Leadership Beyond Titles
Leadership goes beyond formal authority! Repeatedly-do behaviors and influence are critical components of whether you’re seen as a leader at work.
Leading through Behavior and Influence
True leadership isn’t confined to a title or formal position. Rather, leadership is a set of behaviors and the ability to influence others toward meeting a shared goal or engaging in a desired behavior. Considering how paramount collaboration and adaptability are in the workplace, it makes sense that acting as a leader is as much about how you show up, pivot and contribute as it is about the role you hold.
Whether you’re a high performer and happy there, or you’re looking to step into a more formal leadership position, there are some key behaviors you can lean into plus actions you can that will build your leadership presence.
First, leadership behaviors.
When you show up as a leader, you consistently embody some key behaviors and, in doing so, you encourage others to show up similarly. For example, leader-like staff members:
Empathy: Seek to understand the needs and motivations of others and they ask questions when they aren’t sure.
Accountability: Own their responsibilities and outcomes, even when they aren’t what they would have wanted.
Collaboration: Actively work across teams and generously share successes.
Influence: Gain trust and inspire action through authenticity, credibility and strong relationships.
How to lead (without formal authority).
1. Build Strong Relationships
Leadership always begins with trust. When people trust you, they are more likely to show up for you and take your ideas into account. Foster meaningful connections with colleagues by:
Actively listening to their ideas and concerns.
Showing appreciation for their contributions.
Showing up as and how you say you will. Be the person they trust to be authentic.
2. Demonstrate Expertise…and Curiosity
To influence others, it’s important that they see you as both credible (great at your work) and reflective (eager to learn to be even better!) This does NOT mean you need all the answers; rather:
Find the right moments to share the knowledge you DO have openly and confidently.
Be curious and ask insightful questions that encourage others to think critically when you’re not as sure what the right answer is.
Embrace a learner’s mindset! Continuously develop your skills to stay informed and relevant.
3. Take Initiative
Leaders solve problems and drive progress. Look for opportunities to:
Volunteer for challenging or innovative projects or tasks. (But don’t do this if the projects or tasks truly don’t interest you – we’re not trying to do everything here.)
Identify gaps in processes and propose thoughtful solutions.
Step in to help others when they’re struggling, even if it’s outside the formal scope of your role. This is also a biggie for that relationship-building we discussed earlier!
4. Practice Managing Up As Well As Across
Managing up involves proactively working with your manager to achieve shared goals and make their job easier. Managing across? Same thing, except for colleagues on a similar level as you, or across teams and departments. To do this effectively:
Communicate clearly and regularly about progress and challenges on shared projects.
Present solutions instead of problems when seeking guidance. (Yes, we sound a little like a broken record here, but showing up with an idea of how to fix something is crucial to inspiring collaboration!)
Understand how your work impacts others (aka, how you can help and where you might need to step back) and communicate this clearly.
Ready to take the next step? Know someone who may be?
These steps are simple, but they make an enormous impact on how you are seen within your work community (and the way you feel about being there!) If you’re interested in building these critical leadership skills, or know a team of folks who may be, reach out to learn more about our Leadership Foundations workshop!
