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10 Things You Need to Know To Become a Great Leader - James Altucher
Lead Yourself
Get better at the things you're interested in. Try to understand more deeply the painful experiences you've had, and take care every day of your health: physical, emotional, mental and spiritual.
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SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
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Key Ideas
Avoid coming in with a pre-conceived plan
Chances are you’re being hired to fill a void and address current challenges that have been highlighted to you.
Do not make the mistake of coming to the table with a pre-determined plan...
Become a sponge
Before you can formulate the correct course of action, you’ll need to learn all aspects of the business quickly.
Sit in on as many calls and meetings as you can, and don’t be shy about doing so. Make sure that the team understands that you’re doing it for learning purposes only, so your actions aren’t misconstrued as micromanaging.
Notice patterns first
Give yourself time to notice patterns, and ensure that the changes you make address real problems and not one-off happenings.
Making too many changes too quickly, especially when it comes to making cuts, may scare the strong players away and lead your team to be guarded with you. Ensure that key stakeholders who brought you onboard are aware of your approach.
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Key Ideas
The humble narcissist
Researchers studied whether customer service employees were more productive under narcissistic or humble leaders.
The least effective bosses were narcissists. Humble bosses we...
Narcissist and humble leaders
Narcissists believe they're unique and superior, while humble leaders know they're flawed.
The humble narcissist has grand ambitions but doesn't feel entitled to them. He is also willing to acknowledge his weaknesses and learn from his mistakes.
Narcissism and confidence
We're all drawn to someone who shows confidence - that is the reason that narcissists are more likely to be promoted or get elected to political office. But on its own, narcissism is dangerous. It tends to promote overconfidence and it dismisses the criticism.
Adding humility to narcissism prevents capriciousness and complacency. It helps you remember that you’re human.
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Key Ideas
“If you look to lead, invest at least 40 percent of your time managing yourself.”
Dee Hock - Founder of Visa Credit Card
Shortcomings of leaders
Being a leader is a little like being a parent. You have all the best intentions of how great you will be and how you will avoid the mistakes you see other people make.
But, people in a leadership role find it is not that easy; they have too much to do and not enough time; they don't properly think through their priorities; they assume that people beneath them will take care of a lot of problems.
Do a "character traits check"
- Think of someone you thought was a bad leader and list any of the negative behaviors they displayed.
- Ask yourself if you share any of those behaviors — score 1 for not likely to 5 for very likely: for instance, someone who kept important information away from employees, a micromanager, a vague communicator, a yeller, someone who didn't keep their word.
- After you identify your potential areas of improvement, make a plan for how you'll work on them.