Would you like to improve the efficiency of your employees and foster a culture based on responsibility and proactivity within your company?
If so, we recommend that you focus on enhancing their self-leadership skills.
In this article, we will delve deeper into the concept of self-leadership and how this competency can boost your organisation’s overall performance.
What is self-leadership?
Self-leadership refers to a person's ability to direct his or her own life and career through behavioural and cognitive strategies that allow him or her to optimise his or her effectiveness.
This process is based on the famous “5 S's of self-leadership” (Self-awareness, Self-esteem, Self-autonomy, Self-management and Self-motivation) and thanks to its development it is possible to modify the thoughts, emotions and actions of any individual so that they can achieve their goals more easily.
That is, unlike traditional leadership or participative leadership, which involve directing others, self-leadership focuses on personal mastery and the ability to influence oneself.
Benefits of self-leadership in the business environment
Self-leadership skills can bring numerous benefits for both employees and the company. Here are some of them:
- Increased productivity
Employees who practice self-leadership are more proactive and efficient in managing their tasks. Because they have clear goals and objectives, they can better prioritise their activities and manage their time effectively.
- Improved decision making
Developing self-leadership skills also contributes to better cognitive performance, as it fosters a focused and structured mindset, essential for complex problem solving and strategic decision making.
- Greater adaptability
Employees with self-leadership skills manage failures and adversities better, so they are able to adapt more quickly to changes and maintain motivation in times of uncertainty.
- Promoting innovation
Self-leadership stimulates creativity and innovation, as employees feel empowered to explore new ideas and approaches. This can lead to significant improvements in company processes and products.
- Stress reduction
By having greater control over their emotions, employees with self-leadership skills experience less stress and anxiety, which contributes to a healthier and more satisfying work environment.
- Increasing interpersonal intelligence
Self-leadership improves employees' ability to understand and manage the emotions of others, strengthening teamwork and interpersonal relationships within the company.
Now, how can we train self-leadership skills?
7 Strategies to develop self-leadership
Developing self-leadership requires the implementation of different techniques that can greatly influence your thoughts, feelings and way of acting. Here are some of the basic strategies that will help you achieve this:
1. Visualise your destination
Imagine the point you want to reach and make sure that all your actions bring you closer to it. Sometimes we get carried away by the impositions of others and lose sight of our own goals.
2. Focus on self-knowledge
Identify your main strengths and weaknesses and ask those around you to validate your perceptions. We assure you that this strategy can lead you to great discoveries.
3. Improve your skills
Once you have identified your areas for improvement, you will need to find a way to improve your skills. Whether through corporate training, coaching processes or by reading books that help you enhance your self-leadership skills.
4. Set SMART goals
Define Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound goals. Then, break these goals down into smaller actions to have a clear vision of the steps to follow.
5. Work on your habits
Incorporate new habits into your daily routine that will help you enhance your self-leadership skills. For example, doing physical activity regularly to maintain your energy and mental focus.
6. Practice self-motivation
Staying motivated is crucial to self-leadership. To achieve this, you can establish some personal reward system, celebrating small achievements and maintaining a positive attitude in the face of challenges.
7. Be consistent
Find the right intensity to be able to maintain your actions over time until you reach your goals. Consistency is key to improving your self-leadership skills.
Training to develop self-leadership skills
Investing in the right training is essential to empower employees and foster a culture of self-leadership within the organisation.
For this reason, Cegos training programs focus on developing key skills or power skills to improve employees' competencies from different areas through face-to-face, virtual or in-company sessions.
Would you like to discover how self-leadership can impact the success of your company? Contact us
This article was originally published on the Cegos Spain blog under the title "Autoliderazgo: clave para el éxito empresarial"
