AASCIF - july-august-september 2004

By Michael R. Corbeaux
Associate Personnel Analyst
California State Compensation Insurance Fund

Leadership exists throughout all levels of your state fund or provincial board. From student assistants to the executive committee, each employee has a leadership role. While not everyone holds a management or supervisory position, we all have the capacity for self-leadership.

It is leadership that directs an organization to accomplish its objectives and fulfill its mission. Although management may guide employees toward this goal, leadership begins with the individual. It begins with you.

Self-leadership is the guidance you provide to yourself. It is the process of influencing yourself to establish the self-direction and motivation needed to reach your goals. It is the ability to recognize and develop your skills and talents so you can use them to achieve your fullest potential.

The key to self-leadership is a commitment to self-development. Effective leaders practice personal growth to sharpen their current skills and to stretch themselves to develop new ones. This dedication to continuous learning is vital to self-development. The stronger and more diverse your abilities are, the easier it is to overcome obstacles and reach your goals. By pushing yourself past self-imposed limits, you develop the skills to become an effective leader.

Self-leadership can be a challenge. It requires a conscious decision to take responsibility for the role you play at your state fund. A team leader assumes leadership over his or her staff. You can assume leadership over the responsibilities to which you are assigned. When you commit to self-leadership, you take ownership of the work you produce and accept accountability for the decisions you make. Recognizing your individual responsibility strengthens your sense of self- leadership and gives you a greater feeling of control and focus.

The sum of all parts
Self-leadership does not disregard the importance of teamwork. Rather, it is a coordinated effort between the individual and the group. When team members discover their personal strengths, each can apply their skills in a way that best supports the team. A team committed to self-leadership realizes its potential as a group through the expertise of each member.

Understanding that your role is one part of a whole offers insight not only into the importance you have to your team, but to your state fund or board as well. Through self-leadership, you help guide your organization toward the fulfillment of its mission. Recognize that your role has an impact on this important process. Practicing self-development and personal growth improves not only yourself but also your state fund as a whole. When you improve your skills and increase your potential, your entire organization benefits.

Influencing others
You don’t need to be a supervisor or manager to lead others. Even without a supervisory role, you have the power to influence others. People are influenced by those on whom they rely for information. If you continuously develop your proficiency and knowledge, others will look to you for your expertise. This recognition gives you an opportunity to be a positive influence among your co-workers.

Confidence is influential. Many equate it with competence. Are you more likely to accept the help or advice of someone who conveys their point of view with conviction, or from someone who is unsure of himself or herself? Confidence is what makes you persuasive. It comes from being aware of your abilities and knowing how to use them. When you are able to rely on your own skills, others will begin to rely on you, too.

Getting started
These tips will help you prepare to take on your leadership role:

1. Take the initiative.
Accept responsibility for your personal growth. Take the initiative to begin your self-development.

2. Take risks.
Step out of your comfort zone. Trying something new may carry a slight degree of risk, but it’s the best way to learn a new skill or gain a new insight. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes when trying new things. Everybody makes them. The biggest mistake you can make is to never try at all.

3. Use your talents every day.
Recognize your strengths and use them each day. Whether your talent is communication, negotiation, creativity, etc., raise your skill level by practicing every day.

4. Set goals.
Give yourself something to work toward. Decide what you want to learn or what skills you want to acquire or improve, and give yourself a deadline.

5. Find your motivation.
Why do you want to improve your self-leadership skills? For personal satisfaction? For career development? To find your motivation, you need to “take inventory” of yourself. Determine what drives you. If you didn’t know that your car ran on gasoline, you wouldn’t know how to get it back in motion once the tank ran dry. When you take inventory, you’ll also discover the skills you already have. By recognizing and taking ownership of them, you’ll have the means to use them to the best of your ability. This ability to do the best you can each day is a powerful way to live your life.

Author Michael R. Corbeaux can be reached at mrcorbeaux@scif.com or (415) 703-7437.

Self-leadership Our organizations advance when each employee is developing personal leadership skills

Self-leadership
Our organizations advance when each employee is developing personal leadership skills