sharing your wonderful thoughts!
Be happier. That is fundamental to leadership. Enjoy what you do. Thanks for the reminder.
I agree that when leaders connect positively with their work they will be stronger and more impactful. Happiness can mean different things to each of us but that is our choice.
Thanks David for stopping by and sharing your comments!