My Approach to Leadership (and Thoughts on 2022)

Clearly, I'm never going to be a prolific LinkedIn article writer. In fact, it looks like the end of the year is the only time I sit down and dedicate some time to it. At the end of 2020, I was still relatively new to my current job, and I spent a lot of time reflecting on what felt important to me at the time. What was top of mind for me then was clearly all about the workplace, with my end-of-year articles talking about 5 Signs You’re at the Wrong Company (and 5 Signs You’re Not) and 4 Content Marketing Predictions for 2021. Am I still at the right company? Absolutely. How did I do on those predictions? We'll save that for another article.

So, now that it's the end of another year, what's on my mind? My incredible, inspiring, hard-working team and how I can support them, encourage them, and help them grow. That means taking a closer look at my approach to leadership and making sure I set MY goals to align with what’s best for them.

How I try to lead, and how I can do better

As a leader, I have a lot of goals for myself and my team. I want us all to be learning and growing and thriving, and I want the people who work with me to feel like they’re making a difference in their work. I want our company to be successful … that IS where our paychecks come from, after all. To focus my efforts and my priorities, I want to be:

Human and real: Especially as teams work increasingly remote, it’s easy to lose track of the fact that the voices and faces on the screen are attached to real people. If tensions are high or issues are arising, I always want to be the leader who slows things down and reminds people that their lives—their kids, health, well-being, pets, and more—come first. For me, this also means being honest about my own life by allowing myself to show emotion and admit when my own plate is full. Hopefully, this sets an example for my team as well.

I try to keep improving by: Leading by example when it comes to making space for emotions and real life. I respect that my team isn’t always going to want or be able to put work first, and I encourage them to take their time off completely. I try to find opportunities for the team to get to know each other as people instead of only ever talking about work, and I share resources/information that helps them understand my approach to not just work, but life in general.

Inclusive and welcoming: It is hugely important that I support inclusion and diversity efforts within and outside of my team. I know how important it is to consider the backgrounds and input of people who don’t look, think, or live like me. I also want to make sure that we’re incorporating full inclusion into the work we do every day. I share resources and information that share inclusive values and the benefits of true diversity, and I encourage my team to get involved with these efforts whenever possible.

I try to keep improving by: Continuing to learn and challenge the status quo. There is so much still to do when it comes to a truly inclusive workplace where everyone can feel safe being themselves. I will continue to follow thought leaders who know much more about this work and I share their knowledge. I keep educating myself on inclusion and diversity efforts, and I champion the voices of marginalized groups that are still not being heard.

Supportive and understanding: When it comes to work, there are a lot of ways we can be supportive of our coworkers. I keep the lines of communication open, encourage my team to come to me with any and all issues, and truly listen when they talk. I work hard to remember the important details of their lives, check in on them when they’re going through something, and follow through with my promises. I also dedicate my time to finding opportunities to build my team’s skills and knowledge so that I can support their career growth too.

I try to keep improving by: Always looking for better ways to listen, and never thinking I know better just because I’m “the boss.” I continue to find better ways to be respectful of my team’s time by keeping meetings on time and efficient, and only scheduling them when they’re needed. I share information downward whenever I can and give my team space to share their expertise without me always peeking over their shoulder.

Inquisitive and open: I don’t know everything and I never will. Everyone on my team has skills and abilities that I don’t have and allowing to bring those unique skills to the team makes us all better. I want to learn from my team, my coworkers, and my leaders. I want to ask good questions in meetings so that I can pass on the best, most up-to-date info to my team. I’m honest about when I don’t know something too. I try to always give credit to the people doing the work and make sure their voices are heard when it comes to process and procedure decisions.

I try to keep improving by: Not getting complacent. There is always more to learn, and everyone has a perspective worth sharing. I am working to create a team environment where everyone feels heard, valued, and respected. I want to support not only my own learning, but opportunities for my team to keep learning more about the things they care about most so that they can keep bringing their unique perspective to the team and helping us all work smarter.

Clear and decisive: Decisions aren’t always easy but being a leader means making tough calls. I never want to make an important decision without the right information, but I also don’t want my team to feel insecure or unsure when I can help. I gather information, focus on knowing who to go to with questions, and then make calls quickly and with confidence. The balance here, for me, is between clarity (knowing enough to make a decision at all) and decisiveness (making the decision without too much hesitation) to keep my team moving forward.

I try to keep improving by: Making sure I’m always being as honest and open as possible when it comes to what I know, and never hesitating to ask the right questions. I work on really believing in my own confidence as a leader by remembering that I trust my own leadership, and they trust me in this role, so I must be here for a reason. Hanging onto that confidence helps me maintain my clarity and ability for decisive action and keep my team feeling informed and supported.

?Looking ahead to 2022

What does all of this mean for my leadership goals in 2022? A new year is coming, but the past few haven’t been easy on everyone. So, for the new year, I don’t want my amazing team to focus on MORE, BETTER, FASTER. I want to create a gentler approach to the new year. For me, 2022 is the year for us to get back to what we can do and who we are as marketing professionals – I want to bring fun back to our work, embrace what got us into this work in the first place. I want to explore our creativity and skill. My team is so talented, so creative, so capable. It's my job to help them explore that and find new ways to create. I can't wait to see what amazing things they do.

So, to my team, if you happen to be reading this: You got this, and I’m here to help. To everyone else, what am I missing? What are your go-to methods for great leadership?

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