Leadership is difficult to develop and easy to lose.

Effective leaders never quit “trying” to develop their leadership skills and techniques. The day you quit and think “you’ve arrived” is the day your team begins to dwindle.

It may not be perceptive at first, but is happening.

Leaders must always STRIVE for improvement. This does two things.

1. It shows your team you are always trying to do better. This will translate into THEM always trying to do better.

2. It shows them you care. Fake interest is spotted quickly. But genuine interest in THEM will build genuine trust for you.

To build trust, you have to prove to your team that you are worthy of their trust. This can take on different forms, but will basically boil down to a few methods.

1. You need to prove to them that you are “going to bat for them.”
2. As the leader, you should always keep the organization goals and objectives paramount in making decisions and leading your team. But if necessary, you will step in and correct something that is harming your team, even if it means confronting your superiors.
3. Another way to build trust is to participate in daily activities (the "grunt work") that involves your team.
4. Make an effort to learn about your team members. Some personal things about their life (family, hobbies, etc.).
5. Be consistent in your actions.
6. When possible, include your team members on important decisions.
7. When a team member does something significant, recognize them for their actions!

When you take these steps, you will begin to develop yourself as a successful leader. You may not notice results immediately, but they will become ingrained in your psyche and become a habit and then a lifestyle!

For more information on this topic, please read the complete post on my website at:
http://rthibodeau.com/2019/03/leadership-and-coaching-is-it-the-same-thing-pt-2/