How to Empower Everyone to Lead

Do you believe that everyone can be a leader?

It’s important leaders ensure their employees have ample understanding of the mechanics of their job and the technical skills it takes to carry it out successfully, but it also means empowering employees to lead––no matter what their position is.

Leading doesn’t look the same for everyone. Sometimes there are bigger responsibilities than others. But self-leadership is an important quality. 

What if your employees aren’t all natural leaders? They likely aren’t. But that doesn’t mean they can’t learn to develop leadership strengths in all areas of your business.

Keep reading to see a few simple ways to empower everyone to become a leader in your organization.

1. Delegate and hand over ownership.

The first step in developing leadership is to give your employees responsibility. They can’t very well develop confidence or skill if they are not given the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to get a job done.

It can be hard to hand over important tasks for fear that they’ll get dropped or done incorrectly, but it’s key. Nothing makes an employee feel more belittled than taking back a job you delegated to them, or going over their head and completing it before they were given the chance.

Think of every delegation as a direct way to develop the leadership skills your business needs and your employees deserve!

2. Communicate your company’s mission and vision at all levels.

Everyone, from the CEO to the entry-level employee, needs to know and understand your company’s mission in order to instill a sense of leadership.

It’s been shown that employees who feel connected to their workplace’s vision have a deeper sense of commitment, ownership and trust with leadership. Why wouldn’t every business want that?

Sometimes, we reserve such staunch beliefs for those “higher up” in the company. But if our role as a leader is to train up more leaders, why wouldn’t we want committed and supportive employees from the ground up?

More importantly, employees want to feel like they have a say and role in shaping their company’s mission into the future. And if they have that, their “buy in” is that much stronger as they develop their leadership skills.

3. Recognize efforts and results.

From the time our teachers praised us in elementary school, we have learned the value of feeling noticed and recognized. The same is true for your employees.

When you choose to pause and acknowledge their efforts, successes (and even failures so long as you develop a clear path forward) and growth, you are setting the foundation for strong leadership. 

Think about it: an employee goes above and beyond when they didn’t have to and you acknowledge it. Would that employee be more likely to do it again? Yes!

Even better, that employee is likely to take more initiative, try new things, and feel confident that your leadership is alongside them.

Developing future leaders is a huge part of being a leader yourself. Tapping into full human potential can take trial and error, but the result will be a stronger, more committed organization! Want support strengthening leaders within your organization? Send me a message!