Can Leaders Be Trained?

Have the greatest leaders of our time had to work at themselves and learn how to lead or did they always know what it takes to motivate their teams to success?

So, can a great leader be developed or were they always built for leadership?

The simple answer is, yes leadership can be taught and learned. Leadership is a quality which one can attain through practice, education, and training. It is a learning process and anyone can learn it through all the opportunities that they get to learn the skill.

How can one acquire these leadership skills?

Practice discipline

A good leader needs discipline. Developing discipline in your professional (and personal) life is a must in order to be an effective leader, and to inspire others to be disciplined as well. People will judge your capacity to lead by the amount of discipline you display at work. 

Demonstrate discipline at work by always meeting deadlines, keeping appointments, and ending meetings on time.

Take on more projects

A great way to develop your leadership skills is to take on more responsibility. You don’t have to take on more than you can handle, but you do need to do more than simply what’s covered in your job description if you want to grow. Stepping out of your comfort zone is the only way you will learn anything new, and doing so will get you noticed by executives as someone who takes initiative. 

Learn to follow

A true leader has no problem yielding control to another person when appropriate. You should not feel threatened when someone disagrees with you, questions your thinking, or puts forth ideas of their own. Keep an open mind and give merit where merit is due. It won’t always be easy, but if you learn to value and respect others on your team, they’ll be more likely to step up to the plate for you. 

Keep learning

By keeping up to date with all the latest developments in your industry you’ll be well respected and will be in a better position to lead. Take up leadership and management courses to acquire new skills. Gain knowledge about leadership styles and instead of just learning, really think about how this applies to your situation and what changes you could make to improve. Personality development is an important skill for managers.

Be a discerning listener

Becoming a leader doesn’t mean you always have to be in the spotlight. An important trait of a good leader is someone who listens to suggestions, ideas, and feedback from other people, and build on them. Good listeners know that communication is not only about words, but picking up on non-verbal cues, such as eye contact and body language.