“If you’re done learning, you’re done growing. If you’re done growing, then you’re done leading”
One day while having a conversation with a friend, we got on the topic of leadership, what books we are reading and overall self improvement. As we were talking, I was sharing on how important it is to always be learning, growing and improving yourself, and this sentence came out of my mouth.
Have you ever had one of those times when you surprise yourself? This was one for me. As it came out of my mouth, I realized how true this really is for leaders.
Over the years I’ve done quite a bit of learning on leadership: hands on, books, podcasts, conversations, events, listening, conferences and trainings, etc. I’ve heard many different thoughts and definitions of leadership.
Most of the definitions are accurate, because leading encompasses so many different avenues. While defining leadership, we should look at what a leader is. It simply boils down to this: a leader is anyone who has influence over other people. Bosses, owners, managers and the like, but also parents, coaches and teachers.
If you have the ability and the opportunity to have influence over another person, you are a leader, and therefore, practice leadership.
This article is for leaders who want to take leadership seriously.
As a leader, we have to continually learn and grow. We need to always learn more about ourselves, those we lead individually and the group of people placed in our care.
Further, leaders need to always be learning in areas such as: communication, emotional intelligence, structure, organization, finances and other nuance categories rounding out what leaders are responsible for.
It can be daunting.
The human side of us would quickly get overwhelmed with the amount of information to learn, practice and apply to our leadership. But when it comes to learning in leadership, it’s not about completing: it’s about progress.
If you’re a leader, you probably have big goals and aspirations, as well as inspiring attributes and values, so you’re naturally bent to grow. But growth only comes from learning. Even if we know a lot, we don’t know everything. Each day is an opportunity to learn, and each minute contains an opportunity to grow.
If you want to grow in your leadership, you must always be learning. Continually positioning yourself in the seat and mindset of a student. While we are learning we are growing and improving.
An effective way to ruin your leadership is to simply stop learning. To stop listening and trying new things. If you’re past the point of “learning” in your life and leadership, then you won’t have the chance to grow.
And when that complacency hits and becomes rooted, your leadership will be taken away from you. Not forcefully, but slowly as those whom you’ve had influence over will begin to feel the complacency and then elect to follow someone else.
Leaders become stronger, or weaker. There is no staying put and there is no middle ground (granted that you want to use your leadership to inspire and better those you lead; another key part of leadership).
I’m sure you could think of someone you looked up to, was inspired by and learned a lot from at one point in your life, whom you feel has gotten a little stale and “hit their ceiling”.
As sad as that can be to realize, let it be the motivation for you to not become stale and complacent.
The only sure fire way your leadership stays strong and inspirational is if you’re daily growing as a person and leader. And the only way you can ensure growth is to always be learning!
Hone in on your specialties. Perfect your craft. Supplement your weaknesses and branch out into new areas.
You can always get better. You can always grow. You can always improve. And this happens by being a student of everything.
In leadership, we are often in the thick of things. Running a team or business, pastoring a church, parenting children, teaching a large class. Leading uses up a lot of bandwidth in our days, but we must incorporate learning into our leading.
Don’t just work in leadership, work on your leadership.
Because, if you’re learning, you’re growing. And if you’re growing, you’re affirming your leadership. The beauty is twofold: you get better, and those you lead get better.
Have the mindset of a student, pursue growth and your leadership will become more and more effective.
