Leadership is never easy. It comes naturally to some, but others need some time to develop their leadership skills. Even when you’re already considered a good leader it’s probably still not that easy for you. This is because great leaders have great responsibilities, and even though they build self-organizing teams, they usually carry a heavy weight on their shoulders.
Strong leaders are what companies need; one may call them the greatest attribute of our times. In the current climate of high salaries and inflated expectations, leading has become more difficult and demanding. Great leaders have the power to build others up and empower them to choose and follow the path of great achievement. Leaders encourage hard work, dedication and inquisitiveness. In IT, the role of a leader is to push the boundaries of others – both in terms of technology and organization.
Have you ever heard of Washington Business Week. Since 1976, it’s been helping students grow their business skills in the realistic environment of building and sustaining their own company. It’s an initiative created by people wanting to empower young adults to develop their skills and confidence going into the world of business. Over the course of one week of intense activities, students learn about purchasing, sales, marketing, hiring, dividends, relations with stakeholders and clients. It’s an overwhelming amount of knowledge learned in a very short period of time – so it’s exactly like real life when a young person joins an enterprise for the first time. Suddenly, there are some big responsibilities to take care of and one has to be reliable and professional. Experiencing Business Week gives students the courage to make decisions, believe in themselves, and act on their intuition to achieve certain goals.
One such example of these business weeks in Poland takes place in the city of Gdańsk. Located on the Gulf of Gdańsk, the ember capital amazes with its architecture, history, splendor and beauty. Gdańsk is a great place to live with its positive atmosphere and lots of impressive social initiatives. Gdańsk Business Week has been operating for many years now and LEOCODE is a proud member of it. For the second year now we’ve had the undeniable pleasure to support this Business Week with our experience and knowledge.
During this year’s edition, I had the opportunity to co-advise a group of amazing young people who, within a week, so many promising results that I left the event with the feeling of immense pride and joy. It was an honor to be able to get to know them and facilitate their work. I also had the best co-advisor possible, Paul, who is one of the wisest people I’ve ever met. His wisdom, kindness and honesty have enriched me as a person and a leader.
It’s been three months since Gdańsk Business Week ended. If I were to pinpoint the single most important thing I’ve learned during that time, I would say that every leader should provide opportunities instead of instructions. Instructions are never followed to the tee, but well-understood goals can be met in many different ways. It’s not easy to let go of guiding the ones you’re responsible for, but a leader must ensure that the team knows what is to be done, instead of only how to do it. Try this approach and you will be amazed at the results you’ll get.
