Being a Mom Taught Me to be a leader
When you look up qualities of an effective leader, there are a lot that ring true as things I learned about being a mother.
Effective Communication
I learned how to talk to people on the level they are on. What is their skill level, experience, and ability to understand the language I was speaking? Talking to a four year old about complex regulations or machinery is totally different than speaking to a 40 year old industry expert. It makes you think outside the box when giving examples and tests your knowledge of the big words you use every day.
Use simple and effective tools like post-its and markers!
Delegation
Delegation and empowerment are the handiest tools for leading a child or a team of people. There has to be a plan, tasks need to be assigned, and others need to feel like the choice they make is going to be alright with the “upper management.” As a mom, I think about the tasks that can be done by a four year old so that you can get dinner made, pets fed, and laundry washed while still making sure they are occupied. As a leader in corporate America, I would be focused on who can create the PowerPoint, write the content without having to write it for them, and present the project to the right people.
Time management
How many calendars do you have to manage? How many ongoing and last-minute commitments do you have to maneuver?
If you are crazy like me and have a huge gap in age between kids, one is playing soccer in one location while the other is needing to be picked up from school. Add in a job, dinner, and anything else you have to do after work - make cookies for the bake sale, feed animals, do laundry, homework, baths, etc. and you have quite the need for effective productivity. Get it done and get it done right, the first time!
Determination
You have a goal as a mom: keep the kids healthy and alive. Outside of that you have to also keep the house clean, keep your sanity, and try to have a good time. It’s ok to show you mean business when it comes to meeting these goals. Saying no candy before breakfast (every morning), don’t run in a parking lot...doing these things have consequences, and you can dole them out as you see fit with kids. With your coworkers, it’s a little different but there are still consequences, but you can’t take candy away from them for bad behavior.
Accountability
If you ever tell your five year old you are going to make cookies after dinner…you better believe they will remember what you said. They might not remember to brush their teeth when they wake up even though you have said it every day for the last three years, but they WILL remember the cookies. Kids keep you accountable for doing the things you agree to, but don’t really wanna do. As a leader, you are going to have things you love doing and a few that you don’t want to do but have to be done. When you know someone is going to follow up with you on what you did or didn’t do...you are more likely to get things done or delegated.
Resilience
There are so many examples of this I could use from trying to settle the crying baby for the 10th time in one night...to arguing with your teenager as to why math really is important instead of just yelling at them to do the damn homework. Every day is a test of your patience. Some days it’s easy and fun, and others it’s so hard to show up. You wanna call in sick, as the parent. This is a job that you are paid back for, but it is SO many years later you start to wonder if you will get any ROI. In your time as a leader, you will often feel the same things as you repeat directions to those you work with and will often want to say “because I said so” after they ask why for the 40th time. The time you spend being consistent will pay off in both aspects.
Humility
When people look to you as a leader, they expect you to know a LOT more than they do. If you think you know it all, you will be called out at some point by your kids or your coworkers. Once they see you are wrong, it can be detrimental to your image. How you handle this type of situation determines how your team, peers, or kids will treat you going forward. Learning how to say “I have no clue what the answer is, but let me do some research” can be hard as you are trying to define yourself as the expert but that is what it takes to earn respect, grow your knowledge, and learn that your idea might be good, but not the best every time.
Seven lessons moms learn that make them effective leaders:
How to talk to people on the level they are on.
How to delegate and empower.
Time management for mandatory and social obligations.
Determined and resolute attitude.
Accountability.
Resilience.
Humility
Peace and Love
Teresea
Photo Credit: Unsplash
