Leadership means taking significant action toward the organizational goals and helping people reach their individual milestones. Talking about action and specifically taking those actions are two different ideas. The challenge for leaders is sorting through what actions have significant impact on moving the team toward its goals. Here are five actions that move the team toward achievement and better results:
- Distribute Leadership: Many leadership positions are so multifaceted that it’s nearly impossible to complete all the work individually. Taking action to distribute roles and call on others to support the work makes everything a team effort. Successful leaders allow their people to help lead the charge and then hold them accountable for doing the necessary work.
- Create Goals and Standards: Leaders often talk about goals, metrics, and standards, but successful leaders develop these as a team and create action around them. The team has a voice in the focus and direction which allows for significantly more ownership. Create the goals and standards in order to develop a clear direction for the team.
- Eliminate the Distractions: Saying no to one area means the team says yes to the most important actions. Successful leaders audit every idea to uncover whether it’s a distraction or if it supports reaching their goals. Eliminating distractions allows for focused energy on what matters most for the team.
- Create Systems: Elite leaders develop habits and routines to get the flywheel spinning in the appropriate direction. Once they gain some momentum, they guide others in creating systems to get everything moving quicker and more efficiently. Establishing simple, effective systems moves the team forward.
- Narrow the Focus: Great leaders take action by narrowing the focus for their teams. After they narrow it once, then they refine the focus even more. It is impossible for teams to focus on everything, so the leader takes actions that lessen the work on trivial items and focuses the efforts on areas of most impact. Through data, discussions, and goal settings, leaders make educated decisions around areas of focus and intention.
Taking action and creating momentum separates the most effective leaders and teams from the rest. Although these ideas seem simple or easy, showing up each day and focusing on actions comes with challenges and is met with adversity. Great leaders take calculated actions each day that create momentum and ultimately move the team closer to their goals.
What immediate actions do successful leaders take each day?