10 leadership tips for success
I’ve said it plenty of times before that contact centres provide some amazing career opportunities.
More often than not though, that journey starts from identifying someone on the phones who shows a bit of talent above the norm, or someone who shows some initiative in wanting to further their career.
We then throw them into a Team Leader role, give them a pat on the back and then wonder why people aren’t becoming effective leaders!
Thankfully a lot of call centres are recognising that leadership training is a critical component of a career path.
Along with my own CX Skills business which specialises in training for contact centres, there are now plenty of trainers out there focussing on leadership and coaching skills.
But just throwing someone into a course doesn’t make someone a great leader either.
Good leaders are always developing their skills through continuous learning.
Being a leader doesn’t mean you need to be a leadership expert.
In fact, great leaders are the ones who pursue their own education.
Leadership in a contact centre, after all, is not about being a CX or technology expert.
It’s about being an expert in people management.
By being a better leader, and investing the time to do so, will help everyone perform better.
These leadership tips were inspired by an article on Forbes with contributions from various industry leaders.
10 Leadership Tips to help you excel
1. Pursue Feedback
Ken Blanchard says, “Feedback is the breakfast of champions.” Excellent leaders are characterised by aggressively pursuing feedback.
You will never graduate with a degree in leadership from the school of “no news is good news.”
After most “enlightening” experiences, circle back and ask what went well and what could’ve been better.
Be relentless in your pursuit of receiving feedback.
– Dean Miles, Bridgepoint Coaching & Strategy Group
2. Share What You Know With Others
If you want to learn, — teach.
Those of us who teach leadership professionally know this secret: We have to develop ourselves, keep learning, and model what we believe.
No matter where you are in your career, you can mentor others, offer what you know, share your questions, exchange insights, and keep learning.
By so doing, you’ll further your own education.
– Sally Fox, Engaging Presence
3. Check Your Balance
True leadership is the healthy balance between the attention of your mind and the affection of your heart.
If your leadership approach is all about the cerebral aspects of the work, there is no inspiration.
If your style is all about fluffy feel-good, you miss the mark on delivery.
Set plans with solid thought, measured by conviction and you will create an environment for exceptional performance. –
4. Find A Mentor
Landing a leadership position that feels like sink or swim with no support doesn’t require drowning.
Look toward your professional network and upwardly within the company to find a mentor relationship that can keep you on the fast track to leadership success.
Learning and guidance from those who have been there and want to foster success in others is a surefire path to confident management.
– Laura DeCarlo, Career Directors international
5. Observe Others, Read, Get Coaching
Leadership is a skill that can be learned despite many believing that we are born with leadership abilities or not.
We typically learn leadership in one of two ways, we work for a bad leader and say, “I’ll never do it that way,” or we work for a good leader and say, “I’ll do it like that.”
Over time, we develop our style, but it can be improved and accelerated by books and personal coaching.
6. Establish A Discipline Of Reflection
To quote Mintzberg, “Leadership like swimming can’t be learned by reading about it.”
Leaders have scores of experiences from which to draw learnings.
Develop a habit of stopping the action occasionally to reflect and write — what happened, what worked, what didn’t, and what did I learn — and you’ll have thousands of learning experiences.
Otherwise, you’ll lose thousands of learning opportunities.
– Bill Gardner, Noetic Outcomes Consulting, LLC
7. Hit The Books And The Pavement
There are two approaches to learning anything, and how to become a leader is no exception — hitting the books and hitting the pavement.
When it comes to books, look to best-sellers, management training programs, leadership certificates and executive education programs.
Hit the pavement by identifying the styles you admire and asking for mentorship.
– Virginia Franco, Virginia Franco Resumes
8. Pursue Training Programs
While I’m a coach, I’m also the CEO of a 40-person company. I’ve been most valuable to my team when I invest time and money in my own development.
Over the last two years, I’ve commenced from both the Stagen Leadership Academy and the Gestalt Training Program out of Cleveland.
Both were deeply immersive and profound.
Commit to an experience that is guaranteed to challenge you.
The ROI is worthwhile.
Corey Blake, Round Table Companies
9.Practice By Volunteering
Training and books are great, mentors are wonderful, but the only way to become a leader is to start leading.
Join the board of a nonprofit, get involved with a cause, volunteer to lead an event or fundraiser, and you’ll get to spread your wings and grow while you’re doing something great for your community (and making contacts).
Tina Dietz, StartSomething Creative Business Solutions
10. Seek The Newest Ideas
Read books about peak performance so that you learn what is really required for people to outperform.
Introduce yourself to new research and ideas so that you don’t fall back on sometimes erroneous instinct about work and motivation.
A great book to start with is Top Dog: The Science of Winning and Losing, by Ashley Merryman and Po Bronson.
Laura Garnett, Garnett Consulting LLC
I hope at least a couple of these leadership tips resonated with you.
What’s some of the best leadership advice you received?
Recommended further reading: 7 Common Traits of Succesful Leaders
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