58: How to Stop Worrying and Start Leading

I wish I could tell you that I’ve always felt confident as a leader, but I used to be a real scaredy cat. In this episode, I discuss six ways that I learned to have more confidence in my leadership abilities and not be consumed by the fear and worry about giving feedback to others. 1) Set expectations early: If expectations aren’t there with followers, create them. If they aren’t clear, clarify. Do it early or as soon as you can. 2) Be willing to change directions: A mentor gave me great advice when they said, “No leader is perfect. You can always acknowledge to a follower that something has been OK up until now, but that you are now making a different decision going forward.” 3) Ask a trusted colleague for feedback: I discovered that asking for advice from a person I trusted often gave me new ideas. 4) Respond in 24 hours: Zig Ziglar said, “If you need to eat a frog, you don’t want to look at that sucker too long. He ain’t gonna get any prettier.” (Customers – SCORE!) 5) Earn trust by being a good-finder: I spent time each day finding good stuff people were doing and told them. 6) Listen to daily inspiration: These days, I listen to podcasts. One that always gives me a boost is Michael Hyatt’s show This Is Your Life. Discover More Activate your free membership for full access to the entire library of interviews since 2011, searchable by topic. To accelerate your learning, uncover more inside Coaching for Leaders Plus.