The leadership shift – Making the vision real

In a world where change is a constant, the success of an organisation depends on the strength of the relationships within.

Trust me – I screwed that up!

All businesses need direction and direction comes from leadership. Bestselling author Daniel Coyle (The Culture Code) talks about trust coming from a leaders ability to be vulnerable, that “I screwed up moment”. Real leaders are said to have high levels of EQ, be open minded and work for their employees. Simon Sinek encapsulates this into courage – integrity to do the right things takes courage. To build courage we must invest in relationships to lay the foundations of trust.

In our second 2024 Business Leaders Group we tackled the leadership shift. For some that is transitioning to a genuine leadership role and learning to let go, managing different people within the business who you know but don’t really know, scaling culture when your team expands or collaborating with other leaders who are at different stages of leadership.

No fuss – No problem

Traditionally businesses have sought stability before scaling, predictability provides comfort. We are moving from an era of individual leaders to an era of networked leadership teams with the next generation of colleagues being ‘born digital’. It follows that we must embrace a mindset of possibility, co-create opportunities and number one, be authentic.

Confidence as a leader comes from taking risk, having the permission to make mistakes. The feeling from the room was build a network of people who can help me, to include people who just solve problems – no fuss, don’t need to be asked, they identify it, solve it and may let you know if necessary. Remember, the team you build is the company you build.

Personal brand – The now-where-how of you!

With 92% of people trusting recommendations from people, your personal brand is key to leveraging your leadership success. Decide what you want to be known for and be consistent, this is your reputation and your differentiator, it positions how you are perceived. 

Your personal brand in a digital age helps define your ‘why’ to the outside world, those with strong brands are said to significantly outperform their peers. In a leadership context, are you seen as a person others can depend on, are you relatable, do you share what you are learning and bring colleagues along for the journey.

What’s my super ‘Brand’ power?

From making ‘change happen’ to a ‘people focussed connector’, from making ‘the complex simple’ to a ‘bundle of energy and ideas’, from ‘being analytical and approachable’ to ‘fairness’ in all that you do, from being an ‘enabler’ to being ‘open and trustworthy’, all these and more can be found on the Business Leaders Group to ‘be’ list.

How we use these powers will help us get colleagues into the flow zone, the highest level of engagement. Culture is everything, it is omni-present in everything that the business does.

Communicate, communicate, communicate reinforces a culture of openness and transparency and will build trust in your leadership.

The closing message, don’t wait to be confident, trust – your colleagues won’t trust you if you don’t trust them!

Simon Cossey is Dafferns’ Business Development Consultant and part of our Strategic Advisory team.