Some Useful Habits of a Leader. Part 2
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Time for the second part of our article on some of the useful habits that a leader should have.
4. Think Positive
You know that great phrase, “Those who want, look for ways, those who don’t want, look for excuses.” In other words, you should see ways for developing and improving your life where others see problems. Try to take a pause before any problem and ask yourself some questions: In what way will solving this problem help me? And is it actually a problem? Is this situation so bad? What can be even worse? After a while, this will become a habit. But don’t forget about showing your confidence and positive attitude on the outside as well – smile! It says it all. It’s difficult to quarrel with a person who is smiling.
This is perhaps the most difficult of all habits to cultivate, because it greatly depends on your character traits, such as positive thinking, self-confidence. But you should try.
5. Ask Questions
How often do you ask questions and listen to answers? When we talk about leadership, however, it’s one of the main skills that you need for success. Without asking questions you won’t be able to understand the needs of the people who follow you. In theory, leadership is a service to people. People will follow you, if you satisfy their needs.
Some people tend to guess a lot about everything and think that everything is absolutely clear. And how often does it turn out that what they imagined was different from the actual result. Every person’s world view is restricted by his/her experience. The person you are talking to may not have the same experience as you; therefore you should ask more questions to find out in detail: What he/she means, feels, or thinks... And listen closely to his/her answers, because a side effect of listening is that people will trust in you. But it’s quite a different story...
6. Learn Constantly
How do you perceive learning? As something necessary for development and career growth? Or just some training you go to, which are interesting but whose content you forget about in a couple of days? What book in your field have you read recently?
I propose that you perceive learning as an indispensable part of life. You eat, sleep, breathe. And it goes the same with learning When you see something new that draws your attention, try to learn something about it. Once you hear a new term, try to remember it and read about it on the Internet. But when you learn something new, don’t attempt to finalize your world view – “That’s it! Now I know it.” The world is multifaceted.
But learning is not only about getting to know new terms, it’s also about attempting to improve what you can already do. Believe me, it is so captivating that you will never stop learning something new. Only don’t tell yourself, “I am what I am, and don’t need to change – it’s my unique personality.” You should forget this philosophy; it is like justifying your laziness. It is the way your brain works: the more knowledge and experience you get, the broader your general outlook becomes, and it is easier for you to solve non-routine tasks. And a person with a broad outlook is always interesting and attracting people, provided he/she wants it.