How to increase your versatility
– the best leaders are versatile ones
Leadership tip of the week #127
adapted from HBR
Versatility is a key leadership trait.
Managers must have the capacity to read and respond to change with a wide repertoire of skills and behaviors.
So how can you actually build this ability?
- Start by soliciting feedback from trusted colleagues. Ask a simple question like, “What should I start doing, stop doing, or continue doing to be a more effective teammate?”
- You might also take a more systematic approach and complete a personality assessment to gauge your strengths and weaknesses.
- Follow up by asking colleagues if they agree with the results.
- Finally, learn some new habits from people you respect. Set up a meeting with a colleague who has different strengths than you to pick their brain. Your goal is to learn to see things from their perspective, so come with an open mind. You might even ask what they are reading, how they learn, or what their day-to-day routine is.
Try to adopt some elements from their approach — it just might make you a more flexible worker and versatile leader, and more adaptable to change.
Keep listening keep learning
This tip is adapted from “The Best Leaders Are Versatile Ones,” by Robert B. (Rob) Kaiser
Data Pulses storytelling 