3 Strong Indicators That You're Growing As A Leader

Even before you achieve the big win, or have your team running like a fine tuned machine, I think there are some strong indicators that you’re growing as a leader that you need to stop and celebrate.

When I am delivering a leadership training program, one of my favorite exercises to use is to have individuals break into groups and work together to design a structure that will support a rolling ball. I enjoy watching this activity unfold with all the different groups, and I love seeing those early signs of leadership emerge, indicating that a team is going to do well. I think that those indicator signs are the same types of signs that you need to recognize within yourself and in others on your team, that show you are getting better and stronger as a leader; that you are beginning to thrive.

When others aren’t thriving

The first sign you are growing as a leader is when you recognize others aren’t doing their best work. In my leadership team building example, I would observe when people would start getting distracted and start moving off in their own little directions. They would begin to do their own thing, which in some cases even meant doing nothing. But then I would notice that emerging leader, that person who would spot those who wandered off, and I would watch how they would bring them back into the group by simply asking something like, “Hey, could you cut tape?” or “Could you maybe hold this piece of paper?”. You begin to thrive as a leader when you can recognize that people are your greatest resource. If you’re not using that resource effectively, you’re severely limiting your ability to be successful as a team.

Outcomes not tasks

A second way I know a team has a growing leader is when they get their team talking more about outcomes and less about tasks. I would begin to see people taking a step back from what was directly in front of them, and look at the larger structure. They would begin asking better questions, questions about how everything fits together. What’s the bigger picture? The greater outcome? If you’re noticing that within yourself as well as in some of your team members, it means that you’re looking forward. You’re beginning to have more vision rather than centralizing strictly on the activity of getting things done in the moment. You’re focusing more on getting things done in context so you can achieve the desired outcome.

Turn fear into fuel

Finally, you are growing as a leader, or people on your team are growing as leaders, when their fear becomes a fuel for positive action. When we get stressed or we’re worried that we might not deliver the outcomes we want, we sometimes start criticizing, get frustrated or even feel paralyzed . But I noticed that teams wanting to do their best, would start exploring, they would start asking more questions along the line of “What if we did more of this?” and “What if we tried that?”. And they would listen to what their team members had to offer. They would even go around the room and look and see what other teams were doing for building their structures, taking in all of the possible possibilities. All of these are signs that you are using that fear in a positive way to get a better outcome.

How are you doing as a leader? Do you recognize strong indicators within yourself and in others on your team? If so, take a moment to celebrate that you are growing as a leader!