Course 2, Discussion 2: Lead by example

@Rubylistens22

Yes! I am also one to say encouragement and slight adjustments over criticism any day!

@Hope

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

Two key points that really stood points. Effective leaders don't brag about achievements and don't always get credit for their work. These two points are often undervalued in leadership but definitely make a huge difference.

@richuyulin

This is so interesting, thank you for sharing!

@Hope

Through the recent discussion, I discovered that I possess natural leadership qualities that enable me to encourage myself and others to exceed our perceived limits. Despite my tendency to overthink situations, I have learned how to effectively delegate tasks and break down objectives into achievable steps from the time management course smaller, more a. This approach helped me overcome any obstacles that arose. By setting a good example and prioritizing communication, I will inspire my team to remain focused on the present and work collaboratively towards our shared goals. Overall, this exercise allowed me to hone my strengths and recognize my leadership potential.

@broadfemmelovelive, I really liked reading that although you have a tendency to overthink you "have learned how to effectively delegate tasks and break down objectives into achievable steps from the time management course." That is no little feat! 😊 We are here to grow!

@Hope

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

I learned that while I like being a leader, I also love receiving input from other people.

@jadenrjc7

I think as a leader you have to listen to others input as they may have ideas you didn't consider. So I think that's a great quality to have!

Both people I picked for this exercise had good and negative qualities when it came to leadership, which to me shows that a leader isn't and can't be perfect and needs to realize this. It's imporant to know your team so you know how to manage them and where to place them so that one persons weakness is anothers strength and by all working together as a whole we can be as close to perfect as humans get. I also learned a couple different leadership keys from working as a camp counselor - one of which was praise in public and negative in private. Embarassment isn't a motivator. Another imporant key I learned is freedom with responsibility -which means you need to trust your team to do what they're supposed to be doing until they aren't, and then you need to re-evaluate why its happening as a team.

What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

First of all, I learned that leadership requires self-leadership which is basically reflection about ourselves.

Second, I learned that I've been trying to emulate certain qualities in someone I looked up to as a child while trying not to be like someone else who was in my life at the time. I've been pretty good at both, but I have overcompensated when it comes to being better than the person I did not want to be like. This has formed part of my personality and I have to live with it, good or bad. Knowing about it and how it affects my leadership in terms of strengths and weaknesses is important in the sense of point number 1.

@MagnificentSunrise

good answer, good job! <3

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

I was reminded of why I wanted to become a leader and to continue to tap into that passion for people. She was so right about the leaders I look up to always going to bat for their people when the time came for that.

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

Through this exercise I learned about what I value and uphold in others and myself. This includes personal or self awareness and external awareness of others. I read a quote recently that said "we criticize others not because they are human and have faults but rather faults different then our own." I think that is true but also people may criticize for faults they do possess and don't like either. I also read a quote that said "do not let praise get to your head and criticism to your heart." When I examine myself, I try to reflect honestly about my strengths and weaknesses where I can. Then I can be willing to learn further in both capacities. I find that being humble and the ability to listen intently where it's appropriate matters. I also seek to learn from those wiser and very capable in avenues I'm moving toward, which also adds benefit.

✒️ Respond to one of your peers in this thread

@Nvlmi

Both the quotes you mentioned makes complete sense Nvlmi but the second one is more deep. Short and holds the essence completely.

It takes courage and a willingness to grow to introspect and gain deeper insights into oneself and I would like to appreciate you for that. All the best !!

@Hope
I am not nearly close enough to the person I want to be. I am strong, but I have let that take over to a detrimental level of the other characteristics. I have not pushed myself forward for a while and it's put me more towards the person I never want to be. The important ways, I guess I am who I want to be but the strength to push through that hasn't been used. Yet.

@SnowTabby

Underlying it all, I hear how you have been introspecting with yourself. Hope you are able to find someone who is able to journey with you in this season of discovery. Wishing you nothing but the best and hoping that you will be gentler with yourself :)

@AnnaSilverberg

Thank you so much for this thorough insight - I look forward to reading more of your contributions :D

@AnnaSilverberg You have written such a thorough response! Thank you, it was very informative to know what you think about it and I completely agree with you!

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

"You can't effectively lead others until you know how to lead yourself."

Thiss emphasizes that self-leadership is a crucial foundation for effective leadership of others ♡ By cultivating self-awareness, personal growth, emotional intelligence, goal setting (with systems), self discippline, and well being, I can develop the necessariiy qualities and skills to inspire and guide my team towards success.

@TabbyCat97

I completely agree, if I cannot lead myself, I cannot lead and or guide others.

@Hope

Through this activity I have learned what attributes I value in leaders I have met - organisation, wisdom and determination. These are attributes I see myself trying to cultivate in myself and I should work on harder as this is my image of success in leadership. I have also acknowledged characteristics I dislike such as arrogance, authoritarianism and apathy - all things I will try and steer away from!

@Hope

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise? Have always strived to be a servant leader and what was being taught resonated well with me. I am still a work in progress but this discussion gave me some affirmation of knowing that I am somewhat on the path of growth.

@JLisjustlistening

That's great this has helped you see that you're on the right track for your personal growth.

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

I learned that I need to take the first steps before waiting for someone else to do it first. I would just be a follower at that point. I also learned that I need to be persistent with my practice because I can't learn my qualities and not put work into using them and expect things to work out.

@Jenna

Great response! 💛

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

That the people that I visualise as being highly inspirational have always led through examples, and through great Empathy, understanding and communication skills to help people around them reach a better place, and not just reach a particular goal

@Hope

✒️ What did you learn about yourself through the given exercise?

Interesting that I think the best leadership encourages self-reliance, asking for guidance and help when needed, hearing what others say and suggest, but if I have the responsibility for the success or failure, then that task success relies on me. How do I best achieve the goal???

✒️ Respond to one of your peers in this thread

@CharlieDont37 that is such an intuitive yet ingenious way to approach leadership.

I will definitely be adding that to my set of leadership strategies.

Thanks for sharing it with us!

@Hope this was a really fun exercise!

Self-reflection is something I enjoy doing, especially in this structured manner.
It helps me develop as a person and removes a lot of self-doubt from my everyday life.

Here are some of the leadership-relevant strengths I recognized through the exercise:

1. I am a highly objective person. I can very easily put aside my feelings about a person or an issue and focus on the objective facts of the matter.
   This can at least somewhat minimize bias or prejudice in my decision-making when in a team setting.
   
   
2. I am also a very practical person. I like to do the work myself at least once before I delegate or assign it forward.
   This gives me the unique experience of knowing first-hand, the task I've given someone and what it takes to complete it.
   
   
3. Lastly, I'm an introvert. Now this will go in both, the strengths and the weaknesses column and I'll give reasons for both.
   Being an introvert is something that allows me to remain objective and impartial when I lead. It makes me value each team member's input equally and not have an internal conflict when having to disagree with a "friend" in the team.
   
   

Now here are some of the weaknesses:

1. I can be impatient at times, especially when a team member is not able to keep the pace I've been working at.
   My first instinct is to just do that work myself instead of waiting for them.
   And I understand that raises issues and I can't go around doing everyone's tasks when I'm in a leadership role so I do try to control myself and help the member complete their task more efficiently instead of just doing it for them.
   
   
2. I can sometimes come off as indecisive, especially to new team members, because I like to get everyone's input before giving my opinion or making a decision. This is something I do by design, it is not a mistake or consequence.
   I like to keep my opinion to myself until I've gone around the room just so that team members don't feel pressured to agree with me.
   I think this is a good practice in essence, but I am working on being able to better articulate myself so I can still maintain a confident presence without imposing my opinion on everyone else.
   
   
3. Last but not least, I'm an introvert. Now as previously mentioned, there are some positives to it. But it isn't without consequences either.
   It can often make me unapproachable to people. New team members can often be intimidated to come talk to me at first.
   Now this is mitigated once they get to know me or have worked with me for a while but it still is worth mentioning. I do try my best to show team members that I'm always available though and most of them do open up very quickly.

@Mahad2804 I loved reading through your answer to this thread! You were very detailed and I can tell that you took this exercise very seriously 😎 Great job

@Mahad2804 I really liked your approach to being practical -- it can be very easy to do a role yourself, and then not want to delegate it because you are afraid of shifting responsibilities to other members, but you seem to have kept in mind the importance of sharing tasks and teaching new roles to succeed!

@beck1

So glad you gained a bit of confidence about yourself, I look forward to working more with you in the future!

@beck1 Hey Beck! That sounds good. I'm sure you're a great leader!

@Hope

I learned from this exercise that I must trust myself and believe in myself before putting my trust in others. This will build a base of confidence that one can lean on during difficult times in a team environment. Additionally, I noticed that I am good at having patience and empathy with people, but I tend to write them off if they don't communicate with me or hesitate to give feedback. I need to learn to reach out to people and not hesitate in providing feedback to anyone on my team. This is a key foundation for building trust. The phrase "How others experience you" gave me a lot to reflect on.

This is what I learned: I'm responsible, I take accountability for my acts. People can approach me if they have a query or need assistance. I value the perspectives and insights of my team. If there is a problem, I work hard to solve it.

@Hope Thank you for your post!

The person who encouraged me in pursuing a leadership role is empathic, compassionate, supportive, professional and sets boundaries clearly. The person I don't want to be liquidates people, doesn't listen to others' opinions, and command everyone without seeking/giving feedback.
I am compassionate and supportive but I need to work on how to express empathy more and how to be stronger on setting boundaries

@Hope

Through this exercise, I learned it’s important to have people that you will lead by example by because those people will help you demonstrate good qualities. Those good qualities can then be used to teach others and inspire them to lead themselves in the right direction. It’s a continuous cycle, that’s why I having a team of people that you trust and look up to and have people that you look up to at work, at school, or in the community that will help you build a good lifestyle with positive traits.