Level Up Your Leadership

Are you trying to get people to work together or follow procedures or stop bad habits, but they just don’t seem to want to change?

Are you trying to get people excited about a project but they’re still uninterested?

Have you received some negative feedback about your leadership style and wondering how you can do better?

I’m going to share with you FIVE SECRETS to becoming a successful leader.

Secret #1: You need commitment.

It’s not a failure until you quit.

As long as you keep going and keep trying, you’re open to success and all the trouble in the world is just a temporary setback. The moment you quit, you close the door on opportunities for success and your chances of success go to zero. But if you keep going and keep trying new things, you’re going to find a way. Maybe things won’t go the way you imagined in the beginning, but you can still find success.

Sometimes when we’re deep into our troubles, our stress, and our overwhelm, it’s hard to see things clearly for what they are. It’s hard to find a different perspective and see the big picture. In those moments you need someone to remind you of your goals and to remind you that you can do it.

Let’s take what might be the most important step in your journey right now: Make a promise to yourself that you will never quit.

We love to hear stories about people who persevered through daunting challenges to achieve great success because we know it’s hard and deep down we also want amazing success. You know you need to work hard. You know you need to work smart. But when you’re a leader it seems there are a million things to do, so what exactly should you be working on?

Secret #2: You need a map.

How is it that great leaders always seem to know what to do? To achieve success you need to know where you are and where you’re going, so you can make a plan to get there. That means you need to start with a vision of how you want things to be when you’re successful and an assessment of the current situation (what you have vs what you need). Then, you can map out your journey.

What does that mean? It means figuring out how to use your own knowledge and skills, and the resources available to you, to make progress towards your goal. That progress might also involve acquiring new knowledge and skills, or getting other people with the right knowledge and skills and resources to join you. It also means knowing all the influence systems and how to build them and make them work together, step by step.

Secret #3: You need a guide.

If that sounds like a lot, it’s because it is. But that’s what is required to achieve your dreams. If you want to be successful, you’ve got to put in the work. But you don’t need to do it alone!

The best athletes, the best executives, the best politicians, the best scientists, pretty much the best of anything have coaches, consultants, advisors, and mentors to help guide them towards greatness. That’s because while you’re deep into the work you have to do, you need someone to be looking at the big picture and help you navigate that map.

But what kind of guide do you need? Here are some different kinds of guides:

A mentor. Mentors are people who have already done what you’re trying to do, and you talk with them occasionally and they can share with you how they solved their own problems, and any lessons or insights they learned along the way. They might give you advice, they might introduce you to people they know, or they might help you directly. They’re not getting paid for it, so you need to take care of that relationship because if they’re not feeling like you appreciate them, they’ll stop.

An advisor. Advisors are people who have expertise in a particular area, and you pay them to share it with you in the form of answering questions or commenting on your planned course of action. You might keep coming back to the same advisor over time, but when you seek their advice it’s usually about a specific issue or event.

A consultant. Consultants are people who have expertise and skills in a particular area of business, and you hire them to create something for you or tell you what to do, usually on a temporary or contract basis until the need has been met. For example, you might hire a benefits consultant to create a new benefits plan that is complaint with all applicable laws. Consultants sometimes work together with other consultants in agencies. Lawyers, accountants, and other professionals often act as consultants and freelancers, advising you and doing the work you ask for.

A coach. Coaches are people who have expertise in helping you achieve your goals. This can include identifying skills you need to learn and training to improve your abilities and skills. Coaches help you asses your strengths and weaknesses, stay motivated, facilitate your training, help you see the big picture, guide you in making your plan, and to help you navigate your plan and stay on track so you get results. You work with a coach until you achieve your goals. At that point you either part ways, or you set new goals and keep working with the coach to achieve your new goals.

So how does coaching work, exactly?

A great coach will listen to you and ask the right questions. A great coach will challenge you to experiment, to discover what works, and to commit to doing what works until you get results. A great coach will avoid telling you what to do too much, but there may be some of that when it’s needed. There might also be some teaching involved, or pointing you towards resources, but it’s your job to take action. You’re the hero, and your coach is a guide.

You will have different kinds of conversations with your coach. Your first conversation will involve some getting to know each other. Other conversations will include one or more of:

• Establishing your goals.
• Assessing the situation and how you feel about things.
• Following up on a recent action or event to review what you expected to happen, what actually happened, what worked and what didn’t work, and what you can learn from it.
• Rehearsing something important and providing feedback to you on your performance, like preparing for an important meeting.
• Creating a plan of action with S.M.A.R.T goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) and the steps you need to achieve them.
• Recognizing your progress and your achievements so far.
• Recovering from setbacks and overcoming obstacles.
• Encouraging you to keep going.

At Leader Zone, this is what we do for you. We’re leadership coaches. We guide you towards achieving your goals. Speaking of which, here’s the next secret you need to know about becoming a successful leader:

Secret #4: You need the right mindset.

The right mindset for leadership is that it’s not about you. Leadership is about leading people to a destination. That destination could be a place, or it could be to achieve some results.

If you make your mindset about helping people get there, about caring for people on the journey, about making sure they have what they need, about making sure important tasks are done to move things forward, then you’re already making great progress towards becoming a great leader.

This is why anyone can be a leader. And if you want to become a better leader, you can learn and practice leadership skills. And if you want better results, you can get a leadership coach to help you train and keep you on track.

Secret #5: You need leadership systems.

Different situations require different approaches. You need a way to identify what kind of situation you’re in, and you need a toolkit of approaches that work for different situations, so you can apply an approach that’s more likely to work.

You need systems for getting the right people to contribute in the right ways. You need systems for developing people so they can rise up to meet the challenges ahead. You need systems for recognizing and rewarding people when they’re doing things right, and correcting them when they’re not. You need systems for helping people who are way out of line get back to productive or at least non-disruptive behavior. And you need systems for separating people from the group when it’s clear they want to go in a different direction.

You need systems for directing and orchestrating people’s work so it’s productive towards getting everyone to the destination. You need systems for collecting information from people so you know what’s going on, because you can’t be everywhere at once. You need systems for identifying what’s not working and for making necessary organizational or procedural changes to make things work better.

All of these systems, and more, help you become a better leader. With the right knowledge and skills of how to build these systems, you’ll be able to walk into any situation and start leading.

So how do get from where you are now to becoming an effective leader?

A wise person once said something long the lines of “the person who wants to move a mountain begins by carrying away small stones”. Whatever your current abilities are, there’s always room to improve. And there’s so much to do, so like moving a mountain, we’ll do it one step at a time. We’ll build up your skills in each area and guide you towards applying them. We’ll show you how to get better results and celebrate when you do!

World-class athletes work hard and use coaches to get results. World-class leaders do too. And if you want to be that good, you’re in the right place!

Let’s review what you need:

• Secret #1. Commitment. You need constant inspiration, motivation, and accountability to keep going and never quit.
• Secret #2. A map. You need to develop a clear plan of how to get from here to there.
• Secret #3. A guide. You need a leadership coach to train you and guide you towards achieving your goals.
• Secret #4. The right mindset. You need to remember it’s not about you, it’s about getting results.
• Secret #5. Leadership systems. You need to build the systems that will enable you to lead in any situation.

That’s it! Super simple. These are the five secrets to your success.

Are you done being overwhelmed and stressed? Are you tired of spinning your wheels?

I’m ready to become a better leader! How does it work?

Here’s what we’ll do:

First, we’ll have an brief 30-minute conversation where we get to know each other. We’ll talk about what you want to accomplish and what’s been holding you back.

Second, we’ll schedule your weekly coaching sessions.

Then we’ll meet for weekly coaching sessions. We’ll teach you things and point you to other resources as needed, and we’ll help you to stay on track. And if you need an extra coaching session here or there, like when something big comes up, we’ll be there to support you.

We will help you to identify and develop the skills you need so you can take your leadership abilities to the next level.

You stay committed to yourself and to the coaching process, and you will achieve your goal.

What do I get?

This is a monthly program that helps you navigate a variety of leadership challenges and take your leadership to the next level. Each monthly payment includes:

• Weekly coaching sessions, at $250 each

Are you ready to level up?

Leadership can be a lonely place. It’s a smart move to get a leadership coach to guide you towards improving your results and achieving your goals.

How great will you feel when you achieve your goals every month and every quarter and every year?

We’ll get there, together.