What is self-leadership?

Self-leadership refers to the ability to influence yourself to achieve your personal and professional goals and objectives. This typically involves helping the organisation you work for to be successful as well. Self-leadership is not only a necessity for us as leaders and managers but also for our workforce. To ensure this idea is at the forefront of your company culture, you and your employees need a good understanding of who you are, where you want to go and what you can accomplish along the way.

The influence of self-leadership

The benefits and influence of promoting self-leadership at work can’t be understated.

Whether employees are working from home or in the office, self-leadership is essential. According to a report from Forbes, those who demonstrate self-leadership skills performed better, were more effective at solving conflict and were more likely to be seen as a leader at work. Moreover, these behaviours can help employees be productive, better manage stress, adapt to change and set and achieve goals.

The main benefits of self-leadership behaviours at work include:

1) Improving your efficiency and productivity
Employees who have internalised self-leadership skills are typically more likely to manage their time effectively and stay organised. This helps individuals maintain efficiency and productivity throughout even the most complex tasks, which is a boon for your business.

2) Building stronger relationships at work
An unexpected benefit of self-leadership is its ability to grow relationships in the workplace. As leaders, we understand how the right skills and behaviours can lead to more respect from our workforce. The same goes for your employees. Their work ethic and dedication to the job will be highly respected and appreciated by those around them — paving the way for strong and trusting co-worker relationships.

What is self-leadership?

3) Keeping you motivated and accountable
It’s easy for anyone to feel unmotivated or disengaged at work when faced with challenges. However, those with self-leadership skills tend to have a growth mindset, which means they’re inclined to hold themselves accountable and stay motivated to push through complicated tasks at work.

4) Inspiring others to follow your lead
A report from Zippia found that only 10% of people are natural leaders. Luckily, self-leadership skills can quickly turn into great leadership. Exhibiting these behaviours is likely to have a positive influence on you, as well as those around you — resulting in more proactive and productive co-workers. This is an effective way to promote strong leadership throughout the organisation.

Overall, with the right skills and behaviours in place, your company can benefit from increased productivity and high-quality work. The most important self-leadership skills to promote as a leader in your organisation include:

• Decision-making
• Empathy
• Motivation
• Self-awareness
• Accountability

If you or your workers don’t already have the self-leadership skills needed in the workplace, the good news is they can quickly be learned and implemented. Self-leadership training courses exist to help you become the best version of yourself at work — for your personal benefit and the benefit of the organisation.

Contact us to find out more about our self-leadership course and how it can help you become an empowered and productive contributor to your organisation.