Showing Leadership Skills to Empower

Showing and demonstrating leadership skills to empower future leaders is a skill that is essential for any business leader. Yet it could be ignored as a leadership skill.

Of course, we all learn from each other. As a role model, leaders are able to show ways of behaving in a variety of situations. Future leaders will see how the senior leadership team responds to challenges; how they communicate; how they behave. Although in an increasing changing world; including increased digital usage and AI, there will be unique situations that future leaders encounter that their predecessors will not have encountered.

Demonstrating or showing leadership skill is not exclusively ‘showing others’. There should also be an element of mentoring and discussing with the future leader, how they would approach a specific situation.

This is how I, Susan Heaton-Wright, approached a leadership programme. The aim was to empower volunteers from a corporate consultancy firm in Athens, to step up and lead music and performance programmes for Love without Borders. This is a charity based in Athens that support refugees from Africa and the Middle East.

It would be easy to believe that the future leaders would gain enough skills from watching me. However, this isn’t the way we, as humans learn and be empowered. If we, as leaders ONLY demonstrate; others will mimic our style instead of developing their style. Being the best version of yourself is so powerful!

When I approached this project, I had very clear objectives, which included ‘lifting up’ the future leaders, so they would feel confident and comfortable leading future programmes.

This is how I considered my role and the project.

• Purpose. There should always be time taken to consider why the programme is taking place. If this isn’t clear, the value of your time and the programme will be reduced. The purpose could include bringing fun into the lives of refugees; or a chance to learn a few basic words in English. Or the practicality that the children are occupied with the programme whilst their parents are receiving legal advice. The purpose could also be that the attendees are all very hungry and frightened. The centre is a safe place.
• Why? Why should the attendees be there? As I have mentioned before, it could be a straight forward reason: the parents need some legal advice or it is a safe place for the refugees. However, there could be a reputation that the programme is great fun. Once the attendees are there, they need to be engaged. It also creates positive memories.
• When? Booking the date is crucial. Then marketing could take place.
• Where? Ditto!
• Who? Who is the programme aimed at? Is it for adults? Is it for children? What age groups? Do you have information on their native language? Finding out this information will help you prepare. In Athens, we had no idea who was going to show each day. It was very informal. As I knew this beforehand, I had prepared a range of activities for different age groups; I had practiced some French in case there were native French Speakers and had arranged for an Arabic native speaker to be there, for translating.
• What? What are you going to do? I prepared a long list of songs – mainly with repetition and actions, the opportunity for the attendees to perform their songs (Youtube is a brilliant source!); games – which could then be played away from the centre, and dance. For the latter, the mothers taught us all a dance which was brilliant.
• How? Is this going to be a collaborative project? Delivery by one person? Quite serious or fun? Acoustic? INstruments? Recordings? These are all considerations.

Empowering future leaders

It would be very easy to deliver the work myself. It wouldn’t provide the right empowerment for the future leaders. Here are some techniques I used, to ensure the future leaders were confident in future.

• At each break we had a review. Asking questions like “How could this be better?” “What was I aiming to achieve from this song?” What would be the best way to support the children?”
• I shared all of the repertoire: songs/games/actions in a resource. These are available for the future leaders.
• I gave the leaders the opportunity to try out songs, with feedback.
• I gave permission for everyone to have a go; that this is work in progress; and to celebrate what has been achieved.
• There is ongoing support so that the emerging leaders reach out to me and are mentored.

Remember there is more to supporting future leaders than being a role model. Giving others the opportunity to learn ‘on the job’ whilst being supported is crucial. Consider how you could create this as part of the leadership programme for your future leaders.