6 Steps to Shape Your Reputation as a Leader

6 Steps to Shape Your Reputation as a Leader6 Steps to Shape Your Reputation as a Leader Plenty of managers jump into their roles, multi-tasking, making decisions, and keeping their kollektivs running without giving much thought to how theyre leading and how others see them.But when you deliberately determine what youd like to be known for as a leader, youll have a desired outcome to work toward and be able to prioritize the actions most likely to help you get the results you want in your work and your career.As you go through the steps below, write out your answers using our worksheet Developing your reputation as a leader .1. Write down the leadership attributes you want to embody and project.Do you want to be known for being results-oriented, for being strategic and innovative, for building a collaborative and close-knit team culture, or for something else entirely?To narrow down your ideas, ask yourself questions like2. Use what youve jotted down to create a per sonal mission votum .From what youve learned about your own strengths, passions, and goals, and the traits you admire in others, decide what you want to be known for as a leader. Focus in on one or two key aspects that excite you most, will help you get where you want to go in your career, and align with what your team and organization needs.Try to keep your statement short and simple, much like a mission statement. For example I want to be known as a supportive manager who effectively develops future company leaders.3. List the actions youll need to take in order to fulfill your personal statement .When you translate your broad statement into specific, day-to-day actions, youll paint a clear picture of the kinds of tasks and habits that will lead you to achieve your goal.Be sure you add enough detail - including who, what, and when - so that its easy to know whether youre succeeding. For example, if you want to be known for effectively developing future company leaders Also, l ist what obstacles youre likely to encounter when taking these actions and think through ways to overcome them. For example, what will you do if your team receives a large-volume project that takes up all of their time, but means only mundane work for your more experienced direct reports? Perhaps you could ask experienced team members if theyre interested in mentoring less experienced teammates on the project. This way, the experts gain experience in providing guidance while the newbies learn new techniques.4. Communicate how you want to be seen as a leader to your manager, peers, and team.When others know your goal, theyll be better equipped to give you feedback on where youre doing well and where youre falling short. They may also be able to give you new ideas to help you succeed.Also, sharing your desired reputation can help people learn more about your style and priorities quickly, almost like providing operating instructions that can help others understand your expectations and work with you more effectively. One manager we know hands out a sheet called What its like to work with Megan to new team members as part of her onboarding process. Try writing out phrases like, If youre on my team, you can expect _______.5. Align your verbunden profiles and how you introduce yourself with your personal statement.Job candidates, colleagues, clients, and others are bound to seek you out online. You also probably introduce yourself a certain way in client meetings and at professional events. Do the messages youre sending out - both online and in-person - align with the personal statement youre trying to make as a leader?If not, make updates. For example, your online profiles might emphasize your former employers, job duties, and educational background. But if theres nothing there to reflect your personal statement - say, your commitment to developing direct reports - then add something about it to your summary or list of achievements. Or ask direct reports yo uve helped in the past (not just former bosses) to write recommendations. Think about the message your photo sends, too.In terms of how you typically introduce yourself, instead of a generic statement, like, Im a customer success manager at Company X and have been there three years, align it with a team-oriented personal statement by saying, I help serve customers and develop up-and-coming leaders at Company X.6. Set reminders to reflect on your progress or changes youd like to make.The best professional narrative in the world wont resonate and take hold if you dont actually follow through on it. Its critical that you time-out to reflect on how youre doing. So be sure to periodically look up from your day-to-day work to assess yourself. Mark your calendar at an appropriate time frame, perhaps quarterly, and ask yourself questions likeKeep in mind that your personal mission will change over time as you build new skills and advance in your career, as your team changes, or as your c ompanys circumstances and priorities change.