Leadership and Me

What kind of leader do I want to be?

Knowledgeable & Resourceful

I would like to accrue experience in all areas of the company, so that I have a general understanding of each. Ideally, I’d be able to sit in on a meeting in any department and know what they are talking about. At this time, I lack understanding of audio/video setup at my current company, so I’m trying to pay more attention in that area to get familiar with the jargon, at the very least. Team members from all departments already reach out to me for my opinion on a plan or new method. However, with a better understanding of their areas, I could answer these questions more efficiently and possibly with better guidance since I would better understand how everything is intertwined. Further, it allows me to show my team that I still have a desire and ability to learn.

That said, a good leader knows that they don’t know everything. That’s not their job. Their job is to know how to find the answer. In my current role, I work hard to put team members in place whose knowledge and expertise compliment my own. As a leader, I want to always be a strong resource for my team and I want them to trust that if I don’t know the answer, I’ll admit that and then go and get the answer for us all. Someday, I do hope to be considered an expert, but even then, I’ll know when it’s time to turn to my resources.

Compassionate & Supportive

I want to be the leader who makes time to get to know their team members, individually. Getting to know each of them will allow me to better understand their motivation, skills, desires, but also when they need a break, emotional support or general guidance. I’m not trying to be everyone’s best friend; that would be an unrealistic goal. I am trying to be more than a boss. I care about people and want my team to know that they aren’t just a number, and I care about them.

In every team I’ve been a part of, I strive to take on a supportive role. I realize, now, that in my earlier years I took this position because I did not know what anyone was talking about. I had helped to build, or been brought into, a team which covered all of the areas we needed for the project, but my own talent was only in coordinating all of the moving parts. After having gained a good deal of experience, I’ve found myself still taking the supportive role, but also guiding the team to where we need to be. As a leader I will outline the start and endpoints, then let the team discuss ways we can get to the endpoint. I take notes on what all they will need to get there, ask targeted questions to ensure all angles are considered, and then work to get everyone the resources needed to execute the plan. Sometimes, that includes looking around and noticing that everyone is skipping lunch to hit a deadline, so I will place an order to have food delivered. Literally, whatever my team needs to hit our goals.

Something I’ve learned that I need to work on is customizing my approach when training and coaching someone. This will come as I spend more time getting to know people individually. Once I’ve understood their strengths, weaknesses and how they learn, I can better coach them on new things. They deserve this individualized support from their leader, so it’s what I plan to work on improving.

Open & Honest

I want to encourage team members to feel comfortable speaking with me about errors I may have made or guide me when they know how to do something in a better way. I’m a strong believer in constructive criticisms and greatly appreciate when people tell me about a wall that they can see me hitting, but I can’t. We are always learning and being open with our experience and open to feedback is what helps us learn.

Further, my general policy is transparency. Anyone should be able to come to me and ask me “why” behind the action being executed and I should be able to answer them, honestly - within the ability of my role, of course. I understand that some things must be kept confidential for a company, but most things don’t. And by providing answers, I think it can be easier to help the team understand the mission and overall vision.

Now, this is just a first draft of my answer. Answers to questions like this should be evolving as our experience evolves. I hope to find better clarity on the many aspects of leadership and build on what I currently know. At that point, my answers may be more focused, more intricate. Or they may be broader, but covering more areas of leadership. Either way, it’s a journey that I’m enjoying exploring.