Overcoming the challenges of leadership

Leaders are responsible for shouldering several hardships that may go unnoticed because of their covert nature. The decisions they take dictate the growth of the organization and the engagement of the employees. Challenges could range from solving conflicts to tackling workplace hostility, and sometimes unpredictable crises.

Even the most successful leaders and CEOs aren’t immune to limitations and backlash. When Satya Nadela had initially planned to push Microsoft towards cloud computing to regain its relevance, he was aware of the risks it involved. Moreover, his plan had met with notable disengagement, but that did not stop him from executing the plan.

Scott Keller, a senior partner at McKinsey says, “...there will be a crisis when your stakeholders are calling for a pivot or are upset about a decision you made. In those moments, CEOs need the ability to recover and learn.”

The challenges leaders commonly have to deal with are rarely solely about the organization. They’re more so about resolving employees’ problems.

Dissolving conflicts, motivating low-engaged employees, troubleshooting employee concerns, ensuring low rates of turnover, and dealing with their own triggers are only a few of the challenges that come along with taking up roles of leadership.

However, knowing how to deal with these challenges is the crux of the solution. CCL’s white paper Leading with Impact (Source: https://www.ccl.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/leadingWithImpact.pdf) report has indicated that upon assessing leaders on their effectiveness, they have an average of 3.99 on a scale of 5 points. This means that leaders have the capacity to improve and optimize their performance. [H1]?

Obstacles arise for everyone regardless of their role or job title, but leaders have the potential to create the maximum impact. This makes it important for leaders to proactively tackle challenges. Listed below are some ways leaders can maximize their performance to create a positive impact.

Setting goals for self and for the team

Setting goals and establishing a timeline for achieving them keeps distractions at bay. Tasks of urgent nature can also be prioritized. One way to set goals effectively would be by following the SMART technique.

Specific – Specific goals give direction to take action.

Measurable – Goals should be quantifiable to make progress easier to assess.

Attainable – Set goals should be achievable for the timeline that is established.

Realistic – Be realistic about what would be required in order to achieve the set goal.

Timed – Remove procrastination by setting a deadline that would encourage action.

Delegating

Leaders may be confident in their capabilities, but everybody has to face the consequences if they do not have the resources to execute them. Delegating responsibilities by assessing the objective, the employees and the purpose of the objective can produce results faster while building trust.

Maximizing the value of self

When leaders focus on the contributions they can make, they learn to identify qualities and limitations of themselves. They’re aware of their intelligence, confidence and assertiveness, but they’re also aware of being judgmental or a harsh critic. Self-reflection brings all these attributes to the surface for leaders to work on themselves and utilize their best traits.

Strengthening their teams

Team building and collaboration multiply the benefits of working in a positive and healthy work environment. Leaders are responsible for cultivating that. All factors that contribute towards an engaging work environment are introduced by leaders. Trust, values, mutual respect and recognition strengthen teams and increase group cohesion. A strong team can keep employees engaged and committed at work which will significantly reduce challenges.

Reduced challenges mean burdens are off the leader’s shoulders. The right actions can create a culture that prevents avoidable difficulties from cropping up.

Leaders can embrace challenges and overcome them even in times of uncertainty if they’re confident in their abilities and their employee.