By Kalina Terzieva, founder and CEO of My Coaching Brain, the Montreal Coaching Circles, and the magazine "Coaching Made Simple."
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In business, many things can make or break a company. One of the most important things for success is having a solid and effective leadership team. If you want to improve your company's performance, it is important to learn more about the future of leadership and how to use it to your advantage.
What do we need to do to prepare for the future?
In light of the collapses that have surrounded Covid-19, the world is a different place. Many are unsure what normal is any more. But despite their fears, people continue searching for happiness and balance.
For future leaders to be effective in this evolving environment, "being nice" is not enough, and it does not guarantee that this extreme change will not happen. On the contrary, being nice or any other trait is not enough of a solution. Instead, it's all about leadership, innovation and change-making. For the world to change, humanity must lead the change, because we understand the potential of technology and how it can be used.
Here is what we need today:
• Human-centric skills and competencies and human conversations
• A shift in leadership style toward humanity
• Social connections
• Flexibility
• Balance
How will the leader of the future be different from the leader of today?
The answer is that the future leader will be someone who has the courage to live with humanity and not against it. Many leaders today are very good at using their power to push for what they want, even if it means going against the greater good. These same leaders are not willing to give anything in return. However, there are other people who are more willing to work and sacrifice for the greater good; these people will be the next leaders in the future.
Those leaders share several qualities and competencies, such as being:
• Positive
• Empathetic
• Compassionate
• Fair
• Active listeners
• Trustworthy
• Generous
• Inspirational
• Authentic
• Inclusive
These leaders are looking to connect with others and work to make others feel important. They want to help others grow.
Positivity
A positive leader is one who demonstrates by their actions that they care about the people they lead and who encourages others to do the same. As a result, people will start viewing the next generation of leadership as more empathetic and humanistic. In other words, leaders will be more connected to the community and the world around them. This perspective should be the goal of all decision-makers, regardless of the company they work for, and is necessary for success in this changing society.
Empathy
An empathetic leader is one who understands the feelings of others and can connect meaningfully. With all that it entails, making a personal connection is at the heart of empathy, which is necessary for those who want to lead with humanity. Future leadership skills will focus on making connections and leading with empathy rather than with force and confidence.
Compassion And Fairness
The leader of tomorrow is compassionate and fair. In recent years, the concept of leadership has been changed from one that emphasizes order and an elite class of leaders to one that emphasizes humanity's interface and its effects on society. The point of a good leader is not just to manage the best situation possible but to lead the masses in a way that creates the best situation possible—not just a situation that is good enough.
Active Listening
A leader who is actively listening to other people is a leader who is very effective. An effective leader actively listens and is engaged with their fellow leaders and others within their organization. Engagement helps ensure that collective solutions are developed and everyone is contributing. Leadership is visible when listening comes before speaking and becomes integral in the team's life.
Trust
A true leader can be trusted and will trust others. To be a trustworthy leader means connecting with their people and truly modeling the essence of leadership.
Generosity
It’s never too late to give yourself to a cause, even one as simple as serving others. There are many ways to serve our world and make a difference. Every step you can take that benefits someone else helps the world improve. The more aware you are of what's happening, the more you can make a difference. Giving is the purest form of success.
Inspiration
An inspirational leader is one who makes others look forward to going to work. Their people will not feel drained or resentful after work because they are needed and grateful. They are not afraid to inspire and make others think that they could be more than they are. They know no one knows just how much they have simply because they are making a difference.
Authenticity
The future of leadership is engagement and empowerment, and a key step to this is being transparent and genuine. Again, being nice alone is not helpful. Authenticity will be key to the future of leadership; it all starts with one person being true to themself. I hope to see a broad spectrum of real leaders in the future because those who seek truth and embody it, however that looks for them, will help lead us to a better tomorrow.
Inclusivity
Next-generation leaders are inclusive. They will bring new perspectives and ideas to the world, shaping how leaders operate going forward. It will take a diversity of people to bring about the changes we all want. And as our leaders go forward, it will be imperative that we acknowledge and build upon our differences to ensure the future is driven by a variety of people.
The future of leadership is not about being nice; it's about leading with humanity. It means being compassionate, empathetic and understanding of others. It means being a leader who cares about people and wants them to succeed. This will make your company or team thrive long-term because it's what people want from their leaders.
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