The Skill All Leaders Need

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At 24, I stepped into my first "management" job.

I vividly remember the feeling of helplessness.

I had no idea how to manage people in general, let alone in large and growing organizations.

• Communication

• Setting expectations

• Giving and receiving feedback

• Managing strong personalities

• Helping others navigate conflict

• Helping teams work together

• Recruiting, interviewing, hiring, firing

• Being a partner in others' career growth

• Managing "up" and connecting dots "down"

This list could be 50+ things. All of it was foreign to me.

It took a decade to feel "decent" at these things, and that decade was mostly full of mistakes and feeling like I could have handled a lot of situations a lot better.

This is why I have a heart for managers and rising leaders.

Managing is a difficult job. The "management track" is not a sexy rocket ship to the C-suite like many think it is.

If I could go back 10 years and give myself one piece of advice to grow as a leader, it would be this:

Hone your communication skills.

Communication prevents a lot of problems and contains the ones that do arise.

Focus on the "basics".

• Do people know the current priority?

• Do they know why their work matters?

• Do they know what's expected of them?

• Do you have the information you need?

• Does your leader know what you need?

Keep all communication simple, clear and concise – this removes friction and accelerates execution.

Think about what information you have and ask yourself, “Who else would benefit from knowing this?”

Use all forms of communication at your disposal – written, video, phone / voice notes, in-person – depending on the context and timing of the message.

Communication is like blood flowing to the heart. When it’s flowing free and clear, the organism is healthy. When there are blockages, trouble arises.

Your job as a leader – of people, of projects, of anything – is to keep lines of communication open and flowing. It is impossible for people to operate effectively without it.

When in doubt, communicate.

If you or your team need support with this, reach out.

I wish y’all the best and am here to help.

Thanks for reading.

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Cheers,

Teddy