Leadership is the act of taking full responsibility of one’s actions as well as inactions. That responsibility then extends out to the way others think, behave and feel in your presence. And with that, expectations follow. Many times, leaders are looked upon as unearthly, God like creatures that can never err.
“Leaders are not one in a million, extraordinary leadership is.”
Leaders are definitely humans, but they possess high emotional intelligence and extraordinary mental and emotional capabilities that make them unique and heroic. Their heroism comes from their inner self work that allows them to understand life from a high vantage point as well as at the very personal micro level. This combination of macro vision and micro perspective, makes them unique.
“Leaders are the ones that jump first and eat last!”
World class leaders possess these 5 extraordinary qualities:
Absolute Fearlessness – Some people really are not scared of anything. Understanding why reveals the way the rest of us process terror. Leaders are fearless as their self-confidence overpowers all fears and anxiety. This confidence is a result of the experiences they have gained through meeting various peoples from all walks of life, education that has afforded them a broader view of the world and expertise that they have worked hard towards honing in on.
Radical Self-Awareness – Leaders understand the biases and challenges they have in their own life.
Our experiences often define our attitudes and being self-aware means you realize and understand these things, giving you the ability to move beyond them.
Leaders practice self-awareness daily and are very conscious about how they view themselves and how they connect with the world.
Action Oriented Growth Mindset – This buzz phrase is often used in the context of innovation in business but a growth mindset can also be applied to the way you view personal development. Claiming someone has a growth mindset means they aren’t satisfied with the status quo. For example, someone with a growth mindset will be focused on becoming a better person and increasing their knowledge personally and professionally. Leaders exemplify a growth mindset and are generally more willing to change than someone who does not embrace growth. And that is because they know they have to act first and others will follow. Leaders are role models that their team looks up to.
Practical Empathy – Empathy is one of the most celebrated soft skills these days, but it is very rarely understood and lived by many. To be empathetic means that you’re able to understand the opinions and biases of others as well as how their own history or position may influence their thoughts and reactions.
Extraordinary leaders know that they need to rise above merely understanding the opinions and biases of others. They need to go beyond and provide a solution to the problem rather than becoming part of the problem themselves. They jump into solution mode by empathetically yet very practically involving themselves into the problem and immediately jumping on to solution mode.
Accurate Observation – With much of communication being non-verbal, being able to read body language is a very important skill to master. A person conveys emotions in the way they stand, whether they make eye contact or not and even the angle of their head.
Extraordinary leaders are experts at understanding the secrets behind decoding body language and apply those skills in their day to day communication with their colleagues, team mates and seniors.
They accurately observe who is receptive to their message and who needs a little more convincing. This skill is rare but helps save a lo of time and energy once mastered.
In closing, ordinary people can become extraordinary leaders if they start doing the necessary inner work first and gain fully visibility of their own selves. They can then work upon improving how they connect with others.