Distinguish and Develop Your Unique Leadership Skills
If you are like me, you have worked with many skilled and intelligent co-workers and colleagues! It can sometimes feel challenging to see that you provide a unique and needed perspective. And that you deserve opportunities including advancement as well. However, there are many things you can do to distinguish your unique leadership.
Here are two strategies to develop:
- Emotional Intelligence (EI)
- Social Intelligence (SI)
Developing my EI and SI are two of the main reasons I have received promotions and opportunities in my professional and personal life! This I truly believe.
What are EI and SI?
EI is about developing a deeper understanding of yourself including your leadership strengths and understanding how your thoughts and feelings impact your behavior. Individuals who are self-aware confidently lead their lives. SI is about developing empathy and being able to effectively work with others to achieve shared goals. Empathetic individuals build trusted relationships and sustained collaborations.
EI and SI Tools
Two effective tools to develop EI and SI are
- Therapy
- Leadership coaching
More people are utilizing these tools, especially in these challenging times. Even though I am a leadership coach, I generally have my own therapist and/or coach. I am currently working with a therapist to heal unresolved trauma that is making it challenging for me to focus. Recently, I also completed a training with two of my coaches to up-level my coaching skills to be of better service to my clients.
I know both will help me be a better, clearer, calmer, and more effective coach and leader in my work and life. Additionally, for those of you engaged in systems change leadership, developing your EI and SI will help you be more effective in these efforts.
Action Steps
If what I am sharing here resonates with you, you may benefit from these action steps:
- Search for a therapist at psychologytoday.com or betterhelp.com.
- Search for a coach at coachfederation.org
- Ask friends and colleagues for therapist and coach referrals.
- Schedule time to talk with me about how to find the right coach for you.
- Read more about EI and SI:
- Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence. [Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis, Annie McKee]
- Resonant Leadership [Richard Boyatzis, Annie McKee]
- Take an EI assessment. Emotional Intelligence 2.0. [Travis Bradberry, Jean Greaves] includes a scratch-off link to complete an EI assessment.
