Are you considering working your way up into a leadership role? Perhaps you’ve been in a mid-level role for a while, and it’s time for the next challenge. This can be tough to achieve without the right knowledge. However, with the right knowledge and some tactics and strategy, it is possible to give yourself the boost you need. That’s why this article will explore six ways people can give themselves a competitive edge when working their way up into leadership roles. So, read on to learn more about this valuable topic.
You should consider going back to study, as undertaking further education can make you an expert in your field. For example, if you work in the education sector, you could undertake a Doctorate in K-12 Leadership to give you a deeper understanding of educational systems and policy. This can then be leveraged to wrangle a promotion or assist you in applying for leadership roles.
Don’t underestimate the weight a postgraduate qualification has when applying for leadership roles or trying to work your way up the chain. At the very least, it shows that you’re deeply committed to your field, passionate about learning, and smart enough to manage this level of education. This should serve you in good stead with management, who often take a kindly view of these factors.
Furthermore, when you study for a postgraduate qualification, you will meet a range of people with different skills and expertise. By mixing with your fellow students and tutors or lecturers, you’ll make connections that could prove invaluable when it comes to reaching a leadership role. You never know whom you meet and where they might work or what hiring decisions they’ll be involved in in the future.
This is an excellent way to demonstrate that you’re a leader in your industry. Leaders are never passive workers, waiting for the next instruction from management. Instead, they seize the bull by the horns and take the initiative. If you see something that needs fixing, fix it, but ensure that you check in with your manager to remain transparent so they have visibility of the task.
Proactivity is a key leadership skill, and like any other skill, it can be learned over time and with practice. Your management will be impressed with your proactive attitude, and when combined with the other tips and hacks in this article, it should go a long way towards netting you that plum promotion. Proactive team members inspire their colleagues and demonstrate that when people roll their sleeves up and do the work, results follow.
Everyone makes mistakes from time to time—to err is human, but to edit is divine. The key learning here is what you do after you’ve made a mistake. If you make the same mistakes over and over, you’re not demonstrating what it takes to stand out as a leader in your chosen field. However, if you learn from your mistakes and apply that learning to your work moving forward, you’re demonstrating true leadership.
So, if you do make a mistake, own up. If you can demonstrate that you’ve learned and transmute the mistake into the gold of success or progress, you’re showing leadership potential. Good leaders admit mistakes but then fix their errors and amend things to be even better than the first cut, and if you can demonstrate this skill, you will stand out as a leader. This is a great tip for emerging leaders or even those who’ve been in leadership roles for a while and who have made some mistakes already. By showing this capability to learn from past mistakes, you’re standing out as a leader already.
Another key trait of leaders is that they are always curious. They demonstrate open-mindedness and are interested in new ways of working. Curiosity demonstrates a warm, open, and interested mindset and allows for innovation and breaking down barriers between teams and departments. A leader should be curious about solutions, new ideas, and different ways of achieving outcomes. Demonstrating curiosity in the workplace is one way that you can stand out as a leader and show that you’ve got what it takes when it comes to management or other senior roles in your company. A curious leader asks open questions, allows others time to give input, asks the experts in the teams, and values their input, which inspires others and permits them to try new initiatives.
One other way that you can stand out as a leader is by demonstrating effective problem-solving. The best products and services solve problems for customers and clients, so by honing your problem-solving skills, you’re showing true leadership potential. You should approach problems with curiosity, as we’ve described above, and with an open mind. Approach problems from different angles, considering all the possible ways you can crack something open and solve it. Leaders can solve problems by fostering collaboration and communication within their teams, allowing others to get their hands dirty and achieve a common outcome together.
If you can demonstrate excellent problem-solving skills, you’ll definitely stand out as a leader in your industry.
All excellent leaders need to practice and hone their self-awareness. Knowing yourself inside and out and exactly how you react to people, workplace situations, and challenges that pop up is a must-have for any corporate leadership role. You will constantly be challenged in your work by either other leaders, team members, or situations at work. Being able to calmly reflect and learn from your responses and reactions to these situations is incredibly essential for keeping a cool head and learning from your mistakes, as we shared above. Role-modeling self-awareness is also an excellent thing to do, as you demonstrate through example, which people will see and be inspired by, and a great leader should always inspire their staff.
This informative article has shared six key ways to stand out as a leader in your industry. No matter the space you work in, these tips are universal. Definitely consider further study, as a postgraduate qualification can give you the edge you need to stand out in the crowd. Furthermore, the other tips in this article will help you to emerge as a new leader, so don’t neglect these, either.
