Working Dairy 05 - What is Leadership?

Interestingly, this was an experience that suddenly dawned on me during an after-work chat. My high school teacher once commented that I was perfect for leadership, but my introverted and hesitant personality and some past failed leadership experiences had kept me from believing that comment. But I knew that every time I was eager to try to present my ideas to others and try together to see if they would work.

(My workplace and name card, said 'AIRFLY Market Department, Ying Li')

Once in a while, I had a casual conversation with a colleague of mine, who I thought was one of the most talented leaders I had ever met, and her words made me realise exactly what I was missing to be a leader. She told me that she thought the most important thing as a leader or manager was to know the people around you, not only at work but also through daily communication and dealing with people to know the characteristics and habits of each person, so as to be able to tell what kind of people are suitable for what kind of tasks. Motivation is one of the most important factors for success at work, and the way to motivate a person can be to put him or her in an area where he or she is suitable and comfortable. Not everyone has the courage to suggest what they are good at, and some people still do not realise what they are good at something, and this is when someone needs to be skilled at discovering their potential. This is the gift of leadership and the ability to do so. For example, she thinks that I am willing to give my opinion even in areas I am not familiar with and that my ideas are well thought out and logical, so she can see that I am a person who is willing to think and share my ideas. This makes me more suited to a planning role.

She started working with me about a month after I started, but since then I have felt much more motivated to work. Mainly because she made everything clear to me and she was very open to sharing her experience and discussing more possibilities with me. At the time I thought that our company was small and had a small number of employees, so many of them were overloaded. This is a time when increased motivation at work would be particularly obvious and important. My colleague did this, and not only did she do her job well, but she also motivated her colleagues. She made me realise that I still had a lot to learn about leadership, and just as she taught me about marketing and data analysis, she also taught me how to develop leadership, making it feel less like an empty concept.