Lucy Kidd

FED team member and Business Psychologist Lucy Kidd writes this week about the importance of self-belief in leadership.
In my experience many people struggle with believing that they are leaders. These very same people are often recognised as experts in their field and yet something stops them from recognising their leadership contribution! In my work with leaders who ‘doubt themselves’ I help them to notice their leadership in action, to value themselves as leaders and to grow their belief in what they bring. This enables people to consciously step into, and to choose, being in Leader mode – as distinct from that of Manager or Operator.

Everyone can be a great leader regardless of job title – but if you want to lead more powerfully what matters is that you have something that is really important to you that you are leading for. This might, for example, be bringing a new idea about how to do something differently; helping others grow and develop, or standing up and speaking for something that you truly believe in. In fact, you can lead for just about anything that is important to you at work or at home!

Sounds simple, and yet many people are uncomfortable thinking of themselves as leaders. Maybe you think that you don’t deserve that title, or that you’re not good enough to live up to the job, or that you don’t have all the answers. Limiting thoughts like these can really get in the way of your leadership. As Henry Ford once famously said “If you think you can do a thing, or think you can’t do a thing, you’re right”.

• What are the opportunities you have this week to notice yourself leading?

• What other opportunities could you be creating if you really believed in yourself as a leader?

• Is there something that you could step up to lead even if your first reaction might be to step back?

Learn more about Lucy Kidd, the author of this article – click here