Blog 1: How to be a leader in difficult times

   Hello readers! 

My name is Katie and I am starting my own leadership and productive lifestyle blog. I believe that a healthy mind leads to a healthy body, which leads to a healthy business. I hope to use this blog to give you the inspiration you need to be an effective leader no matter where you are in life. You could be drinking wine in a bathtub or changing tires, there's nothing wrong with either. My lessons should apply to all audiences, including kids, so feel free to use this blog to also help teach your kids good skills to have for their future careers. 

So today I wanted to talk about being a leader in a difficult time. I would consider our current situations in society, with COVID-19 and the protests happening all around the world, a difficult time. It's during this time that our character can really be challenged, and we can use these challenging times to motivate ourselves to grow and learn more about ourselves. 

So the things to remember for being a good leader during a tough time is to listen, respect, and research for understanding. 

First off, listening. It may seem pretty simple, but it helps a ton. Just shutting up and letting someone else talk can allow the other person to feel valued and respected. They'll listen to you more if you reciprocate this listening skill. Silence can contain a lot of information, feeling, and emotion, and is good for helping to become an effective leader. Making sure that people feel that they're heard makes them want to respect you more. 

Speaking of respect, by giving your coworkers, superiors, and people under you, respect, you're showing that as a leader you respect all types and treat everyone the same. This idea can be summarized in a quote from J.K. Rowling: "if you want to see the true measure of a man, watch how he treats his inferiors, not his equals." By giving people respect who may not deserve it, you're sending out the message that you deserve respect yourself. People will have more positive feedback about your leadership, listen to you more, and possibly follow through on your decisions. 

Lastly, as a leader, it is important to do your research in order to understand your subordinates and peers better. This may be taking the time to get a cup of coffee and learn more about your coworkers' personal lives, or using team-building exercises to understand more about how your team works together. Doing your research will help you avoid both awkward situations, as well as make you look more personable and caring towards others. And who doesn't want that reputation? 

So that's it for my blog today. Take some time to be mindful and focus on these three tips that I've shared with you, asking how you can utilize them in your own life. And feel free to work on these skills with other people! The more the merrier. 

Until next time, 

Katie