Training Leaders is More Than Leadership Training

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Read that title again and realize it was written by a guy who has in some ways been delivering leadership training for over 30 years. It is a hard statement to type and read.

And it is 100% true.

This doesn’t mean my life’s work (and the work of our team) has been for naught, and that I should somehow refund all that organizations have invested with us.

There is a strong correlation between organizations and teams that succeed and the quality and effectiveness of their leaders. It’s true that many organizations “get by” with average or below average leaders. In industries with strong economics, or in times when things are stable, a baseline of success can overshadow the outsized role of leadership to organizational success.

Even then, internally, poor leadership is evident, but in the big picture it is easier to overlook when considering overall results.

But when things get harder, times get tougher, the circumstances get less certain, poor leadership and the problems they cause can no longer be ignored. I don’t need to make a list of these problems, because you could make the list yourself. When considering the “life business is good” vs “business is (really) hard and uncertain” options, which is more likely your organizational situation today?

If things are good for your business now, you are likely investing in ways to keep business that way. Developing your leaders might be (let’s hope) one of those investments. If things aren’t going so well, unfortunately, you might not be investing in your leaders when you really need it most.

Beyond the real economic quandaries of investing in leaders when funds are tight, it has long been easy to “cut the training budget” because we don’t always see a return on that investment. That doesn’t make the investment less important, but it begs us to invest differently – just like we would in any other part of the business.

Which brings us back to my sad but true title for this post: leadership training is part of what is needed to train (or develop) leaders but isn’t the complete solution – not even close.

If training isn’t the whole answer, what is?

The Framework

Well-designed, delivered, and deployed training can be very helpful in developing skills – in fact, that is its purpose. But skills are only part of what leaders need to become more effective. And when we focus only on skills, we can (as your experience likely shows) get very haphazard results.

Two things are needed beyond skills – something that comes before the skills, and something that comes after skills have been put into the toolkit.

First, mindset. If we don’t believe we need new skills, believe the skills being taught will be helpful, or that we can do them, how interested will we be?

Most training design assumes people have a felt need and desire not only to want to be a better leader (or have their role be a bit easier), but that they are ready to do the necessary work to change.

That seems like a pretty bold set of assumptions, doesn’t it?

And even if people are bought in, love the change and see the skills they have learned as being helpful, the hard work of habit change is still in front them when they leave any training or learning experience. In others, mindset and skillset aren’t enough, people still need what we call the habitset.

There is the framework – mindset, skillset, habitset. If all three aren’t addressed at the individual level, leaders won’t significantly or sustainably improve.?

And to restate my point, generally speaking, most “leadership training” only addresses one of the three components, and by itself can’t address the third one.

Sources of Solution

If we want our leaders to be more effective, we need to do more than host and invest in training. But what are some of the things we need to add to the mix that support mindsets and habitsets?

• Clear roles and expectations for leaders. When leaders clearly understand what is expected of them as leaders, they will be more open to their growth and development.?
• A sense of current proficiency. If people think they are doing great, their interest in learning is lower. Help people see how they are doing now. If there are no gaps, that is great – but most all of us have room to grow as leaders.
• A picture of the skills needed for success. Help people see how the training and learning you will provide them is relevant for their needed growth.
• Consistent skill development. Consider making learning a process rather than simply providing a training experience. Ongoing learning and reinforcement are key to your overall success.
• Ongoing accountability. People need to know that they are expected to and are accountable for applying what they learned when they get back to work.
• Coaching - From peers, leaders or other coaches, both informal and formal are all powerful and effective.
• Role modelling and reinforcement. If people see other leaders applying the skills effectively, they are far more likely to do it themselves.

This isn’t a comprehensive list, but it gives you a picture of what will transform the leaders in your organization.?

The bad news?? It takes more than a workshop.

The good news? Most of the rest doesn’t have to be added to the budget. Processes and systems can be implemented to supplement the “training” that will drastically increase the success of your leaders (and the return on investment for what you do invest.

Note: We have been helping organizations create these kinds of organizational approaches and providing training as a part of this for 30 years. WE would love to discuss your needs and how we can help – including sharing ideas about creating leadership flexibility based on my new book: Flexible Leadership: Navigate Uncertainty and Lead with Confidence. This book gives you a full understanding of what it means to be a Flexible Leader and provides leaders with mindset/skillset and habitset tools to become more effective and flexible.

Pre-order your copy today.

A version of this article was previously published on my blog.

What Do You Think?

Share your thoughts in the comments – which of these – mindsets, skillsets, or habitsets are the biggest opportunity for you and your leaders?? Why do you say that?

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