3 Leadership Skills You Should Work to Master

The top of the year is a great time to put work into your leadership skills. Your team is [hopefully] refreshed and ready to hit the ground running after a well-deserved and needed break.

Working on your skills can both help you progress in your career, and make sure your team is performing the best of their abilities while reducing burnout.

Nicole Fallon-Peek, the co-founder of Lightning Media Partners, said three key skills you should focus on improving are:

Delegation

You have to get tasks off your plate as a leader, but to do that, you must be able to effectively explain how to do that task and provide feedback if someone is doing it incorrectly.

Listening

Your team needs to feel like they're being heard and that you are taking action/making decisions based on the feedback they share with you.

Proactiveness

It's best to anticipate and get ahead of problems within your team and in the business, rather than being reactive and waiting until a problem is staring you in the face. 

Leadership skills are more important today than ever before with the hybrid, or fully remote, work models. There’s less walking into your boss’ office for a quick question or chat, direct communication is being reduced due to technological systems so instead of conversing with a teammate you just fill out a form, and there are fewer internal professional development workshops.

Fallon-Peek shares that “leadership requires a lot of "on-the-job" training, as in you will likely learn and hone your skills as situations arise in your role.”

The best way to practice homing in on leadership skills she says is to be intentional about your approach to leadership and have regular conversations with your team about where they most need your help.

Asking for feedback can teach you what’s working and what’s not working, along with what your team wants your help with. Leading also means advocating for and motivating your team – if someone is looking for a promotion or to learn a new skill, lead them so they’re set up for success. Get them excited for what’s to come.

One of Fallon-Peek’s favorite leadership resources is Simon Sinek's book, Leaders Eat Last. She explains it's all about understanding your company's purpose and using that purpose to inform how you guide and care for your team members. In short, when you set your team up for success, you're setting yourself up for success, too.

The internet is your oyster when looking for opportunities to learn more about leadership. Consider exploring programs such as LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, Ted Talks, and Harvard ManageMentor.

Remember, "leadership is not about being in charge. It's about taking care of those in your charge," - Simon Sinek.