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How Persistent Are You Leading?

Persistence is an important skill that effective leaders develop throughout their careers to ensure they are not only meeting their own goals and targets, but also creating highly functioning organisations at the same time.

One of the most powerful practices I use to learn skills around persistence is to gain inspiration from current and past leaders – leaders who achieved amazing things that have enabled them to go from ‘good’ to ‘great’

Sometimes we only hear how successful these leaders were (or are) in their chosen fields however if we look deeper, we discover that their roles were challenging and they often failed to achieve what they set out to do. So what sets them apart? PERSISTENCE! Take Thomas Edison as an example – he tried 10,000 times before succeeding in creating the lightbulb.

What I’ve also discovered is those who resonate most with me in terms of their persistence and success, tend to use similar approaches. 

Here are some important considerations when developing a persistent mindset.

  • The importance of self-efficacy. The belief in your ability to demonstrate behaviours necessary to achieve results. I’ve learnt that if I felt strongly about something, I will do all I can to make it happen.
  • Self Awareness. Great leaders look differently at their mistakes and use feedback to adjust their strategies. I made so many mistakes when leading schools, however, came to understand that this was important and made me more determined to learn and grow.
  • ‘True’ self-confidence. This differs from leaders who are defined by ego. I’m referring to those who are passionate and have the ability to influence others in a positive way. Having a clear sense of my WHY, allowed me to always lead with energy and enthusiasm.
  • A commitment to an employee’s development. Knowing explicitly what team members need and doing all it takes to make sure their needs come before their own. I often used the phrase ‘leaders eat last’ to demonstrate that I was committed to looking after the needs of my team and demonstrated persistence in doing so.

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