“Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being ” – Goethe
Joyful Leadership is about growing together in a strategic proactive way.
– striving to help others,
– striving to give value to others and thus develop others.
Individual development in an organization or community is one of the key factors that determines if people will stay
It is therefore absolutely necessary for leaders to identify individual needs, as well as areas of training along-side driving forces that determine if those individuals will want to stay or leave the organization.
A successful system or culture dedicated to developing others consists of 3 main elements
1) The individual
2) The trainer, or leader, or teacher
3) The process 
Both the individual and the trainers nature, age, skills, styles and abilities have to be considered when matching them together.
If a proper match is not made then there will not be a correct flow of energies and development will not take place.
The individual should be receptive and open.
And the trainer should be knowledgeable and of good character.
Unless the trainer can show good example by their own lifestyle, in their skills, abilities, methods and personal conduct then the training process will be hampered and eventually halted.
It is said that there are 4 key elements in “developing others” that leaders should be aware of and practice.
- they should regularly hold Performance discussions with the individual, point out short falls and strengths
- they should Involve other team members in helping develop the individual
expertise is all around us, use it, engage it, benefit from it - leaders should show Appreciation and recognition where due, but at the same time being careful not to “massage the false ego”
- and leaders should be aware of the nature and abilities of the individual – trying to find a suitable engagement or job that compliments them
So one may ask – What activities should a trainer do ensure that those individuals they are helping really get the help they need.
- Identify competency gaps – asses what are the weak and strong points of the individual
- Develop personal development plan – develop a roadmap for progress
- Assess performance regularly and collect data to monitor progress – I am keen on holding data in tables and plotting charts to visually see how progress is taking place
- Train, instruct, demonstrate, again personal example is such a powerful tool in the hand of the trainer, it has such an influence on the individual
- Provides on-the-job learning, theory and practice meet when we are trained in real life situations, nothing beats getting your hands dirty and providing on the job training
- Reward individuals who are putting in the effort, there has to be a celebration and recognition of progress, we are not robots! We all need some warm-and-fuzzies!
- Arrange the proper budget allocation for training – unless there is time and fund allocated for training then it is simply not going to happen.
Here you can see that the trainer has a lot of responsibility to ensure individuals get the help they need.
Be a catalyst for growth!
- in your own life, find an inspirational trainer who can help you
– and in others lives, be a good example to others, providing inspiration – and if you are in a position to help develop others and train them then hone your skill set and “Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you help them to become what they are capable of being”
“We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort.”
Jesse Owens, 4 time Olympic Gold medalist – perhaps the greatest and most famous athlete in track and field history.
Go for it!
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SOURCES:
- Zoltan Hosszu, Joyful Leadership Manual