How to Discover & Nurture Your Inner Leader

William Shakespeare once quoted, "Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them". Well, the era of kings & queens is over so the people belonging to the third category are pretty non-existent today, while people belonging to the first category are very rare. It is the second category that draws everyone’s attention.

The problem with today’s millennials is that they are quick to give up on something if it is not going their way. Building your personality and leadership quality will take time and a lot of effort in the right direction. It is like molding yourself step by step and day by day which is going to give you results in the long run.

If you are wondering how to achieve greatness & become a true leader, then let us demystify this for you.

Swot analysis is important

Have you heard about S.W.O.T analysis? If you haven’t heard about it, then it is an acronym for strength, weakness, opportunity, and threat analysis. Now, you must be wondering why we are talking about this and how it is going to help you?

Well, believe us this is the first and foremost thing that you must do when you are trying to nurture your personality and mould your leadership potential. People like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Warren Buffet and even if we go back in history every true leader has done this to achieve their goals.

SWOT analysis will help you know yourself better because through this analysis you will be able to clearly identify your strengths, weakness, opportunity, and threats. Once you have identified your strengths, then you have to link up with the opportunities that your strength unlocks for you.

Similarly, your threat stems from your weakness and by identifying your weakness, you can keep your threats at bay. Great leaders build on their strengths which amplifies their opportunities & minimize their weaknesses to vanquish their threats.

Believe yourself

Henry Ford once said, "a person who thinks he can and a person who thinks he can’t are both usually right". Now, what does this mean? This is nothing but your confidence and commitment to your goals. Everyone is unique and you don’t need to be overwhelmed by looking at your peers and friends.

Most people believe that they are not made for big things and settle for mediocre things. This is the biggest crime they are committing in their life. Your low self-esteem comes because of your ignorance about your true potential and if you have carried out the above-mentioned SWOT analysis, then you have to build on your strengths.

If you are not able to lead yourself through the ups and downs of life and the everyday challenges that life throws at you, then how are you expecting the masses to follow you? A staunch belief in your abilities is where you should start in your life.

Sharpen your communication skill

Martin Luther King, Jr. had once quipped that "a genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus". Why I am quoting him? Well, if you delve a little deeper into the above quote, you will realize the importance of clear-cut communication skills for a leader.

Now, when you are trying to build a consensus among a group of people who seem to be pulling in different directions, then the only thing that is going to sail you through this is your communication skills. You need to communicate constantly and consistently with people to put forth your ideas and beliefs which will build trust & rapport.

To become a good communicator, you need to be a patient listener. In addition to this, being empathetic and emotionally intelligent will help you in sharpening your communication skills.

Be an eternal learner

Albert Einstein had said, "Once you stop learning, you start dying". Leadership and learning go hand in hand and when you are on the path to discovering your true potential, then learning about new things and the rapidly changing world will keep you ahead of others in the race to achieve your goals.

Moreover, when we are talking about learning it doesn’t necessarily have to do with bookish knowledge or technical skills. Learning is a broad field and most importantly you must learn from the life of great leaders who have achieved the impossible in face of insurmountable odds in their life. If you are looking for our recommendations, then you can certainly have a look at Abraham Lincoln or Nelson Mandela.

Tackle your emotions

Do you know what sets apart a leader from a crowd? Well, it is emotional intelligence. Nobody likes to be associated with a person who doesn’t have any control over his/her emotions. An emotionally balanced person is able to grab everyone’s attention because he/she talks sense.

Calmness shows that you are emotionally sound and receptive to criticisms. Besides that, when you are an emotionally balanced individual your subordinates and colleagues will not hesitate to approach you for help and this is what true leaders always look forward to that is helping others in their life.

Have strong ethical values

Last but not the least, your morality, principles, and beliefs are the things that are going to set you apart from the rest of the crowd. All the great personalities that we know of have one thing in common and that is their strong ethical values.

"When your values are clear to you, making decisions become clear", Roy E. Disney. Most people today are not able to take decisions in their life which hampers their productivity and progress. Being a leader you have to face various situations in your life and taking a decision no matter what will test your true potential.

People who lack a strong value system are paralyzed while taking a decision and make a fool out of themselves. Having strong ethical values will not only help you in taking decisions but also will help you in standing by them even in the worst of situations & display your true leadership qualities.

Finally

While navigating through this vast life you might be faced with very troubling situations or things might not be turning up as you have planned. However, just remember a true leader always finds courage even in the darkest of times and leads from the front when none can.

Fasold Global Consulting & Associates is an all-inclusive Orlando, FL based Executive coaching and Leadership firm. With our goal to increase effectiveness, leadership and performance, we serve in over 25 countries around the world.