Going Against The Grain:

“Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you’ll be criticized anyway.”

–Eleanor Roosevelt

So you finally got the promotion, congratulations!  You have put in the time, invested financially into your professional development and have proven yourself to be valuable to your organization as a leader.

However, the shininess of the new position is starting to dull.  What happened, you have now realized that all that glitters is not gold.  Leadership is a wonderful position to be in; it is not always the popular position to be in unfortunately.

Keep moving ahead and here are three truths to encourage you on your journey as you work with your team to meet the organizational mission and make a profit:

Truth #1 – There will always be that one person who does not agree with you.  It’s okay, do take the time to hear them out and be willing to weigh their input.  If their point of view proves to be more effective by all means give them the credit, adapt your plans and move forward.  It is not personal, it is business.  On the other hand, if their point of view is not best for the overall goals of the company be willing to explain once and thank them for their input.

Truth #2 – You will have to make decisions whether popular or unpopular.  Self-confidence is key for leadership, you are constantly being called upon to make decisions and sometimes with little or no warning beforehand.  Become comfortable with making decisions and trusting your instincts, past situations and seeing yourself as an expert.

Truth #3 – The more confident and competent you become in your role as a leader your circle will become smaller.  It’s not that you will become “better than” others; it is a matter of you becoming better than the person you were when you first start your leadership journey.  You are growing, constantly investing in yourself and taking on challenges that many times others shrink away from.  You are being stretched and eventually you outgrow people, places and things that once were comfortable.  Give yourself permission to reach out to new circles, find mentors who are where you desire to be and most importantly make yourself available to be a mentor or sponsor for those coming behind you.

Remember to maintain a sense of independence, the ability to self-directed and self-controlled in your thinking and actions and to be free of emotional dependency.  Leaders go against the grain when others go with the flow, happy leading!