“The Growth Issues Leaders Need To Overcome”

Every leader has issues

Every leader has issues they are facing in their life. As I always say, no one is exempt from challenges. Challenges will hit each and everyone of us. The main thing will be our response. You see, life is all about responses. How you respond to life’s pressing issues will either make or break you.

Without issues, life will rather remain a major bore instead of being and remaining an adventure it is in the first place. Life is challenging. Life is very difficult. How would you know your strengths and weaknesses if life does not throw some of these punches? Exactly my point.

I believe life should be teamwork. It must be a group project. Yes life is a project. Without strong support systems, life will always remain a very difficult mystery. Each and every person on leadership has issues they are going through. They have the issues they need to overcome in order for them to remain effective and successful on their leadership work.

If this things are not well taken on, leadership would be a burden to many leaders. Leadership is supposed to be enjoyable but if a leader does not deal with the following issues, leadership will remain a pain and a burden. The following are the issues leaders need to deal with and resolve before it’s too late:

• Self-sufficiency

As I always say, no man is an Ireland. People need one another. How much more about leaders? Leadership is teamwork at the end of the day. It involves dealing and working with people. How can one succeed if they lead in isolation? Let alone self sufficiency.

Most of the times, leaders who are self sufficient die before time. Why do they die before time? You would find that the burden was too much. You would find that they were carrying a lot on their shoulders instead of letting other people in.

You see, independence is a liability. Independent people hardly enjoy the ministry of other people. You must check, independent people age quickly. They get old quickly. What is the cause of all this? They don’t depend on anything but themselves. As a result, the workload become too much and later on depress them. Because they are known to be self sufficient, they can’t ask for help but deep down they are suffering.

Self sufficiency is very dangerous I tell. You need people as much as they need you. Life was created to be like that. If that was not the truth, you would have been born alone. You could have ran all solo but no, God saw a need to have millions and even billions of people on the face of the earth. Because of this fact, we remain connected.

You need people you can let your hair down and be vulnerable on regular basis. Let others in and depend on them, not only for advice but simply for their presence. As you do this, effective and great shall your leadership be. Light shall the burden on your shoulders be.

• Over-responsibility

Define yourself and your role in the organisation so that you can be found doing what only you can do and let others take ownership of their lives. When you are aware of your responsibility, you will successfully avoid burnouts.

Know and understand your responsibilities and stick to that. This way, others can be free to be themselves and be found effective in their tasks. When you avoid over responsibility as a leader, you will be effective and productive in your task, which is already very tough. Leadership is not at all easy. So avoid so many things you are involved in and focus on only what matters, which is the proper execution of your duties.

• Inability to confront

Invest your time and energy in developing your personal strengths and your people’s strengths rather than developing your weaknesses. Sometimes when you develop your weaknesses, you are enhancing and strengthening them. Focus on your strengths and develop them further. Stretch them and your weaknesses will automatically be weakened.

Build what is strong and manage what is weak. When you are managing what is weak, all you are doing is keeping them under your control. When they are under your control, they won’t be able to immobilise you therefore. They won’t really toss you back and forth. Keep them into subjection through management.

Character weaknesses are meant to be transformed. Yes, you can transform your character. This is not the final you. There is a version of yourself that is waiting for you. It is time to become the better version of you. You can replace all your weakness with the strengths. Yes you can do that. You just need to know how. The next version of your life is waiting for you. The better and best you is waiting for you on the other side.

Character weaknesses can be transformed and changed unlike the wired things like gifts and talents. These are fixed and cannot be changed. These are permanently ingrained in us. We were born with them. You cannot therefore remove bluetooth from the phone therefore. The skills you can learn. The weaknesses you can remove and unlearn but gifts and talents are fixed. You can only develop and expand them. You can only grow them. You can supplement them with the skills.

Conclusion

Restoration of the leadership passion

There are many things that burn down leaders in all walks of life. Leadership is tough but the moment you learn to avoid certain things, you will enjoy it once again. Your passion and love for it will be restored. Revisit the same post again and again so that you don’t forget whatever we have mentioned.

Let’s recap, what are the growth issues leaders need to deal with and resolve before it’s too late? Here they are:

• Over-responsibility;
• Self-sufficiency;
• Inability to confront

Stay tuned for posts and article like these. We will be producing so much of the leadership content going forward. Just put the work into practice and your life will never be the same again. Remember, it works if you work it. Till we meet again in the next post. Peace.