Adrian Stanwk has some great things to share about leadership. A recent post of his caught my eye:
I often talk about self-leadership and control, but let’s be clear: that means controlling yourself, not others. You don’t align teams by steering every move. You align them by giving direction, creating momentum, and stepping back. Let them build. Your job is the path, not the steps.
Which provoked this reaction from me:
Totally agree. The purest form of leadership is self-mastery, and respecting others enough to accept theirs. True strength lies in allowing others to be strong too. A rare quality these days.
And this is true. When you know what you’re about, when you understand your strengths and weaknesses, and when you’re clear on where you’re heading, it becomes much easier to let go of control.
Trying to dictate every step causes chaos. It’s foolish to think you know everything, that you’re best placed to make every decision, or that you have the bandwidth to do it all.
It’s also demoralising. Those around you – what’s their worth then? Why are they there? Just dogsbodies, gofers, minions? That’s no way to bring out the best in anyone, least of all yourself.
When you build real strength of vision, when you can communicate it clearly and inspire others to buy in, progress becomes effortless. Momentum grows because everyone understands their part in the bigger picture.
Of course, this doesn’t happen overnight. This mode of leadership is itself a vision to grow into. Skills need honing, visions evolve, and people take time to adapt to a different rhythm of progress.
So make this your vision of leadership. Your chosen way of achieving results with others. Keep learning, keep practising, and develop this level of mastery.
Thanks to Adrian for sparking this Muse.