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Being self-employed, there’s not a lot of opportunities for me to lead groups, so it was a nice surprise when I was chosen to lead a certain hiking organization’s training climb. I made a lot of terrible mistakes and I consider my work on that climb a near complete failure. I’m just thankful the experience taught me a lot of lessons.
Still, that’s a story for another time. For now, here are a few things leaders need to remember.
Five Things Leaders Need to Remember
1. Do the Job
You’re called to lead for a reason, and one of the most important jobs of a leader is to get things done (with the help of the group). Figure out what the group’s main goal is and then figure out the steps you need to do to accomplish what you need.
One thing that will help is that you should never be afraid to ask questions and ask for feedback. Very often, forgetting the smallest details can lead to the worst disasters.
2. Take Responsibility
Everybody’s busy, and if people gather to do something, it may not always be their current priority. In those cases (like my training climb), SOMEBODY needs to start the discussions before anything gets done, and somebody needs to ask who will volunteer to do what. If nobody is volunteering, you will either need to somehow convince the best person for the job to do it, or you may need to do it yourself.
3. Make Decisions
Have you ever suggested anything to a group and received no response (“seenzoned”)? Have you ever asked for input but nobody chooses any of the suggested options because they’re “fine with anything”? In those kinds of cases, you have to be the one to make the decision. There will be pros and cons for everyone and not everyone will be happy, but it’s much better than not having anything specific to do.
4. Delegate Tasks and Responsibilities
Most new leaders feel that they need to take care of everything, but that’s not the case. If you try to do everything yourself, you will definitely be overwhelmed by stress and worry. Thankfully, you are not alone. You have your teammates with you, and you can delegate tasks to the best person for the job.
While it’s not easy to find team members who will take initiative and volunteer for everything that you need done, you should still find some who can accept the tasks and responsibilities that you give them. If nobody is able to do certain things that the group needs done, you will need to do it yourself to the best of your ability.
5. Keep Learning!
Nobody is born a master, and even those who were born with genetic gifts NEED to practice first before they become great at what they do. Leadership is the same. Unless you’re one of the extremely rare people who developed a “leader-like personality” from childhood, chances are you’ll need a lot of practice first before you learn to lead well.
Mistakes and failures may be painful (like all the failures I experienced leading that group), but know that what’s done is done and all that’s left is to learn from all that’s happened. You did your best, so all you can do now is move forward with all the lessons you learned from the experience.
Just think about that famous quote saying “it’s not how much you fall, but how often you get back up”.
For now, I hope you enjoyed reading the lessons here. If you weren’t born with a “leader’s personality”, just remember that you can actually LEARN to be a better leader. You’ll need experience, practice, and an open mind.
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