7 Ways to Embrace Growth as a Leader

Be open-minded.

A growth mindset requires leaders to be more inclusive of the unique needs and perspectives of others. Growth requires more than sales and revenue; it requires a clear understanding of human capital assets. It involves learning how to serve the unique needs of individual clients and/or consumers and employees unique needs.

Get comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty.

Allow risk to be your new best friend. Companies operate in environments where ambiguity and uncertainty are at an all-time high. Leaders must embrace uncertainty and see through the murkiness to find previously unseen opportunities by taking the time to step back and understand why ambiguity and tension exist. Leaders must bring their people along to ensure they do not fear uncertainty and ambiguity either but embrace it to create momentum and sustain it.

(Actually) be prepared.

Most organizations are not prepared for transformation. They spend millions planning for it yet fail to operationalize it in the workplace and marketplace. That’s because they fail to anticipate the unexpected. They lack the preparedness required to face the strategic implications of the investments and the uncertainty involved in deploying transformation.

Have clarity on what others expect from your leadership.

A growth mindset is ultimately about thinking differently and taking on new, elevated ownership levels as a leader. As such, people are watching your every move. They pay attention to your decisions and why you are making them. They may even be skeptical about them and your ability to solve for growth opportunities. Thus, leaders must ensure others understand what they can expect from their leadership. Could you not assume they know? Be clear about the path to growth and the role others play in helping the organization get there.

Take ownership.

Transformation is a fancy term for the ability to reclaim relevancy. Taking ownership is the difference between being relevant and allowing the marketplace to pass by you. A growth mindset demands resiliency and over-delivering value. Don’t tolerate complacency. Leaders who accept this release the need for them and others to be accountable, which gives the impression that they don’t care enough.

Grow with people.

The days of people perceiving that their leaders have all the answers are gone. People feel that their leaders are out of touch with today’s workplace realities and thus are perpetuating silos as a result of their leaders’ hidden agendas. Today’s leaders must grow with their people. They need to eliminate hierarchy and rank and create environments of greater intimacy in which all people can get to know each other to grow and evolve together. Leaders must then value the relationships forged and invest in them to keep earning the trust of others.

Look for significance over success.

Leaders with a growth mindset desire to be significant because they want the growth they create to take the organization to places it has never been before. They want to help their organizations evolve.