EP 4 - How to Practice

To be an effective leader, you've got to practice. Leaders aren't born, they're made...

TRANSCRIPT

How to Practice

To be an effective leader, you've got to practice. Leaders aren't born, they're made. Studies show that leadership success is 30% genetic and 70% learned. Effective practice happens outside your comfort zone. And while you're getting real work done, the best way to learn is by doing. And it's going to take some trial and error.

So how do you practice? It takes clear focus, timely feedback, and specific practice goals. You want to focus on the things that don't come naturally, things that are outside your comfort zone. Don't practice too many things at once and keep your focus narrow. Then find ya a role model, someone you can watch doing the things that you want to be able to do and learn from their experience.

A good role model helps you create a mental picture of what good looks like. A good coach can do the same thing. But you're not always going to have access to an experienced coach. Then you need a practice partner. Someone that can give you timely feedback. It can be a boss co-worker or an employee. But here's the key they've got to know what you're working on and be willing to give you honest feedback.

Then set your practice goals. Practice goals aren't targets for improvement. They're targets you've set for practice. When are you going to practice? How often? And what feedback are you looking for?

Malcolm Gladwell wrote a book called Outliers. In it, he claimed that you needed 10,000 hours of intensive practice to master anything. But here's the good news that's all been disproven. There's no science that backs up his claim. But here's what the science does say: purposeful practice, deliberate practice, the very intentional process of practicing with clear focus, timely feedback, and practice goals does work. That practice while doing through trial and error does work. That the constant effort applied outside your comfort zone does work. So develop your plan and get started. It won't take 10,000 hours, but it does take an ongoing commitment. And remember this, it's not what you know, it's what you can do that's going to define you as a leader.