How can you showcase your leadership skills to employers?

Trusted colleagues may offer insights that can assist you in understanding your personal brand. Consider asking a colleague or supervisor questions about the talents you have that are distinctive and impactful.

Building your personal brand as a leader in brand strategy starts with understanding yourself. I like to conduct old school SWOT analysis with my coaching clients. It’s a simple but powerful exercise to know your strengths and areas to improve. Then, you generate a personal mission statement that reflects what you're passionate about and your goals. Keep it real and make sure it shows who you are and what you stand for.

As a professional. my brand should be clearly defined when you look at my online profile. If it does not reflect then I shouldn't be hired. As a certifed brand strategist, I'm held to higher standards.

Leadership skills is much more that personal branding… It goes far deep to your personal values and leadership style. I can provide clients or employers with amazing content, branding, strategy… but fail as a leader and vice versa. Here I prefer to talk about our leadership style instead of personal branding.

Outline your successes & failures to find the key drivers behind each. I’ve done this with businesses for years, and only done it for myself recently; it was easy to identify what motivates me no matter what industry or environment I’m in. Know your top three skills & how they can impact any situation. Having the confidence in what you bring to the table not only helps you identify jobs that might be right for you, but it puts you in a position of strength when speaking to a future employer, or even current employers. If you don’t know your value, and you don’t know the very skills that impact your success, then how is anyone else supposed to know? Know them. Share them. Embrace them. And commit to people that value them as much as you.

You probably already know this if you're reading this, but LinkedIn is the perfect platform to showcase your skills and insights as you build your personal brand and thought leadership skills.

As a brand strategist, I have a track record showing due diligence in the profession. I'm active on all platforms. It does no good to recommend a strategy that can't be executed digitally. In order to be a brand strategist the first brand is to build your own.

Focus on maintaining a professional image by avoiding gimmicky content such as daily routines or unrelated personal details. Instead, use platforms like LinkedIn to highlight your qualifications, share valuable tips and tricks, discuss new learnings, and express your views on relevant subjects in your industry. Engage with online communities, and demonstrate thought leadership by providing insights into your project work, detailing how you simplified tasks or streamlined processes to achieve objectives. By offering practical examples of your problem-solving skills and project management capabilities, you can effectively demonstrate your leadership abilities and attract the attention of potential clients/employers/partners.

From my time in the Army I worked under some great leaders and I worked under some very poor leaders. Leading by example is a core principle of great leadership on the battlefield and in the office. Walking your talk is critical. Not only does leading by example give your voice legitimacy, it also has a positive impact on your work place culture. Setting the clear and defined standard by your own behavior sets the bar, and gives the example, for others around you to follow.

Leading by example is the bedrock of accountability. When leaders lead by example, they not only model the desired behavior, but also engage in the culture of the organization. Leaders need to understand their leadership styles and be able to convey a compelling vision that aligns with objectives. We all want leaders who set the example and direction.

While all the leadership skills mentioned are important to model, my experience also points to a leaders emotional intelligence. Great leaders model strong EI skills such as emotional balance, focus, a positive outlook, empathy, adaptability, and organizational awareness. Developing these skills will help you tremendously as a leader, remaining calm under pressure, keeping your eye on what matters, open communication and transparency, cultivating trust and loyalty with the team(s) you lead. Absolutely critical for sustaining successful outcomes especially if you want to lead a high performing team!

Leading by example is a huge part of a successful leader. But if you want to showcase your leadership to clients, they might not get to see you in your elements, therefore you need to talk about it. Here are some points to cover when showcasing your leadership: 1- Explain how you lead and what you expect your team to have 2- Talk about case studies, nothing can showcase your strength like a real life example 3- Talk about past failures (or mistakes) and how (or what) you learned from it 4- Be genuine and true to your skills

Leadership also involves not directing from your ivory tower but meeting and listening the employees at their place of work- offices, workstations, etc. listening is key…

Mentoring & coaching is the finest way to demonstrate leadership skills. “Chanakya” is apt example of same. To mentor one need to be humble & assertive as the same time. Mentoring is huge opportunity to inspire others through sharing your wisdom & shape future. Chanakya’s centuries old principles & insights continue to guide today leaders.

The strongest technique I used was mindfulness. It meant listening without judgment. One time one of the team was upset. I sensed she needed a hug. I hugged her and she started crying. That demonstrates empathy and compassion a personal brand trait. As the digital strategist, I worked with each person to coach them.

For me, seeking new opportunities doesn’t just mean a new job or more work. I have expanded my skillset and network through serving the community. Throughout my college career, I didn’t always have the capacity to work full time but I volunteered more than twice a week at different places and in different roles learning a multitude of skills and continuously meeting new people. Even in my career, volunteering for organizations and projects, internal and external, has shown exponential career growth.

I recognized the need for a deeper understanding of corporate brand strategy. I asked for the class but they were financially unable to pay for the class. I paid for the class and took personal time off. They compromised and paid my time off. Personal branding is career management and is totally up to me.

I think one of the worst things in business is complacency and the unwillingness to evolve. “We’ve always done it like this” is the worst thing for me to hear when it’s followed by an unwillingness to try new things. Even when the business is booming, you should always be seeking new opportunities, anticipating what may lie ahead and preparing to adapt or pivot. Do your research, be prepared to talk about the why behind your what, and whether you’re in a culture that accepts new ideas or not, look for ways to validate or learn from your ideas. Learn from observing others and keep getting those ideas out there. Not every opportunity can be explored, but a leader never stops reaching for new heights, even with a mountain of obstacles in view.

Demonstrating leadership skills to employers goes beyond just showcasing results and KPIs. Firstly, leverage social proof, as there's immense psychological power in others vouching for your impact. This can include endorsements, recommendations, or real-world examples where your leadership made a tangible difference. Secondly, tailor your approach by deeply understanding your ideal employer, similar to how brands must know their target audience. Focus on demonstrating impacts and achievements that align with the specific values, goals, and challenges of the prospective employer. This targeted approach ensures that your leadership skills are not just visible, but also directly relevant and appealing to them.

When it comes to showcasing leadership skills to your employers, it is pretty basic to first know the medium where your employers are most likely to take note of. Finding this with a high degree of certainty meets 90% of your endeavours, the remaining 10% is just leading the cow to the grass.

A leader is someone that inspires people to go where they likely won’t go on their own. It has nothing to do with how many people you manage, how much you get paid, or even where you are in the org chart. Inspire others around you to be their best and always aspire to see opportunity. As you achieve success, others will follow you there if you let them.

A Lot has been written on leadership & how to define leader? In my opinion Situation gives real opportunity to demonstrate what’s inside you (what are you made of ?) some are leader by designation while some are made out of situation there is 3rd tribe “born leaders” Wait for situation or rise to the occasion to take lead, do what is right & solve it. Situation is the best way to demonstrate leadership whether to employer or family, friends. It could be as sample as getting of car to help clear traffic jam than waiting for someone to clear it.