When I talk with emerging leaders, those who are growing into leadership, oftentimes they tell me they’re not ready. “Why?” I ask. They tell me they can’t be ready because they don’t think they’ll be great leaders. “How do you think you become a great leader?” I ask. They tell me they have to study and learn and develop skills.

I tell them that, in order to lead with greatness, you have to start to lead. This often comes as a surprise. One doesn’t become a great leader simply by leading, but one cannot become a great leader without leading. Great leadership comes with time, maturity, intentionality, and study. It comes with learning from your mistakes. It comes with help. You can’t become great at leadership if you don’t start leading, and you won’t become great at leadership if you lead blindly. Some leaders won’t become great without help simply because they may not have the ability to see past their blind spots. And some leaders will get to “good” and get stuck there.

Clients hire me to help them with their leadership journey. They start to lead and they aren’t great. They wisely want help as soon as possible so they don’t make too many mistakes or build bad habits. I’ve worked with good leaders who want to be better. I’ve worked with exceptional leaders who want to be better. And I’ve worked with leaders who aren’t at all good, but who have developed the skills to lead extremely well. The leadership journey isn’t one size fits all, but the hallmarks of great leadership that the research shows are linked to business outcomes like market share, customer satisfaction, and employee retention are things that we can draw on to help you become a great leader. If you want to become a great leader, start to lead. Then let’s talk.

Recent Posts

Artful Self-Promotion

Artful Self-Promotion

For every new thing you take on, there's a set of skills that will help you master that new thing. When you start anything new, you might not do so well at first. That's probably because you haven't mastered the skills required for what you're trying to do....

read more
The Cost of Perfectionism

The Cost of Perfectionism

One of the challenges many leaders face is perfectionism, the need to attain flawless results and perform to exceptionally high standards to feel safe and worthwhile as a person. "What's wrong with having high standards?" I'm often asked this question by my...

read more
Subscribe To Susan's Occasional Emails

Subscribe To Susan's Occasional Emails

Occasionally, Susan sends out emails with useful tips, strategies, and yes, free webinars! If you'd like to receive these emails, sign up below.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This