April 2023
5 things business leaders do to promote business growth via their teams
We all have different leadership skills to be celebrated, but here are 5 things I see growth minded leaders do grow their business using their teams performance.
From the desk of Skye Barbour.
Oxford, United Kingdom.
Creator of Leadership Desing™️ Evolving business leaders and their teams to own their unique powers and approach growth with ease.
‘Leadership’ is a buzzword tossed around a lot, but what does it actually look like?
And more importantly, how do you actually feel like a leader?
For so many, it feels out of reach or a role reserved for ‘big’ business owners only.
I want to start by being really clear that my approach to Leadership is that there is no one size fits all.
The qualities of a leader all differ and are delivered in different ways, depending on a whole host of variables.
I want to celebrate all of that, and encourage you to embrace your uniqueness when it comes to leading.
DO NOT let anyone try to put you in a tiny leadership box that makes you feel like you have to act or be a certain way - that is a sure-fast road to inauthentic leadership that’ll be exhausting to sustain and eventually come crumbling down.
So, whilst this blog will not support a label being stuck on you and send you off to lead your business into merry success……
….it will absolutely help you pick up more awareness of yourself and the type of leader you were born to be!
1. They have awareness of self and a continuous improvement mindset when it comes to development.
Some of my most successful clients and business leaders are those that want to understand themselves as a means to leading others. They have a total awareness of their unique qualities and never want to stop developing their understanding of how this enables them to lead authentically.
It’s too easy to take a leadership profiling quiz and convince ourselves they have got us bang on….and off we trot to….do what exactly?
The most evolutionary business leaders know this doesn’t cut the mustard. Yes, they can pull out elements of truth for any tool, but how does it actually fit and represent them in their own world?
And how does it mold and influence how they run their business?
Most team members would be emotionally intelligent enough to spot inauthentic vibes a mile off!! Nobody is winning any prizes for trying to be anyone but themselves when it comes to leading a team!
SO they show up as themselves. For the good, the bad and the quirky. Choosing a solid leadership team to fill in the gaps of skill or character they may not possess!
Leadership design™️ is the method I have developed to help business leaders to fully understand who they are as a leader. It has helped countless business owners take their understanding of self to new levels and in a way that feels true to them.
2. They communicate and show vulnerability to build trust!
What is one of the key qualities to having a team that goes above and beyond for you?
Trust.
Trust that runs so deep that your team know you have their back with you having to say it all the time. That they don't have to question your crazy entrepreneurial thoughts and ideas, because they know you have the business's and their best interest at heart.
Trust is built and nurtured in so many ways, but some of the key foundations I have seen from my work are; communication & vulnerability.
Neither thing comes super easily to business leaders, especially when they have grown their business from the ground up and now feel like they are handing parts of their baby over to someone else!
But when you are able to open up and constructively communicate what is going on in your mind, those around you start to see who you really are.
It’s OK not to be OK!
The best evolutionary leaders I have worked with know they do not have to know it all, be it all, or do it all themselves.
The reason they started to build a team was to plug the knowledge, skill or talent gaps within their business!!
They own it, standing in their power for what they are amazing at, and allowing others to flourish within their zones of genius.
And when the weight of business gets too much, as it often can - they talk about it.
Articulating things in a way that means the team doesn't have to try to connect the dots. Sharing their reality and the impact, allowing the team to lean deeper into caring about why they do what they do.
After all, we are talking about people.
Human beings with feelings, empathy and compassion……let's not treat everyone like robots!!
3. They understand the people behind the roles for elevated business performance
Our people are our greatest asset.
If you can find the best fit for you and your business, then your business will hum like a well-oiled machine!
But this goes beyond finding people who can just do the job and have a good attitude.
I call this People Dynamics™ - how you understand each individual; the strengths, opportunities, style, talent and how that compliments or works with other individuals in your team.
The elevation happens when you have nothing but confidence that your teams can pull together in any given situation and mainly, in your absence....
..and not just to maintain the business for you, but to actively grow it!
4. They create a culture of permission
Permission is a HUGE part of developing high performing teams. When a team is thriving, owning their responsibilities, making shizz happen and coming with endless ideas and opportunities…..it’s because they have your permission.
But permission goes deeper than ‘Yes you can do that’ or ‘I really want you to try it’.
It’s about how you encourage and respond to new tasks or opportunities being tried.
When your team knows you trust them to act in the best interest of you and the business, even if they get it wrong, they will learn for next time…….
……providing they know you aren’t going to fly off of the handle for a genuine error!
They feel safe to try, confident to come to you with ideas and happy to admit when things haven’t gone to plan.
And when you are happy to let them try, give praise where it is due and offer advice for next time - it’s a winning formula.
5. They are masters at ‘nipping it in the bud’
This might seem like a teenie tiny thing, but almost 100% of the leaders I have worked with struggle with it at first.
But when they gain their confidence, it changes the game for their relationship with their team and the results they get.
Things will go wrong, mistakes will be made, tasks will be carried out in a way you would have approach differently and I am confident in saying, people will annoy you at times!
That is the reality of life and business with a team!
BUT it’s what you do with all of the above that takes you from ‘pissed off or disgruntled business owner’ to ‘nipping it in the bud expert leader’.
I call it the 5% rule. If a problem at its total worse is 100% - laptop throwing, door slamming, hands in the air, tears streaming kind of vibe. Then 5% is a niggle.
It’s a ‘oh that's odd’ or ‘maybe that doesn’t feel right’ kind of level.
That’s when you nip it in the bud.
Before it is even an issue.
It’s just a chat vs a performance conversation.
For instance, your new team member doesn’t say ‘goodbye’ or ‘I’m logging off’ at the end of their day, and it makes you feel funny. It’s a ‘Hey Flossy, could you just make sure you drop me a note when you are done for the day with a little update. I wasn’t sure you had gone yesterday and I didn’t want to message after hours for an update’.
Bish bash bosh.
Nipped.
The best evolutionary leaders are nippy AF, because the flip side of not being nippy is waiting for something to really become an issue that quite frankly pisses you off every day!
Enjoy this blog series?
Let me know!
Email me at hello@skyebarbour.com
Ready to discuss how you can also go from doing it all to creating time to do what you actually want to be doing?
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