Saw a LinkedIn article about “How can you develop your leadership skills with limited resources?”
It didn’t have my answer.
Answer: do volunteer leadership.
Bonus answer: this is a really GREAT way for youth to try out and improve leadership.
Benefits:
- Learn by doing and getting real-world feedback … far, far more effective than just reading, taking courses, etc.
- Leading volunteers is one of the hardest forms – if not hardest – forms of leadership. Doing well in this environment will position you superbly for better leadership in any non-volunteer organization.
- You will identify quickly and accurately areas of current strengths and where you need development to improve as a leader … real-time assessments 😉 You can always augment with other formal assessments, reading (check the library and loads of free stuff online!) as needed.
- If possible, find a senior leader or someone else to help mentor and coach you as you learn. Use online resources like ChatGPT, Claude, and other to feed situations you’re facing and get ideas … a form of online coaching (just don’t take the “advice” “as is,” just as you wouldn’t for anything else the AI LLMs provide!).
- This is the lowest cost, highest payback development you can do. Time will always be an investment for developing skills, no matter how you go about it. Time actually leading is like gold for development.
- Working in a volunteer-based organization will also expand your network in different and interesting ways.
- Â And, if a cause you support, furthers the cause!
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