The following is a guest piece by Lolly Daskal and was reprinted from Tanveer Naseer Blog
Leadership is much more than what you know or even what you do. Your personality in great part determines how you influence the people around you. That’s why it’s important to know who you are as you lead if you want to understand how you go about the work of managing, delegating and leading.
But as with most things, there are two sides to every personality trait. For every good tendency there is a bad one; for every light there is a dark; for every strength there is a weakness. These traits make up what I call your leadership gaps. Unless you can learn to integrate and leverage every part of who you are—especially your gaps—these hidden impediments will get the best of you, and your business and leadership will be impaired.
Here are seven of the top ways to be the best leader you can be—partnered with seven ways you might be holding yourself back:
1. Be a rebel
In my coaching practice, I have long advised leaders to encourage their inner rebel. A rebel is confident. And just as important, that confidence stems from their capabilities and competencies.
But when times are challenged or stressful or disagreeable, a leadership gap can emerge and leave even the most confident rebel feeling like an imposter. This self-doubt can cause havoc within an organization, and it won’t allow you to lead effectively. You can leverage any self-doubt you feel by concentrating on your capabilities and competence, and focusing on the positive things you have accomplished.
2. Be an explorer
Exploration is all about finding new uncharted waters away from the everyday noise of a business, project or product. The explorer is fueled by intuition and depends on the ability to let some things go to make room for new things.
But within the leadership gap, the explorer can become a manipulative exploiter. This gap originates in one of the most difficult struggles of leadership—the desire to control and micromanage. To win out, you must invite your intuition to take you to the next level, and learn to leverage the moments when you want to take control.
Lolly Daskal is the president and CEO of Lead From Within, a global consultancy that specializes in leadership and entrepreneurial development. Her writings have appeared in the Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Inc.com, and Psychology Today. She’s also the author of “The Leadership Gap: What Gets Between You and Your Greatness”. To learn more about Lolly’s work, visit her website: LollyDaskal.com.
Listen to my interview with Lolly in this episode of my podcast, “Leadership Biz Cafe” where we discuss her new book.
Of Lolly’s many awards and accolades, Lolly was designated a Top-50 Leadership and Management Expert by Inc. magazine. Huffington Post honored Lolly with the title of The Most Inspiring Woman in the World. Her writing has appeared in HBR, Inc.com, Fast Company (Ask The Expert), Huffington Post, and Psychology Today, and others. Her newest book, The Leadership Gap: What Gets Between You and Your Greatness has become a national bestseller.