Leadership is often only perceived externally. How do I communicate with others? How can conflicts between employees be resolved constructively? Unfortunately, the idea that leading others requires the ability to lead ones elf is often neglected. What sounds obvious is actually associated with major challenges in practice. In this article, we have summarized what self-leadership means and how important it is for successful leadership.
Self-leadership refers to the ability to consciously influence your own thoughts and feelings, and therefore also your actions, in order to achieve a specific goal. If you want to motivate other people and get them to perform at their best, you should first and foremost be able to do the same for yourself. Three aspects are important for good self-management:
Why is self-leadership so important in leadership? First and foremost, because it makes you a role model for your team and a beacon that everyone can follow. If you can't lead yourself, you can't lead a team or employees. Managers often face challenges in this area because they are looking outwards. They have the task of promoting employees, identifying their strengths and weaknesses and using these in a targeted and profitable way for a team. Self-management means suddenly looking inwards.
Think about the last project that you implemented together with your team. There was probably a final evaluation in which you reflected on what went well and where there was potential for optimization. In this mind game, self-leadership begins when you reflect on your own influence on this project. Success and failure cannot be attributed to external circumstances alone. Self-awareness is the first step towards effective self-management.
Self-management means that you focus your attention on yourself and your personality. Three basic steps are necessary to work on your self-leadership.
1. thinking
By delving into your own thought patterns, you can take a detached look at your thoughts and reflect on them. This enables you to rethink your behaviour in different situations and to recognize room for manoeuvre. Instead of getting angry about a failure, you then have the opportunity to use the capacity you have gained in other ways.
2. feeling
Negative feelings can't be prevented, but they won't get you anywhere either. Instead of focusing your thoughts on failures, you should focus them on the things that work. You can consciously control this process.
3. behavior
There are limits to every performance. You should therefore plan your resources effectively. Only tackle the goals that you can actually achieve, avoid situations that are not good for you and integrate things into your everyday life that are good for you. This also includes exercise, a healthy diet and sufficient sleep.
Our coaches will be happy to help you develop good self-management skills that will also make you more successful in your role as a leader.