How can you develop your leadership style while being open to feedback and growth?

A 360 assessment is one of the most valuable resources for understanding your current leadership style. I'm suggesting this here rather than in the next section as it's critical that as leaders we're aware of how we are perceived by others in our orbit. Our self-perception is important to gain clarity on; the magic comes in exploring the gap between how we perceive ourselves and how others perceive us. Additional valuable context comes in the differences in perceptions between different groups, such as direct reports or peers. Although 360s can feel a nerve-wracking, when framed to raters correctly, they're a powerful tool for understanding how you show up as a leader each day.

To develop my leadership style and foster growth, I actively seek feedback from peers and team members. I create an open, non-judgmental environment where constructive criticism is encouraged. By listening, learning, and adapting, I refine my leadership approach, becoming more effective and adaptable in meeting team and organizational goals.

Leadership is a continuous journey of growth and refinement. Developing one's leadership style while remaining receptive to feedback and open to growth is essential for effective leadership. One approach I've found valuable is seeking feedback from diverse sources, including peers, team members, and mentors. Embracing a growth mindset is crucial. Leaders should view challenges as opportunities for development rather than setbacks. Learning from mistakes and actively seeking ways to enhance one's leadership capabilities can be transformative. Balancing one's unique leadership style with ongoing growth is a dynamic process that evolves over time.

Self-reflection is an important first step to take. Spend some time assessing your communication style, values, and leadership actions. Ask for input from colleagues, subordinates, and superiors and foster a climate where they feel free to share their honest opinions. Positive criticism can be an effective tool for personal development. Consider leadership assessments or 360-degree evaluations as well to get a complete picture of your strengths and places for development.

By actively seeking feedback from their team, peers, and mentors, leaders gain valuable insights into their blind spots, strengths, and areas for improvement. This approach to leadership development requires humility, self-awareness, and a willingness to embrace change. It means being open to constructive criticism, acknowledging mistakes, and using feedback as fuel for growth. It also involves actively seeking learning opportunities, investing in personal development, and adapting one's leadership style to meet evolving challenges and circumstances.

I explained to a coaching client how we'd use the approach of reflective inquiry during our work, and shared an example. He asked if that was a skill that can be developed to use on your own. I said yes, absolutely, and yet it's always helpful to have someone else listening carefully to pick up on what we're saying. I shared the example of when I said to my husband (who is not a coach!) "I quoted a price that felt fair." He asked me "Why did you use the word 'fair'?" Ooh, good question. That's the power of having a great coach: you have someone completely dedicated to listening to you, picking up on those nuances you might miss, and encouraging you to explore what they mean.

A professional coach will be able to 'listen' what's not said in addition to what's said to help challenge the client's thinking to push beyond their comfort zone, that's when innovative thinking can occur, then transform to drive personal and professional growth.

In order to grow personally and professionally, it is essential to seek coaching and feedback while being receptive to it. Create an environment of transparency and trust in your work connections first and foremost to encourage others to offer their honest opinions. Ask for input proactively from peers, mentors, or superiors, and listen carefully without getting defensive. An effective strategy for honing your abilities and leadership style is constructive criticism. Accept coaching as a way to improve your skills, understanding that even the most skilled people may use some direction.

My direct reports always felt uncomfortable giving me feedback because they didn't feel they should be telling their boss how to do things, so we shifted that way of thinking by me simply asking in our 1-on-1s what I could do to help support them in their current challenges? Was my current way of supporting them effective? Did I need to be more (or less) vocal? Did they need more resources? From these inquiries and their responses, I was able to determine if my leadership style was adequate and appropriate for supporting them and ensuring their success. It was much easier than asking them to tell me how I was doing or what would you change about my leadership style.

Seek Feedback: Actively seek feedback from your team, peers, and mentors. Ask for their candid opinions about your leadership style, strengths, and areas for improvement. Make it clear that you genuinely value their input. After you receive the feedback act on it. Implement changes and improvements in your leadership style based on the insights you gain. Show that you are committed to growth and development.

Whether it's feedback on something you can do more of/less of/differently, or a coaching revelation on an action you want to consider taking, you have two options: Action or Archive. If you choose to Action, articulate to someone (a manager, peer, mentor or coach) what you plan to do by when. You can ask them to help hold you accountable, but ultimately accountability is up to you. If it's feedback or an idea coming from coaching that you're not sure you want to Action on, then Archive it. Whether you make a note in a document or just mentally archive it, don't disregard it--if it comes back around again, it's a sign that it's something to pay attention to.

A growth attitude and self-awareness are necessary for the delicate balancing act that is being open to criticism while also meditating on it. Start by receiving feedback with an open heart and mind, viewing it as a chance for growth rather than as a source of criticism. When you receive criticism, give yourself some time to comprehend it without becoming angry. Instead, make an effort to comprehend the person giving you feedback and consider how their insights can be of use to you. Once you've taken in the criticism, give yourself some time to think.

As a leader, I believe you need to be an explorer, reader and engager. These 3 elements could bring you so many insights and open ways of learning from your own experiences, from others experiences and by sharing experiences. So relflection and application of those you seem fit and appropriate could always help a leader move to the next level. We all have course coreections to be made from time to time. It is important we take a conscious effort to do it from tome to time.

Leadership "styles" are a dime a dozen. You don't have to pick a named style and hold on to it for dear life. Learn about and explore different styles, and then incorporate approaches and mindsets that resonate with and feel authentic to you. If you try a new approach, such as with delegating, let your team members and peers know what you're trying, and then ask them for their feedback. What worked? What didn't? Continue to test and adjust as you grow into a style that is organically yours. That all being said, do become aware of the traits and behaviors of ineffective leadership styles so that you can be mindful to avoid them. If you fear that you may exhibit some of those tendencies, as others for their observations.

Develop your interest and desire to try new things as a starting point. Experimentation includes stepping beyond of your comfort zone, attempting novel methods, and taking measured risks. Receiving input from peers, mentors, or specialists is crucial during this process; it shouldn't be done alone. When one receives constructive criticism, it aids in style refinement and enables informed alterations. Growth is promoted by accepting criticism, even when it's difficult.

Whilst there are standard styles of leadership, you can also adapt your own unique hybrid style which could make you stand out as a leader. As we are focused on learning and getting feedback from time to time, this could evolve, but the core could remain.

The best approach for developing your leadership style is to work with other incredible leaders and learn from them. Curious about why they approach something in a certain way? Ask them. Want their thoughts on how to handle a situation? Ask them. Great leaders want others to grow into great leaders and will always be willing to help. Also stay alert to those leadership behaviors that you observe to be unproductive and disengaging. Again, take note, and watch yourself to avoid those behaviors. Becoming a great leader is about discovering the leader you want to be AND the one you don't want to emulate.

This is a very important element in leadership. Following each other as leaders and identifying some of the best practices or benchmarking could helps us evolve further to be great leaders. Another opportunity we all have in this digital age is be able to collaborate with each others as leaders and bring out a unique value proposition to offer our their to the world. This does not limit us to an organisation, a country, but leads us to make an impact to the entire world.

The key to both personal and professional progress is to remain open to criticism and growth while also learning from others. starting with the humility of realizing that we may always learn from others and that no one has all the answers. By studying other people's accomplishments and tactics, we can gain a lot of knowledge. Additionally, it's critical to actively seek out their feedback because their insights could present novel perspectives and useful criticism that challenges our presumptions.

to improve. Teach to learn, learn to teach: Invest in your own personal and professional development. Attend leadership workshops and seminars, listen to podcasts, and read books on leadership. Stay up-to-date with the latest leadership trends and research.

Investing time and energy to learn about what drives you and what your strengths and opportunities are is critical. Identifying your purpose, your values and what your vision is moving forward will help you continue to develop and nurture your unique leadership approach. Don't get stuck thinking it must look a certain way. The most impactful leaders are authentic and aligned in their style.

As you grow into your own unique leadership identity, a powerful activity is to ask others how they see you. This isn't a 360 assessment like described above. This is about asking specific questions to help you see your own genius. Questions such as "When have you seen me at my best, and what was memorable about that situation," "What strength do I have that I might not recognize in myself," and "What do you see as my superpower" are powerful questions that can help you gain clarity on your leadership identity and vision. When it's just you thinking about you, you can be too close to it. Ask for that outside perspective--I promise you'll be pleasantly surprised.

One of the best leaders I every supported shared his leadership journey with me, and it was so powerful. In his first leadership role, his own leader had a dictatorial style. That's all my colleague had ever seen, so that's what he emulated, even though it felt like putting on an ill-fitting suit. Later he received employee feedback that his style was causing his team to be disengaged. He invested in development opportunities to explore his authentic leadership style, ultimately moved to another organization, and grew to be a leader that with both high employee engagement AND strong business results. If your style doesn't feel right, explore what else is possible.