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    Leadership Is a Contact Sport

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    The Challenge of Leadership Development

    Many years ago, a request from a Fortune 100 CEO highlighted a common leadership challenge: a vice president who was smart, dedicated, and creative, but also stubborn and difficult to work with. The task was not to make this successful individual smarter, but to help them identify and change a personal habit that was negatively impacting their colleagues. This is a central issue for many executives; even high performers have behaviors they can improve to become even better.

    The Modern Leader's Dilemma

    Developing as a leader is a difficult endeavor. Demands on leaders are increasing, which means there is less time for focusing on personal or professional change. As more is expected of you, the less time you have for your own development, yet improving your leadership skills becomes more important than ever.

    This situation requires that you learn on the job. To make the most of your time, you must make the most of your surroundings and ask those around you for help. You have to enlist their support as you work to develop yourself and your teams.

    An 8-Step Model for On-the-Job Development

    A simple, proven model for leadership development can be broken down into eight steps. This process is designed to be implemented directly within your daily work, using real-world interactions as the basis for growth.

    1. Ask: Directly ask people how you can improve as a manager, partner, or team member.
    2. Listen: Pay close attention to the answers you receive.
    3. Think: Contemplate the feedback and what it means for your behavior.
    4. Thank: Show gratitude to people for sharing their valuable input with you.
    5. Respond: Maintain a positive and receptive posture when receiving feedback.
    6. Involve: Enlist the people around you to support your change efforts.
    7. Change: Act on what you learn. Improvement is not an academic exercise.
    8. Follow-up: Check in regularly with stakeholders so they can see the positive actions you’re taking based on their input.

    This model works because it turns your professional environment into a learning lab. By taking these steps, you can change to become "even better" for yourself, your people, and your organization.

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    Best Practice Institute

    Best Practice Institute is the research organization behind Most Loved Workplace® certification, the SPARK Model, the Love of Workplace Index™ (LOWI™), and The Workplace Report.

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