Leadership Focus

Hi,

Have you ever thought about ‘What is the difference between a Leaders Focus & Ordinary persons focus?’ Its an interesting question which can lead to many wonderful insights. Here is one of them which i was discussing with a Senior Executive whom i was Coaching yesterday:

This executive was just given a new team and was quite worried about making his team look up to him as a good leader. This was affecting his productivity and increasing his stress at work. So I asked him this simple question: Whom are you focusing on right now? He thought about it and said “I am focused on me being a good leader”

My next question to him “As a Leader where do you think you need to focus?” I could see expressions of realization on his face as he was thinking about the answer. He said as a Leader I need to focus on my team’s performance, their state of mind, their needs, etc.

I asked him what if he focused more on his team rather than focusing on himself, what would be the result? I asked him to write down the answer to this question and this is what he wrote:

• No pressure of looking good in front of the team
• Will have reduced stress levels
• Can focus on helping the team in my best possible capacity
• I would be more observant towards what the team needs
• As a result i would definitely be a better leader.

Isn’t it interesting how a simple shift in our focus can bring a big shift in our leadership skills. Try practicing this yourself and let me know what are the benefits that you experience by using a Leadership focus rather than ordinary way of focusing on your work.

Looking forward to hearing your experience 🙂

Mitesh