The Key to Employee-Empowering Leadership

What is a true leader?

As a business consultant for over twenty years, I’ve seen many different kinds of leaders – some highly effective and some less so. One of the key traits of a true leader is the ability to get things done through other people. If no one is following you, even if you have the title, you’re not a leader.

Effective leaders are the ones who empower others. They value their people as business partners, recognizing that they’ve surrounded themselves with these people for a reason.

Steve Jobs famously said, “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and tell them what to do; we hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” To me, that is the epitome of viewing your people as true business partners and not as subordinates to be bossed around.

What true leadership embodies is trust. If we surround ourselves with smart people developing new ideas, then we need to trust our instincts and recognize that we surrounded ourselves with them for a reason. That means sometimes we have to get out of our comfort zone and try new things. Exemplary leaders empower people.

Often, when I’ve seen business leaders fail, it has been because they struggle to let go and feel like they need to control everything. But it’s not enough to simply trust. When you surround yourself with good people bringing good ideas, there are going to be times you need to take calculated risks.

 Leaders need to be able to look at these opportunities and decide that calculated risk is a risk they’re willing to take to grow their business. Too many business leaders get into a trap where they’re afraid to get outside their personal comfort zone, and that is not a place from which a business can grow.

Oftentimes, I find that owners won’t take a risk because, deep down, they don’t trust the idea or the person that brought the idea. That’s why risk taking, and trust go hand in hand.

Ultimately, leadership comes down to creating a set of ideals within an organization, putting the values and goals in place with the assistance of trusted advisors and then inspiring them to go achieve the results.

 However, that is easier said than done. And that is where Meta-Brain comes in. Tomorrow’s leaders must develop the skills above and be on the top of their game to keep their people successful. The leader with a Meta-Brain knows they must confront the thoughts and misconceptions holding them back from being the leader their people need. In order to do that they need to unlearn, then reprogram their brains for success. 

To be our truest self for our people, we must first uncover what is holding us back. A good coach, coupled with Meta-Brain technology will help tomorrow’s leaders hyper-learn the skills needed for success in the face paced world we live in. What is holding you back?

Are you ready to become a Meta-Brain?