Impact, Influence and Inspiration

Leadership is not just about a title or a designation, it's about much more than that. It's about the impact you make, the influence you have, and the inspiration you bring to your team. Sometimes it can be challenging to step up and embrace the role of a leader. However, it's crucial to understand that leadership comes naturally when you immerse yourself in the vision of what you want to achieve and the changes you want to have in your team or organization. Impact, influence, and inspiration play a big role.

Photo by Andrea Piacquadio 

Impact: Impact involves getting results that matter, not just for yourself but also for your team and organization. This means understanding the vision, driving the right outcomes, and being willing to assess shortcomings and seek feedback. To achieve impact, you must be able to not just set goals, but also create a plan with measurable actions and milestones. Celebrating success and learning from failures will help you build on what has been achieved so far and guide your team forward.

Influence: Influence is about amplifying the passion that you have for your work. This means investing the time and energy required to understand the people you're leading and what motivates them. To have a positive influence, you must communicate effectively, collaborate seamlessly, listen actively, and create prompt feedback loops. Influential leaders give others the freedom to express their opinions, actively listen to feedback, and treat them with respect. The ability to influence is a critical aspect of leadership, and it requires authenticity and empathy.

Inspire: Inspiration is not just about being motivational. It's about painting a picture of what success looks like and pushing your team to achieve it. Inspiring leaders create focus, urgency, and opportunity for their team. They help their teams understand the broader picture, the importance of their efforts, and how it aligns with the organization's vision or strategy. To be inspiring, you need to develop a keen sense of vision and purpose, identify the areas where you can make the most significant contribution, and have a well-laid-out roadmap to achieve it.

Measuring What Matters: Leaders must measure their achievements, but it's equally important to assess the impact and value of the measures they use. To make sure your metrics lead to action, and help you achieve the right goals, start by identifying what matters. Put your team's collective brains to work, and choose the metrics they think are important. Make sure these metrics link to your vision and goals, and create a culture of accountability to execute against these metrics. Redefining leadership through the impact of measuring what matters creates a winning environment where everyone understands what counts and thrives to reach it together.

Redefining leadership is about establishing a culture of Trust, Collaboration, and Empowerment. Impact, influence, and inspiration are the three critical components that do precisely that. By focusing on the "how" and the "why", we can inspire and motivate our teams to achieve their full potential. Remember that leadership comes from within and that anyone has the potential to be an inspirational leader. All it takes is a willingness to learn, move outside one's comfort zone, and embrace the challenge. So, go ahead, inspire, influence, and create a lasting impact on your team and organization.