Its early January and I’m writing this while bobbing on a boat off Waiheke Island!  In boating terms it’s simple: the leader is the captain, working out where you’re going, charting a course, making sure those on your crew understand where you are going and why, how, and more importantly getting them there safely and ensuring they enjoy the journey. A very famous quote by Simon Sinek says Leadership is not about being in charge, leadership is about taking care of those in our charge – and I totally agree!

Leadership means setting an example, establishing standards, being empathetic and loyal to those in your charge. It’s about having their backs and understanding they’ll make mistakes, while understanding your role is to help them with the learning – after all you can’t be successful without making mistakes or failing from time to time. It’s about helping people grow and develop, supporting them to realise their full potential, helping them discover qualities and strengths in themselves they weren’t aware of, and helping them get out of their own way by providing support and encouragement.

Leadership means making a commitment, taking responsibility, communicating effectively and having a positive attitude. It’s about hope and direction, it means leading the team and working with people in their areas of brilliance. It’s all about working out how to achieve, while also on the flip side being prepared to take the fall and re-motivate should it all turn to ‘you know what’! It’s about looking at any problem from all angles and coming up with a solution that will work for everyone.

Leadership isn’t about the leader, it’s about those they lead. As the Venus CEO, leadership is about me using my experience – both business and personal. It’s about recognising my flaws and faults and calling others in to work alongside me in their areas of brilliance.  It’s about being the one who takes the responsibility to move the business / community forward for the good of all and  taking the hits when people disagree, when things go wrong and keeping going cause you have the big picture in mind. It’s about stepping up and looking after things, leaving whatever you’re doing better than when you found it. After all what’s life about if not making a positive difference in your part of the world?

As women we lead quite naturally in our families. ‘Mum’ is usually the centre of the universe for the family, yet we don’t see it as leadership. In a business sense we tend to shy away from it, perhaps because we’ll be accused of being bossy? I say – own your awesome, speak up, go forth and lead in your part of the world – we’ll all be better for you doing that!

If you haven’t booked in a Power RAVE with Carolyn yet – don’t waste another minute! Get in touch with Bronwyn (Bronwyn.gregory@venusbusinesswomen.co.nz) to schedule a time in Caroloyn’s diary.