How To Be A Successful Leader Part 3: Be The Core Power

So you’re still running that team, kudos. Question, have you been doing some self-examination lately? Looking at the man (or woman) in the mirror? No? Well, you better do as Ice Cube said back in the day: “you better check yo’ self before you wreck yo’ self”. I believe that’s how it went.

Well, there is an unequivocal amount of truth to that bar (lyric). Because if you’re not checking yourself daily, then chances are your squad is having some issues that may or may not be apparent, which originate with you. The nucleus. The main source of power. The core.

Tips for Self-Reflection

Your squad is a reflection of your core values, your work ethic, your leadership and examples at work. They are a reflection of everything that is you.

Being the core is not an easy task. As we know, the core supports the outer layers of the vessel it’s powering and the different layers or pieces extract energy from the core. Fun fact, how we wake up can adversely affect our entire day, mainly how we treat others. How we went to bed the night before can affect our next day as well. Being emotionally sound is very important for squad leaders. Checking your egos, poor attitudes, rebellious spirits, and whatever negative pieces you may have in you is mandatory.

So, let’s break it down, what are some of the bad things a leader can do to hurt his or her squad. And what are the effects?

Strong arming only works for so long before you have a revolt on your hands. Don’t believe me? Pick up a history book. Having the characteristics of a bully turns you into a pretty crappy person, as your attitude at work starts to naturally find its way into your household, which is supposed to be your place of solemn peace. Unfortunately, you will treat your family members just as you treat those at work: with no respect and with your high attitude. You don’t want that to be part of your character, do you?

RELATED: HOW TO BE A SUCCESSFUL LEADER PART 1: BUILDING YOUR SQUAD

I’ve experienced it too many times and the reason why individuals treat their employees with a lack of respect is due to insecurities, which can stem from the way their manager treats them or an inferiority complex. Perhaps they are just an evil person or something bad happened in high school. I understand the high school thing. Kids are horrible, but don’t take it out on your employees whom have nothing to do with those traumatic years that don’t mean anything. To anyone. Anymore. Back on subject. There are a lot of reasons why people treat their squad with no respect. Even if you were taught to rule with an iron fist, in the end it gets you nowhere.

Managing a Poor Attitude

A leader with a poor attitude at work is like cancer. Just like the weakest link on the team, a poor attitude can spread to other squad members like wildfire, sometimes uncontrollable and fatal. Don’t be the wild fire. Don’t be fatal to yourself and your squad. Check that negativity at the door.

Other adverse effects of having a poor attitude can lead to lowering the morale on your squad, higher stress levels throughout the squad, or poor decision making skills on your part. Need I continue with the negative effects of not being the strong positive core power? Nothing good comes from being the core issue. It only leads to increased negativity in your personal and work life, which trickles down to your squad, leading to squad members quitting, loss of productivity and profits, and, in the end, the evitable separation of you from your workplace. And if you didn’t get that, that means you were fired.

Dwell on the Positive. Forget the Negative

Remember, the time you spend on negative things, you could’ve spent twice as much time on positive productive things enhancing you as an individual that would benefit your life and ultimately your squad.

Being the core power means doing the total opposite of what we mentioned above. And when you’re the total opposite of the aforementioned, you’ll get positive results. Taking care of yourself first each morning is vital to your team’s survival. Going to sleep with negativity is only going to harbor more negative feelings. So settle all arguments before you go to bed that you may have with your mate, partner, friend, or whomever you may have had a bad event with. In life, we will encounter problems that will take a little more finesse than a day’s work. Make sure to clear your mind and know that you can’t control everything in this world. Nothing in this world is finite. Let it go for the time being and don’t dwell on negative things you can’t control.

RELATED: HOW TO BE A SUCCESSFUL LEADER PART 2: MANAGING YOUR SQUAD

A Team is only as Good as its Leader

Try working out before work to release muscle tension, build focus, lower stress, and exorcise some personal demons.

Your squad looks to you as the Superman, Batman, or Wonder Woman. Let’s just say one of the founders of the Justice League. Your squad wants to know what the next move is and have confidence in you that it’s the right decision. Your squad looks up to you and relies on you as you set the tone each and every single day you walk into the office. If you come into work with a smile and cheerful mood, most of the time, you can change the attitude of someone from the positive energy you radiate.

The core of the sun radiates immense energy and the planets around the sun feed off that radiating energy. Do you know what would happen to Earth if the core of the sun weakened? Well, I can give you a hint: you wouldn’t be reading this right now. That’s how important it is for you to check yourself each day and strive to be better than you were the day before. Make sure your core is strong and emits positive energy so strong that it’s felt throughout your squad. Always strive to be the core power and not the core issue.

What thoughts do you have on being a successful leader? Let us know down in the comments.

This article originally published on GREY Journal.