In January 2013 I filed the application for the establishment of Better Breed Cameroon. I was a young woman with big dreams and a lot of hope, I miss that version of me for all the hope and zeal she had.
Ten years later we’re celebrating a decade of youth development work and contribution to nation-building through Better Breed Cameroon. Our current community manager- Mrs. Ayuk Renette asked me to share lessons on leadership or what I would pass on to aspiring leaders. I made these very brief points because I know she was looking for social media content 🙂
- Get a good understanding of what leadership is.
Unfortunately, we have terrible examples of leadership in our society and we must unlearn a great deal to avoid being bossy, patronizing untouchable and unreachable. Invest time and effort in finding good examples of leadership to emulate and setting up your own principles that guide your actions.
- Know your why.
Do you want to be a leader because it’s “nice” and looks good, because you crave admiration or validation eg. Being in the top 40 under 40 lists… If so you will be horrible or be hurt. Likely both. Also, get to the point where you know yourself and your why and your purpose so well that you won’t be tempted to deviate nor be confused when people project their ideas and ideals on you
- Have mentors/ be teachable. Have people of character who can hold you accountable. Who can people report you to? Be wary if all your friends think like you and agree with you and mirror what you say. I have a strong sisterhood that serves as my ‘board of directors’, they will call me to order and “if I start to do like my head is shaking” those who work with me can report me to them.
- “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care” are words to live by. Prior to telling people what to do, what they’ve done wrong etc. Make sure they know it comes from a place of love. Make sure they understand why, and that they feel your heart in the correction. Or else you just sound condemning and a “know-it-all”.
- “We don’t see things as they are, we see things as we are”- Another quote to live by. Know that how you see things is shaped by your life experiences, your exposure, your abilities and conditions etc. The other person is not you. Both of you may not be “wrong” but just seeing things from different angles. Appreciate perspective.
- Always ensure communication is fluid. Make sure you seek feedback and ask others to assess you, assess and re-assess yourself. What is not spoken is as dangerous as what is. Things fester when bottled up more often than not.
- Know that you’re not God. You’re not Jesus. You will fail. Give yourself grace and be always ready to say, I was wrong. I could have done this or that better. Because you’re not God- never from your position of power write someone off. You never know when they will have their ‘Damascus’ moment. Life will humble us all, so be sure to humble yourself first.
- Interact! Engage! Leave your bubble. We learn how to lead by serving, by engaging, and by interacting with others. You can’t keep to yourself and claim you will know how to lead people when you get a position of power. The ones who want to be so mysterious and feel being aloof is a leadership strategy are often the untouchables who have to beg their people for loyalty eventually. You can’t properly serve whom you don’t know. If you aren’t serving you aren’t really leading- see the issue?
- Learn to network! To follow up on the above point, leading requires building relationships ergo networking. The leader is not necessarily the smartest person. In fact, those who lead are often either the most strategic person- the one who knows how to bring together other people who know what to do but are not quite sure how, or the boldest person- who can take the initiative to do it first and risk failing. Networking is not about exchanging cards and becoming a parasite or follower. It’s about exchanging and building a mutually beneficial relationship. You can’t think you have nothing to offer and yet network, you will come off as a parasite looking for someone to latch onto. Similarly, you have to know what you offer and what you’re looking for when you engage to lead
- Know yourself well enough to know when to ask for help. Know yourself and your why and your purpose so well that you won’t be tempted to deviate nor be confused when people project their ideas and ideals on you- because it will happen. Define success for yourself so you don’t think you’re leading when you’re actually being led by popular opinion.
I look forward to learning many more lessons in future. What leadership lessons have you learned? Let me know in the comments!
