Your Clients Look to You for Leadership
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The more uncertain the times, the more certainty clients want from you. They want you and they expect you to guide them to their goals. Like it or not, you are depended upon for your leadership skills. This may be unfair to you.
You weren’t taught leadership in training.
Nonetheless, the role has been thrust upon you. The jury is still out on whether leadership is learned or innate. I’m sure there are natural born leaders and I’m sure there are great leaders who developed their skills on the way to success. Whichever one you are, identify your leadership skills and put those skills to good use.
Begin by focusing on your client’s goals.
Every goal is a beacon and every breaking news story is white noise. You stay focused on your clients’ goals and you keep them focused on those goals. Times will change. The reasons they invested will not.
You overcome the obstacles that stand between you and the attainment of those goals. You do nothing to impugn your integrity. You ramp up your self-awareness by defining your values and sticking to them.
Refine your communications skills so much so that your clients fully understand the game plan.
There is never a doubt about where you currently stand and where you are going. Choose to be optimistic. Be honest. Be all the things you know you should be if you want referrals.
Be flexible.
The rug gets pulled out from under every day, beginning with the morning news and reports from the overseas market. Great leaders are not rigid. They cope with uncertainty.
Excel in relationship building.
Be firm yet kind as you define reality, as you explain to newer clients that it will be necessary to forego short-term gain for the attainment of the larger goals that lay ahead.
Sit with your clients and create a plan.
Stick to it unless it is no longer wise to do so. Be firm yet gentle. Hold your honor above the fray. Be competent to a fault. Back up what you say with great service.
For the record, thinking that you are a born leader may not always be a good thing.
Marty Linsky, adjunct lecturer at the John F. Kennedy School of Government surmises that people who deem themselves natural leaders are not prone to self-reflection and are not eager for objective input. They also don’t feel the need to fulfill their potential. In their minds, they are already there. Don’t be that way.
All clients want is to be on stable ground.
They want to educate their kids and retire comfortably. This business, while not easy, is terribly simple. They are paying you to lead them to fulfillment. Be there when you have nothing to sell.
If clients are to follow you, they must like you; they must trust you and they must think you are smart. They empower you to seek results. The results you achieve will determine your success as a leader.
To ignite your performance and bring your business to the next level, start your 30-day trial with Don Connelly 24/7.
