Is being a Maverick as a New Leader a Good Idea?
As a new leader, you’re under scrutiny for how well you achieve your targets, and this means relying on your team. Getting your team to a level of peak performance requires helping them work better together. There are few better ways to pull a team together than by solving a problem and working towards an innovative solution.
This may sound like I’m changing the subject, but bear with me… A few months ago I wrote about the role of outliers in organizations. You know them. They’re the ones who don’t seem to fit in, who don’t care much what others think of them, the oddballs. Mavericks like these are needed, however, when it comes to innovation.
Why the Maverick?
Since they’re less concerned about the opinion of others, mavericks are more likely to open their mouths and share their ideas, and crazy ones at that. And crazy ideas often lead to more innovative products and services for customers, more elegant internal systems, and more effective marketing. In addition, your team could be more productive and motivated by new found energy.
If you’re newly in a leadership role, I invite you to think like a maverick, keep your radar out for the mavericks on your team, and nurture the inner maverick in all your people.
Disillusioned with brainstorming?
Now, I hear you thinking, “Yeah, brainstorming sessions are great, but they don’t go anywhere.” That definitely happens but only when the process of brainstorming, and the before and after of it, are unclear. For those with little experience of planning for and facilitating creative problem-solving, this can be a mysterious process and can definitely lead to wasted time, and that’s many of us! I created the Light Bulb Thinking™ framework to take the guess work out of creatively solving problems and clearing the path to innovation, and I use it as the basis for leadership coaching and team training.
How can you encourage peak performance and innovation?
Leaders who want a culture of peak creative performance and a clear path to innovation:
· Build a diverse team
· Nurture the inner maverick
· Encourage a mindset of learning from mistakes and failures
· Develop their team’s capacity for creative problem-solving through training and practice
· Give the team autonomy to get their work done
· Encourage intentional and open communication
· Lead by example
Congrats: you’re on your way to becoming a Maverick Leader!
Are you a new leader, or an experienced leader looking to significantly improve performance? Join our mailing list for tips and food for thought, and get the free chapter “Think Like A Maverick” from the book “Winner’s Mindset”: www.thepotentialcenter.com/maverickmindset
“Ellia worked with me on brainstorming for an album release marketing campaign. The session was fun and inspiring, and not what I expected! Ellia has a unique gift for finding the creative strands within you, and I left with some very definite ‘Light Bulb’ moments!”