5 Strategies for Success in  Your Early Days as a Leader 

You worked nights and weekends, ate at your desk, and applied every ounce of knowledge you acquired in school and in the school of hard knocks. Now your work is paying off with a promotion and you will be leading others for the first time. These five tips will keep you from thinking, “Wait. I’m not ready!”

Open Communications
Everyone on your new team is anxiously awaiting your arrival and the changes their new leader will make. People naturally dislike change, especially when they cannot anticipate where those changes will occur. It can feel a bit like navigating the office when the power is out, you know what is there, but everything looks very different in the dark.

Keep communication lines open to the shine light for your department. Present your plan for your first month. Be open and honest. You might not have specific details, but you can share your thoughts about the team’s direction and what information you would like to learn about the department.

Look, Listen, Learn
Even before you step foot in your new office, you can begin to learn about your new organization or new department and start to organize your thoughts into strategies. Your pre-learning and pre-planning will help you create momentum when you do start. You know that you are qualified for your new role, but you don’t have to jump in and show everyone what you know in your first week or even your first month. Look, listen and learn. Many successful leaders spend most of their first 30 days asking questions and listening to answers.

If you are new to the organization as well as to your leadership role, you will need to gather some information with lightning speed. First, you will acquire technical knowledge about your products and services, your customers, and the general operations of your department or company. Second, uncover the decision-making process and learn whose influence is key. Third, learn about the culture. What are the rules and what does the company value? Remember, when in Rome…

Uncover People’s Strengths

Of all the questions that you will ask in your first month, the most important ones will uncover who your direct reports are and what motivates them. Each one of your direct reports has hidden talents and strengths of which you probably aren’t aware. People naturally exceed expectations when they work from a position of strength. During your first week in your new leadership role, meet with each of your direct reports to learn what motivates them, what they excel at, and what they are interested in. Learn what their goals are; where do they see themselves in the next two years? People expect changes when a new leader comes on board, therefore, this is an ideal time to shift people into roles for which they might be better suited than they are in their current position.

Attain Swift Victories
The simplest way to get a team behind their leader is to lead them to a victory. In your early days, establish which projects the team can solve in the shortest time, then, solve them. Along the way, make sure you notice and show appreciation for even the tiniest victories. Everyone loves to feel appreciated and part of a winning team.

Small victories will not only help you attain the support of your team, but those victories also provide opportunities to get in the trenches with your team and work side by side with them. This change in perspective, seeing the operation from your team’s vantage point, can provide valuable insight to the daily challenges they face.

Create and Share Your Vision
Your new team will be hesitant to follow you if they cannot see the direction you’re taking. Create your vision of where you are heading, what you wish to accomplish, and how you plan to get there. However, do not plan every little detail. In order to achieve your vision, you need buy in from your team, and buy in only occurs when someone has a stake in the project. Encourage the team to provide the details. How will they take ownership? Trust them to move your vision forward.

As the leader, you help the team to establish goals and hold them accountable. If they fail to meet a deadline or come to you with a problem, ask them for their proposed solution. Help them to grow as individuals and as a team, and you will ensure your own success as well.

“If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader.”– Dolly Parton