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3 Things Successful Leaders Do To Bring Out The Best In People

Many of today's biggest leaders and influential people credit mentors and their teachings as the main source behind their success. The following are three of the techniques that work for me and have my own unique spin on how to incorporate them into your daily life.
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Successful business colleagues, laughing
Yuri Arcurs via Getty Images
Successful business colleagues, laughing

What is the perfect formula to achieve success? The truth is it's different for each person. When I created The CUBE Principle, I set out to provide a system of techniques that worked for me in life and in business when it comes to achieving goals and overcoming obstacles.

The techniques I use aren't my own, they are just organized in a way that make sense to me and have, in turn, helped others to take control of the outcomes in their lives. This isn't something new to the industry; in fact, many of today's biggest leaders and influential people credit mentors and their teachings as the main source behind their success. The following are three of the techniques that work for me and have my own unique spin on how to incorporate them into your daily life.

1.Recognize the Emotional Energy You're Projecting

There are many ways to describe the "vibe" you put out into the world. Some call it "behavioural types" others call it "styles of communication" and I call it "energy types."

No matter what you call it, the general consensus is that it is made up of four main pillars: Passive, Concealed Aggressive, Openly Aggressive and Assertive. I came to discover these energy types when after two job interviews (at two completely different companies), I wasn't the successful candidate. When I asked the interviewers at each company what I could do to improve for my next interviews, I was shocked to receive the same answer from both -- "Well, we feel you just have too much energy."

This sent me on a journey to discover the energy that I was projecting, and how I could modify it to achieve success. I could write a whole article on just this subject, but for the purposes of this piece, I will say that what has worked for me is to approach situations with assertive energy. This is different from the three other types as it projects the following to others:

  • Self-confidence
  • An even-tempered demeanor
  • An upright, comfortable posture which includes direct eye contact
  • The ability to ask for help when needed

Recognizing what energy you're putting out there might just help you land that next job.

2.Create Your Roadmap to Success

This is your action plan for the goals you're trying to reach. It is also an opportunity to rate your personal performance. Being able to create the RIGHT action plan will require you to be in the right environment both physically and mentally and goes above and beyond just creating SMART goals.

In his book Psycho-Cybernetics, Dr. Maxwell Maltz describes a technique he calls "The Theater of the Mind." This involves a visualization process where you actually imagine all the steps to achieving the goal you've set out to do, going through each step and succeeding.

Many high-performance athletes do this before a big game, and can attest that the results of visualizing versus not visualizing are vastly different. Personally, this has done wonders for me before a big presentation or sports competition and is transferrable to any facet of life imaginable -- so get your thinking caps on!

3.Utilize Others Strengths and Skills

The best leaders recognize the skills they have and also the ones they don't. Sure, it's possible to be a Jack of all trades, but even if you're highly skilled at a number of things, there's only so much that one person can do on their own. The key to building cohesion in a team setting is to understand what you are good at, and where you could use the perspectives or strengths of others. By understanding where you can improve, you will not only become a stronger leader, but you will appreciate the talents that others possess.

A great example of this is back in April of this year. Microsoft announced a new pilot program to hire people with autism. An article in Bloomberg Business describes a computer science graduate with autism, David McNabb. Author Olga Kharif said:

"Many people with autism, which impedes social and communication skills, are unemployed, and those who work often have low-paying jobs. Interviews are hard because many have trouble making eye contact and are sensitive to noise or light. Yet, like McNabb, some are high-functioning and exceptional at repetitive tasks, recognizing data patterns and finding bugs in software -- a good fit for the technology industry."

The fact that Microsoft is a forward-thinking and inclusive employer is fantastic in itself, but to add to that, they have stepped outside the conventional "norms" to not pass judgement and provide opportunities to individuals who might otherwise not get a second look -- all because they recognize the unique set of skills these candidates have and how that will benefit their team.

I too am not afraid to admit when I'm not the best at something, and the second I call on the strengths of those who may be better suited, the end results have always been better than if I try to pursue it on my own.

I hope these tips I've provided you give you clarity on how you can achieve success in your own life. I believe there isn't one perfect "recipe" that works for everyone, but if we creatively utilize our best energy in a way that works for us; we might be surprised how well we work with others in the process.

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