Nobody is perfect. Not even you. And that’s good news. As a leader, you may feel you have to do it all. To be the best at every aspect of your enterprise. You don’t have to be perfectly well rounded in order to be a great leader. In fact, some of the best leaders aren’t well rounded at all.
Everyone has heard of Steve Jobs’ penchant for ranting and raving around the Apple office, but he was an exceptional design-forward thinker. He leaned on that strength in order to build the Apple we know today.
Bill Gates himself has admitted he does not like the people side of running Microsoft and brings in others to do those jobs, but he is a true visionary and because of that strength put Microsoft all in on the internet before the infrastructure was really even there.
John F. Kennedy might have been a skilled orator, able to rouse a crowd and fill the American people with a sense of pride and mission, but he had a pretty terrible track record of trying to get his legislation passed during his presidency.
I don’t mean to take away from these men’s accomplishments, but rather to further emphasize them. They were each able to achieve great things despite the fact that they were not perfect. They each understood where their strengths were and leaned in to those areas.
What are your greatest strengths as a leader? Take some time to reflect on the skills and assets you bring to your company. And equally important, understand what your weaknesses are. Instead of trying to marginally improve those weaknesses, double down on your strengths and use the power you already have to take your leadership to the next level.
Leaning in to your strengths not only lets you use the skills you already have, but also allows you to show up as authentically who you are. You don’t have to pretend that you’re perfect, because you don’t need to be. Trust that you can find and lead others that will make your company better.
What areas should you be giving your undivided time, energy and strengths? What duties, tasks or responsibilities should you be delegating to make your company more successful? If you’d like to better understand your strengths and challenges as a leader, take one of our complimentary assessments.
