Leadership Vitality as an Advantage. Being a brilliant leader involves more than just knowing your stuff. Of course, your technical skills and expertise provide credibility and assurance to colleagues, clients and customers – but what separates you from the rest? How do you stand out from the crowd? What is your “X-Factor” or secret sauce as a leader?
Leaders who have the edge recognise that technical ability is just one component of best-in-class performance.
Most people get this totally wrong. We’re so conditioned to focus acutely on technical know-how and ability, that we forget what leadership is all about. We underestimate the power and influence exuded by great leaders who are intentional about how they show up, day in and day out. These leaders accept that they are role models and guides for those around them. They inspire action, excite colleagues about their careers and the possibilities ahead, promote loyalty and commitment, and infuse others with enthusiasm.
If you want to thrive as an inspirational and impactful leader, take a step back to consider your personal energy and how this manifests mentally, emotionally and physically. The theory of emotional contagion, for example, explains that our energy spills over to others in a positive or detrimental way. Now is the time to consider how your energy as a leader influences the performance of your team members and colleagues.
The first thing we need to do is understand and own our energy, and then channel this effectively.
Let’s explore the three energy forms we fine-tune at Understanding Performance, so you can reflect on those you already pay attention to and those you may want to focus on going forward.
- Performing at your best requires your mental state to be at its peak on a sustainable basis.
As a leader, you need to be on the ball when it comes to making decisions, focused on the priorities, and consistently noticing what’s going on around you.
Get this right and you can operate proactively and effectively. The power of your cognitive function is critical for progress, success and supporting those who look to you for direction and answers. When we neglect our mental state, we are automatically reducing our capacity to reach our full potential.
In order to thrive, we must nurture our mindsets and cognitive ability to the max. - Next up is your emotional energy.
This relates to your temperament, your ability to stay calm under pressure, whether you think rationally when making decisions, and how your mood impacts others. As a leader, do not underestimate the influence of your emotions on others, even if you think you are pretty good at hiding how you feel.
The ability to be genuine as a leader is critical, helping to build trust and confidence in you from those around you. Leading with stability and consistency helps others to feel supported and willing to open up more freely. If you are volatile, prone to outbursts, and openly vent your frustrations to your people in an emotional way, you are damaging team spirit and psychological safety.
Remember that you set the tone for team culture, so it is so vital to be cognisant of how you show up, interact and communicate with others. Focus on spreading upbeat and proactive energy, so that you can inspire and influence others to do the same. After all, work is much more enjoyable when you are surrounded by future-focused and positive people with a ‘can do’ attitude. - Finally, consider your physical energy, actions and language.
Whilst your emotional energy can influence others in a more covert way, your physical actions are much more explicit. Again, consider how you can spread energy to your team in an impactful way through the words you use, your tone and style, and more subtle aspects such as your body language.
Reflect upon your leadership presence, how you conduct yourself in meetings and interactions, and how you set the tone through your actions. Are you emanating energy and embodying peak performance, or would your team members be left uninspired after a meeting with you?
If you can dial up your focus on these three areas, you will be well on your way to becoming an energising and impactful leader who walks the talk when it comes to peak performance and vitality.
