Leadership – A Life-Skill

Succeed in Your Professional & Personal Life

Written by Leigh Martinuzzi

Leadership is a skill not only favoured to those who manage large teams or coach at the local football club. I’d consider leadership a life-skill. We should teach it to school children along with several other important life-skills essential for living a successful and happy life.

Why? Because at some point in time, we will be required to lead others whether on a large or small scale. More importantly, we are at all times entirely responsible for the leadership of our life.

You might be thinking, “well, if I am not in a position of such responsibilities then why do I need to develop my leadership skills?”

The first argument I will make is that we all have motives, goals and dreams. Some of us pursue them more closely than others, perhaps an indication of the individual’s ability to lead. Therefore, if you wish to win in life, as it matters to you, you will be better able to do so with enhanced leadership skills.

As you will see in a moment, leadership qualities are individually learnt and human-based. I believe they can be harnessed to influence oneself in reaching his or her goals as effectively as they can be used to motivate a group of people.

Regardless of how well we wish to lead our own lives, I’d further argue that there will be moments in life in which we will be asked to lead others. For example, there might be an incident in which someone must take the lead to rectify the situation. If no one steps up to the challenge, the conflict may escalate and end undesirably. Every parent needs to learn to lead their children if they wish to give them the best chances of leading a happy life. There are many examples of when we might be required to lead.

In an interview, I did with Michael Useem, he defined leadership in a way that I think can assist us to understand why it’s an important life skill. He said it’s an opportunity to offer value in moments of change and uncertainty. In our daily lives, we always encounter change and uncertainty? And the opportunity to provide value in those moments is open to us all with the belief that we all have something of value to offer. Therefore, having excellent leadership skills will allow us to apply value in these moments.

Top leaders are said to have some of the following qualities; vision, strategic action and thought, an ability to inspire others, emotional intelligence, an ability to make decisions, use courage, an ability to honour the room and convey one’s character. Most of these are self-explanatory except for a few which I will explain below.

Strategic action and thought are that which is planned and that serves a useful purpose. It aims to help achieve the common goal via measurable activity. To honour the room in my mind means to take value from everyone you meet. The people around us all have something that we can leverage to enhance our knowledge. To convey one’s character means to be yourself. Don’t cover up anything, be vulnerable and let others see the true you. It creates trust in your relationships, essential for leading others.

There are more qualities, and if you are interested in learning them, I suggest heading on over to Michael Useem’s website to find out more – link here. At a quick glance, I suppose that you may be able to see how they apply to the pursuit of our personal dreams and goals. And it’s important to realise that our quest is not solo, we will rely on others to help us along the way. Leadership skills have their part to play.

As for managing others or leading a group it goes without saying, they will powerfully transform the situation you enter and your ability to offer value in times of change. Once you understand the importance of upgrading your leadership skills, and I hope I’ve convinced that they can and will, the next step is to lock in practices that will assist you to take them to the next level.

Here are four useful insights that I took away from my conversation with Michael Useem. The first is to become a lifelong learner of leadership. In my opinion, growth is a fundamental human need that we need to incorporate into our everyday lives.

Always find new ways to entertain curiosity, expand the mind and enhance your life experiences. Continual growth in leadership skills and all other life skills will ultimately benefit your overall happiness.

Be around those that can serve as mentors or coaches. What better way to learn than from others who have a direct and proven history of leadership. The quickest way to travel from point A to point B is to learn from others who have already been on a similar journey. Go out there and find them. Most people that have the skill we desire will when asked, be more than willing to offer advice and assistance.

Repeatedly do what you’ve not done before. It continues from the need to immerse oneself in growth activities. The best way to alter our quality of life is to change and even challenge the experiences we have. When we are stuck in automation, and the results we request are not improving, change the approach, gain a new perspective and be open to change. It will pay off in dividends.

Go Long (stolen from the title of Michael’s newest book- Go Long), invest in the long-term goals and dreams. The most successful companies and individuals tend to focus on the long-term in favour of quick short-term results. Driven by pleasure and pain we often succumb to a short-term mentality, but the most significant leaders are willing to make a sacrifice now for the benefits of the long-term success.

Why is having a purpose the path? Having real purpose is sustainable and the only way to offer real value. And greater leadership drives purpose. Individually we all experience change and adversity daily, leading with purpose will guide us through it. Globally uncertainty is significant right now, and for that reason, we need more people to lead especially by those that have good honest intent, morals and values.

Further Reading and Resources 

TED Talks: Ideas worth spreading

Psychology Today: Psychology Today is devoted exclusively to everybody’s favourite subject – Ourselves

Life Hack: Tips for Life

Elite Daily: The Voice of Generation Y

Four Hour Work Week: How to escape the 9-5, live anywhere and join the new rich.

The Minimalists: How to pursue a minimalist lifestyle and be happier.

Mind Hacks: Tips and Tricks for Using Your Brain

Rich Roll: Plantpowered Wellness Advocate

The Art of Charm: Build confidence, feel comfortable and networking differently.

American Psychological Association: The largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United State

The Art of Manliness: Encouraging men to be better husbands, fathers, brothers, citizens.

Tiny Buddha: Simple wisdom for complex lives.

Brain Pickings: An inventory of cross-disciplinary interestingness, spanning art, science, design, history, philosophy, and more.

Mind Body Green: Lifestyle media brand dedicated to inspiring you to live your best life.

Zen Habits: Find simplicity and mindfulness in life.

Creative NonFiction: “true stories well told.” 

Addicted 2 Success: Motivation & Inspiration Website full of quotes and inspiring articles for entrepreneurs.

Barking Up the Wrong Tree: science-based answers and expert insight on how to be awesome at life.

The Positivity Blog: Practical articles on happiness, self-esteem, productivity and social skills.