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Great Ways For Improving Your Leadership Skills

By David Kiger

Courtesy of Hernán Piñera at flickr.com

+ "Leadership is the ability to not only understand and utilize your innate talents, but to also effectively leverage the natural strengths of your team to accomplish the mission. There is no one-size fits all approach, answer key or formula to leadership. Leadership should be the humble, authentic expression of your unique personality in pursuit of bettering whatever environment you are in."

– Katie Christy, founder, Activate Your Talent –

Leadership is something that encompasses so much that it can be difficult to define sometimes, and while we may all have our own definition, there are some things we can agree upon when it comes to leadership. First of all, we know that a leader is a person who will help us channel the best version of ourselves in times of need and will constantly push us to be better. A leader is a source of inspiration and a great example to follow not only because we want to get to where they are, but we also admire how they are never satisfied with being there but are always looking for more.

+ Leaders also exist in levels. You do not have to be the CEO of the company or have a large team to be considered a leader or to worry about making your leadership skills stronger.

Here in David Kiger’s Slideshare, we try to provide you with the best leadership advice and also help you find ways to improve your leadership skills constantly in order to be prepared to deal with difficult times and adversity just as much as to tackle the daily challenges that are unavoidable in the world of business.

Always make sure your vision is crystal clear.There will be times when the path may not be as clear as you wish, but the destination must always be present in your mind and on the minds of those working with you. Challenges will arise and taking on those challenges are part of the job of a leader, but in order to remain focus you must be clear on your

+ goals and also make sure that those who follow you also understand what the organization wants to accomplish. It is your job as a leader to make sure your people share your vision and understand why it is important. People who are unclear or do not share the same goals as you, will lose motivation and will not give their best towards accomplishing the mission. One of the main ways to strengthen your leadership skills is to work on achieving that clarity and learning how to transmit it to others.

Identify not only your skills but also the skills of those around you.Great leaders are fully aware of the arsenal they have at their disposal for the achievement of the mission. They understand what their strengths are just as they understand the strengths of their team. Identifying these key areas is the first step towards the utilization of those skills in the best way possible. It doesn't matter if you have the best team at something unless you are utilizing those skills effectively.

+ Your passion is contagious.Would you follow someone who doesn't seem to care about the goals of the organization? Then why would you expect others to follow you if they aren’t witness to your passion for the mission? Perhaps passion is not something that you learn, but it is something that you can easily identify and that others can just as easily pinpoint with exactitude; especially in a leader. Passion cannot be faked and that is the one thing that separates great leaders from those that simply get by. A great leader has genuine passion for the mission and with great example and clear actions, passes their passion on to those who follow them. Communicate with those around you, tell them why this is important for you and let them see why it should be important for them as well. Let your team know how grateful you are of their efforts and that the reason they are part of the realization of those dreams is not random but they were carefully chosen for it.

+ Be ambitions and take initiative.Do not wait until responsibility falls upon you, instead you should always anticipate the needs of the organization based on its goals and be ready to take on new challenges. A great leader never misses a chance to learn a new skill and to get out of their comfort zone. Taking on new projects is a great way to learn new skills or to brush up on some of your weaker areas. Effective leaders understand that there is always room to learn and they are not exempt from acquiring new skills.

Never stop listening.While it may sound counterintuitive, a great leader listens more than talks. Listening will allow you to gain valuable feedback from your team and help you make adjustments when necessary. Understand that perspective is everything and while you may be able to see the big picture, others around can gain valuable insight of areas that you may not be directly exposed to. Listen and listen attentively and you will grow as a leader.