You Don't Need the Title to be a Lifelong Learner of Leadership

I've seen a lot of  new leaders earn leadership positions based on good performance in previous roles, but it's very rare that I've seen someone preparing for leadership before becoming a leader. I don't think it's because these people who became leaders without preparation weren't learners, and all leaders should be if they want to grow and help others to grow, but that it never occurred to study leadership before becoming a leader.

It wasn't until 2 years into a leadership role that I realized how bad I was at leadership and that if I wanted to succeed, I needed to invest regular time and energy to acquire leadership skills. I spent a lot of time investing in the technical skills of my job like how to forecast calls volume, how to plan staffing needs, and even how to use Erlang-C. That was all necessary and made me more competent in the tactical side of my job as a Contact Center Manager, but I spent more time in spreadsheets than I did with people. John Maxwell, in his book Leadership Gold, said something along the lines of  it's not about what fills your day, but who. This became a turning point for me. I had no one following, no one looking to me for advice or help, and it was because I didn't make people my priority. Leadership is all about the who, not the what.

Anyone can learn the tactical side of a job, but if that's all you study then at best you may become an expert in a very specific area with limited accomplishments and limited influence. Learn and practice leadership on the other hand, and you will influence and inspire others, and then through the collective efforts of a team accomplish a thousand times more.

You don't need the title of a leader to be a learner of leadership, and you shouldn't wait until you have the position. Could you imagine a surgeon waiting until they are in the operating room with a person on the table to learn how to operate? How insane would that be? Don't wait until you are a leader to start learning leadership.  I wish I had started learning about leadership many years before becoming a leader, but I'm learning now, and I plan to make it a daily part of my life through books, podcasts, seminars, mentors and whatever else I can get my hands on.