Looking for leadership advice.

20 Comments

1. AnonymousMarch 16,2023 at 5:02PM UTC

   I thought The Making of a Manager was a great book. The author Julie Zhuo is on LinkedIn as well. Simon Sinek also has great books and talks on youtube on leadership. He is my favorite. You can also follow him on LinkedIn. Ali Merchant on LinkedIn is another person that shares lots of tips on leadership. I am sure you will do great.

2. Alexis GladstoneMarch 16,2023 at 5:37PM UTC

   John Maxwell has great books on leadership, and I like that he gives ideas to make things actionable. 21 Laws of Leadership; Developing the Leader Within; Everyone Communicates, Few Connect, just to name a few.

   I would also look at the LinkedIn Learning classes. There are great ones out there.

   I'm a leadership speaker and trainer so I'd be happy to spend a few minutes chatting to understand more of what you're looking for. Then I'm sure I'll have other suggestions.

3. Heather BinghamMarch 16,2023 at 7:31PM UTC

   If you haven't yet done your Clifton Strengths with an experienced specialist, I recommend this as a first step. Your Strengths will enable to see where you are strongest as a leader, and therefore most authentic. You will then access any resource on leadership with a very clear idea of what you can and cannot use yourself. Other tools, like MBTI, are also very useful, but your own particular combination of Strengths will help you over almost any challenge if used appropriately. I do this with all new leaders in our organisation and the results are often remarkable, whatever comes out.

4. AnonymousMarch 16,2023 at 8:10PM UTC

   Make sure you ask your new team what they would like and what they need from you as their leader. Knowing what kind of support they want/need while you are doing this other research on the side will help as you read about different scenarios. You'll be able to see how different strategies could apply for different people in your team. The fact that you want to better yourself as a leader is already a fantastic start.

   Good luck! :)

5. Kimberley Ferretti HammettMarch 16,2023 at 8:49PM UTC

   I use a few tools within my organization including Clifton Strengthsfinder (as another suggested) as well as Franklin Covey's 6 Critical Practices for Leaders and I also have my leaders read Crucial Conversations (specifically the chapter "Make it Safe").

   I also agree with the suggestion to ask your team about what they need and would add to that to ask your superiors what their vision is for your team and what goals of theirs they want your team to help accomplish. This will help you align your resources and strategy to ensure you're leading in the right direction.

   Congrats & Good luck!

6. AnonymousMarch 17,2023 at 7:20AM UTC

   A really good book called

   the man who mistook his job for his life by Naomi shragai is a really different take on work place relationships. Might sound daft but helps you understand lots about workplace relationships which is a must for any leader. It's also an audio book so good for the commute ☺️

7. Crystal HowellMarch 17,2023 at 6:35PM UTC

   LinkedIn has tutorials.

8. AnonymousMarch 19,2023 at 1:02PM UTC

   To add to what Crystal us saying. If you subscribe to LinkedIn, I believe first month is free, education is part of subscription. And if you don’t Like the subscription, you can unsubscribe.

9. Debbie HolbrookMarch 19,2023 at 2:35PM UTC

   I was able to get it free through my public county library, worth checking if you can too.

10. AnonymousMarch 18,2023 at 12:45PM UTC

    I think that if you are going to be in this kind of role, you should take it upon yourself to get the training, reading, whatever, yourself. Too many people are put in a leadership position with no training and as a direct report, I experience all kinds of behavior that shows a complete lack of common sense and taking control of their career. Just my opinion, you can do your own research.

11. AnonymousMarch 18,2023 at 1:53PM UTC

    In my experience the best leaders are the ones who are constantly open to learning and growing including asking others for suggestions on how they can grow their skills.

    This is a really crap response.

12. AnonymousMarch 19,2023 at 2:29PM UTC

    That’s why she is asking ffs.

13. Carolina Perez SanzMarch 18,2023 at 2:32PM UTC

    Dare to Lead, by Brené Brown is amazing. She also has a podcast. Also Systems Inspired Leadership, by Frank Uit de Weerd and Marita Fridjohn is beautiful, as it helps leaders see the influence they have on the systems/teams they lead.

14. AnonymousMarch 18,2023 at 10:46PM UTC

    Always remember, that your staff will respect you more if you are willing to help them in a non-condescending way. Also, speak/discipline your direct reports in private. They will respect you more. Just remember they are not your friends, they are your staff.

15. Erica MitchellMarch 19,2023 at 10:54AM UTC

    There are great leadership books and workbooks available on Amazon. It's great that you want to better yourself as a leader!

16. AnonymousMarch 19,2023 at 1:07PM UTC

    I like Gary Vee. He’s more relaxed and unconventional, however, I always learn something from him. https://garyvaynerchuk.com/

17. anne.lawrence@alight.comMarch 19,2023 at 5:04PM UTC

    To me, communication is key to being an exceptional leader. Being able to listen for understanding then being able to respond so the receiver can hear your message. There are 2 books I'd recommend: Radical Candor by Kim Scott and Rapport by Emily Alison and Laurence Alison.

    Others mentioned this to meet with your direct reports. I agree with this recommendation. Ask them what their goals are for the upcoming year: staying steady/work balance, or getting ahead or something else. You can also ask them about their Worst Boss Ever and their Best Boss Ever - ask them why these other people were the Worst or Best.

    Know that learning will never end. Keep finding material to take in (podcasts, books, YouTube videos). Also ask your company if they would pay for a leadership corse.

18. Melody MitchellMarch 19,2023 at 6:00PM UTC

    I have worked with so many new and aspiring leaders and have found that one of the things that makes them successful is building up their EQ to understand themselves, others, and the impact that they have on them. This supports the comments on authenticity and self-awareness but it also means that it is something you do constantly. I also have found that making the mindset shift from doing the work yourself to getting the work done through others really is an important one. I love working with women to build their leadership capability and I am happy to have a chat or exchange info if that would be beneficial. Best of luck!

19. Tanal BasmaMarch 22,2023 at 1:30PM UTC

    Try Coaching for leaders podcast

20. Clydene HorriganMay 17,2023 at 3:21AM UTC

    One thing that helped me when I took on a very skilled, long -tenured but unhappy team was I gave them all a questionnaire to fill out before we had a 1x1. I asked them what they liked doing, what they didn’t like doing, what they thought we should stop doing, what we should keep doing but should possibly reassign, etc. I also asked about their goals.

    This really helped with our early 1x1s and taught me a great deal about them.

    I used this information to help guide me in task assignment and ensuring we were working on goals that were important to them. I have found that if the majority of the time they get to work on the stuff they liked they were happier and didn’t begrudge when I asked for something they disliked. Remember to have ongoing discussions to make sure you’re on track and in case there are any changes in the employee’s goals.

    Another big thing is getting input from people on how to solve things or make improvements. By giving the opportunity to be part of the solution, teams are more likely to adopt changes, the the change is often better than what you came up with on your own, it shows respect for the team, and helps promote individual growth.

    Finally, the best thing I did was to institute a kudos program that encourages team members to recognize other team members for things both big and small. I even have my customers give kudos to my team members. These are shared at our monthly team meetings and kept for review time. It was awesome to be able to remind each employee of the things that their team members, customers, and I praised throughout the year. At the end of the year, I recognized the person who gave out the most kudos! I never mentioned who received the most.

    To summarize, I guess I would say, look out for your team, make sure you know what their career goals are (and help them reach them), know what they like to do, and recognize the little things.

    Best of luck in your new role.