Leading a Successful Team

"Leadership has a lot more to do with you than it does with your team. It starts with you." -Lauren Greene.

When we were younger, we all played the game "follow the leader." The way you played was to get behind the leader and mimic what they were doing. Somehow that was supposed to teach us how to be leaders. But now that we're older, we see that it is so much more than that. So now I pose the question, what does being a leader look like and mean to you?

We've all had one boss who wasn't our favorite in previous jobs, but why? 9 times out of 10, it was because they weren't effective at communicating or motivating the team to achieve a common goal. They would hide in their office doing "paperwork," and then you wouldn't see them again until it's time to head home. Or they would be the exact opposite, micro-managers who wanted you to complete a task to an unrealistic standard. So, how do we avoid that? 

1. Love and lead yourself well. Make sure you value yourself and have a solid sense of identity. Whenever you're facing criticism or in a challenging situation, if you don't know who you are, you'll crumble in the face of adversity. Or, on the flip side, if you're receiving a lot of praise, you can lose yourself in the flattery. 
2. Become a followable leader. Always choose to have a positive mindset because that will inspire your team. If you're coming into work feeling tired, unhappy, and just choosing negativity, your team will think you won't be setting up your day for success. 
3. Start finding and Implementing your team. The most obvious yet crucial step is holding interviews. Hiring just anyone because it's convenient is not a recipe for a successful business. Go into the interview process knowing what you need and always look for people who have shared values. If you don't see what you're looking for, how can you find someone to fill that position? It's easy to provide someone with on-the-job training, but it's impossible to instill similar values.
4. Begin aspiring your team and giving them practical steps. Always, always be genuine and set attainable goals. No one trusts a fake leader, plain and simple. Being accurate with your team means understanding their strengths and weaknesses. In doing so, you can set realistic standards and expectations to build a team to thrive.                                                                                                                                                    

Now that you've got all of the tools to lead and build a successful team remember consistency is key. When you're consistent, you create a strong sense of trust and reliability, making your team ready to connect and dream with you. Check out the Lauren's full training inside our Bold Digital incubator program, helping startups start and stay in business.