The best leaders among us think big. Visionary leaders create a future that seems impossible to others. Think Kennedy, who sent a man to the moon or Steve Jobs, who imagined the iPod and iPhone, which would transform the way we communicate with one another.
There are everyday heroes who make big, audacious, impossible things happen. Like Desray Shuck, former head of leadership development for the global mining conglomerate, Anglo American, with operations across six continents and with over 63,000 people worldwide.
Desray’s challenge was to resource, identify, develop and retain the diverse internal and external talent pool required to achieve Anglo American’s business objectives.
- Understand your key stakeholders: You have to first begin with understanding our key stakeholders and the interconnectedness between positions and influence. You have to learn to determine and identify people who care about your cause and things that you care about. Determine people who exercise influence and who will resist big ideas. In other words, be aware and alert.
- Meet and carefully listen to the stakeholders: Before Desray had come into picture each business unit, each region and each geography had its independent learning, development strategy and offerings. She had to carefully listen and understand what they were doing and what they required to arrive at a relevant and valued solution. Ensure your ideas are in sync with the organizational strategy.
- Desray connected everything she was doing to the overall strategy of the organization: Desray connected everything she did with the company’s organizational strategy.
- Address pain points: Address issues that frustrates and hurts people. Desray and her team asked the key stakeholders about their definition of success and what would be their ideal situation.
- Maintaining simplicity: Share the essence of your ideas in a simple manner. Probably a graphical representation is the best. Find out easier ways to share why you are so excited about the idea and use visual diagrams to do it.
- Build something great to inspire other to be a part of it: Winners are always loved by people. Being a winner attracts the energy and attention of others who can associate and contribute to your big idea.
The author encourages people to think and dream big, which is exactly what big leaders do. At last she advises people to implement these six steps that will assist you make your vision into reality.
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