Tag Leading Yourself

How to Lead Yourself

Steve Keating 2 Comments

Most leaders have had less than 5 hours of formal training in their entire careers. Upon ascending to a leadership role they assume that their title or position makes them a leader. That is by far the most common mistake people new to a leadership role make.

It is also one of the most costly mistakes they will ever make. It costs them the opportunity to truly have a positive impact on the people they could actually lead. It costs the organization untold amounts of productivity and turnover. It costs the people who miss the chance to work for an authentic leader the opportunity to reach their full potential. Perhaps to even develop into authentic leaders themselves.

The second most common mistake by new leaders is they waited until they were in a leadership position to learn to lead. That’s true even though they had the opportunity to practice their leadership skills on a real live human being 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The person they could, and should, have been practicing with is themselves.

Authentically leading others is an awesome responsibility. It requires a completely different set of skills than managing a business. It requires a high degree of integrity, excellent communication skills and unparalleled judgment. All of that takes time, effort and practice to master.

The best way to acquire and develop the skill set of an Authentic Leader is to practice leading yourself exceptionally well. Before you attempt to lead others.

If your goal is simply to earn a chance to lead others then you can skip the rest of this post. If your goal is to truly lead, to have a positive impact on the lives of the people you lead, to build a legacy as a difference maker, then read on. Because this post is for you.

Leading yourself well involves key principles. Each is unique, but together they offer you the chance to make a difference in your life and, later, in the lives of those you lead.

• Self-awareness. Understand your strengths, weaknesses, values, and goals. Regularly reflect on your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors to gain insight into yourself.

• Setting goals. Establish clear, achievable objectives that align with your values and long-term aspirations. Break them down into smaller, manageable tasks to maintain motivation and track progress.

• Time management. Prioritize tasks based on importance and urgency. Use tools like calendars, to-do lists, or productivity apps to organize your schedule and ensure you allocate time effectively to different activities.

• Continuous learning. Cultivate a growth mindset and seek opportunities for personal and professional development. Read books, attend seminars, take courses, and learn from experiences to expand your knowledge and skills.

• Self-discipline. Develop habits and routines that support your goals and values. Practice self-control and perseverance, even when faced with challenges or distractions.

• Emotional intelligence. Understand and manage your emotions effectively. Develop empathy and interpersonal skills to navigate relationships and communicate assertively.

• Adaptability. Be flexible and open to change. Embrace uncertainty and learn to adapt your plans and strategies as circumstances evolve.

• Resilience. Build resilience to bounce back from setbacks and failures. View challenges as opportunities for growth and learning, and maintain a positive attitude even in difficult times.

• Accountability. Take responsibility for your actions and decisions. Hold yourself to high standards of integrity and ethics, and learn from mistakes to improve future performance.

By integrating these principles into your daily life, you can effectively lead yourself. You can not only earn a leadership position but you can earn the right to truly lead others. When you help even one other person accomplish great personal and professional success you won’t merely have helped to change that person, you will have potentially changed the world.

Want more LeadToday? Many of you know I’m very active on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. I post a lot of free content there but I also post 6-10 minute videos two or three times a week. These videos are focused on principles of leadership and life. They are “uncommon” common sense topics designed to help people push themselves to their full potential. Every video is available to subscribers who invest $4.99 a month for their future success. If you’re willing to push yourself towards the life you want and deserve my videos may just be the extra nudge you need to get there. Find your way over to X and follow me there. Once you’ve followed me you can subscribe on a month by month basis just by clicking the subscribe button. Remember, an investment in yourself ALWAYS pays dividends! You’ll find my timeline here: twitter.com/leadtoday

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Lead Yourself Before Leading Others

Steve Keating 3 Comments

I have known a whole lot of people who, for one reason or another, aspired to lead others. Some struggled with leading others because their motives for wanting to lead others were, shall we say, less than noble. 

But a good many of them with absolutely noble motives still struggled because they forgot step one in the process of leading others. That step involves leading yourself exceptionally well. 

As a leader you are the model of successful behavior for the people you lead. They are far more likely to do what you do than they are to do what you say. You can tell them to have a positive attitude but if your attitude is less than stellar then theirs will be too. You can tell them that punctuality is important but if you show up whenever you want then you can expect much the same out of your people.

And please, don’t tell me you’ve “earned the right” to show up whenever you want. Don’t tell me you’ve worked for the special privileges you’ve given yourself. 

As a leader what you have earned is the right to model successful behavior. You’ve earned the right to think, speak and act in the identical manner that you expect your people to think, speak, and act. 

Here’s a reality of leadership that many people miss. If your people have a bad attitude the first place to look for the source of that bad attitude is the mirror. Your people will often reflect the attitudes they see in you. Don’t kid yourself into thinking you can hide it from them. The only person you’re fooling is yourself. 

If you can’t control your emotions, your attitude, your actions, your feelings, your thoughts, and your interactions with other people, then don’t expect anyone who follows you to control any of those things either. 

Leadership is not about telling people what to do or how to behave. It is about showing them. 

If you have aspirations to lead others well then you must first lead yourself exceptionally well. Forgetting that, or convincing yourself that you can skip that step will cause you, and the people you are trying to lead, nothing but trouble. 

Your people will not follow, in fact, they cannot make the emotional attachment required to actually follow. You will fall into the trap of trying to manage them and then the real problems begin. 

Don’t do that to your people or yourself. Learn to lead yourself and you’ll find leading others to be one of the most rewarding experiences of your life. 

First Person Leadership

Steve Keating 11 Comments

If the first person you lead each morning isn’t yourself then you’re likely having challenges leading anyone. 

You must lead yourself exceptionally well before you can lead anyone else. 

Leading yourself exceptionally well means doing what you say you’re going to do. It means controlling your attitude and choosing to do what you must to make certain your attitude is as positive as it can be. 

Leading yourself exceptionally well means thinking before you speak. It means choosing your words in such a way as to lift people up and not tear them down. It means considering the impact of what you say and the even greater impact of how you say it.  

Leading yourself exceptionally well means applying rules and policies equally with all of your people. It also means holding yourself 100% accountable to those same rules and policies. 

To lead yourself exceptionally well you must manage your emotions. You should avoid using your passion as an excuse for losing emotional control. As a leader you must know that you are the model of successful behavior. When you lose control of your thoughts and words you give license to your people to do the same.

To lead yourself exceptionally well you must prioritize those things that are important ahead of the things that are merely urgent. Never sacrifice the long-term growth of your people for the short-term growth of your business. It’s your people who will grow your business for the long haul. 

Leading yourself exceptionally well means realizing that time is one of your greatest assets. It means not allowing anyone or anything to steal that asset from you. It means you won’t use lack of time as an excuse for poor prioritization skills. Decisions on how you invest your time are principle based and focused on your goals and objectives. Leading yourself exceptionally well means never mistaking being busy for being productive.

As a First Person Leader you can never lose site of the fact that if you’re not leading yourself exceptionally well you can’t lead anyone else well either. Check yourself each morning and make sure that you’re meeting the same standards you expect of others. 


It’s how you earn the right to lead!