As we approach the dawn of a new year, leaders have an excellent opportunity to make some resolutions which will benefit themselves, their teams and their organisations.
If you’ve had the chance to pause and take stock over what has worked for you as a leader this year, you might have identified one or two areas in which you’d like to improve or expand your skills over the next 12 months.
Resolutions are goals which are successful when they’re specific and achievable. Here are some suggestions to get you started:-
Cultivate Emotional Intelligence: I will invest in developing my emotional intelligence; understanding and managing my emotions effectively, and embody a positive and empathetic leadership style.
Foster a Positive Workplace Culture: I am committed to cultivating a positive and inclusive workplace culture by promoting open communication, recognizing achievements, and fostering a collaborative environment.
Invest in Professional Development: I will dedicate time and resources to continuous learning and professional development, staying informed about industry trends and acquiring new skills to lead my team more effectively.
Embrace Innovation and Adaptability: I will foster a culture of innovation within my team, encouraging creative thinking and embracing change as a constant, ensuring our organization remains adaptable in a rapidly evolving business landscape.
Enhance Communication Skills: I will work on improving my communication skills, ensuring clarity, transparency, and active listening in all interactions with my team, for a more effective and engaged workforce.
Set and Communicate Clear Goals: I will establish clear and achievable goals for my team and communicate them effectively, providing the guidance and motivation needed for collective success.
Delegate Effectively: I will take time to uncover and understand my team members’ skills and strengths and align the delegation of responsibility and actions.
Celebrate Success and Learn from Failure: I will celebrate the achievements of my team, acknowledging individual and collective successes, and I will view failures as opportunities for learning and growth, fostering a resilient and innovative mindset.
Work-Life Balance: I will prioritize my well-being by establishing clear boundaries between work and personal life, leading to a healthier work-life balance and a model which my team can follow.
Practice Mindful Leadership: I will embrace mindful leadership by staying present in the moment, making thoughtful decisions, and maintaining a calm and focused manner even in challenging situations.
Professional Networking: I will invest time in building and strengthening my professional networks, fostering connections with peers, mentors, and industry leaders to gain insights and support my professional growth.
Tips for goal setting
As well as specific and achievable, your goals for the new year should be:-
- Written down – otherwise it is just a dream
- Framed in the positive – your subconscious works towards what you focus on
- Congruent with your values – to ensure action will be taken
- Set within a timeframe and regularly reviewed
- Measurable – define your success
- Challenging – is it in your stretch zone?
- Captured within the imagination – make it personal
- Ethical – is it in your and others’ interest to achieve?
Setting and committing to New Year resolutions can be an effective way for leaders to pave the way for a successful and fulfilling year ahead for themselves and their teams.
Why not benefit from working on your goals with a dedicated Coach. We offer 1:1 coaching to support you to set boundaries and overcome challenges and procrastination in 2024 and beyond. To learn more and to book a Discovery Call, please click here.
Learn how to put the above resolution areas into practice on our ‘Leader As Coach’ course 2024. For more information and to register, click here.
