This summer I chose a clear path for my studies in Proacademy. There I will learn how to be a leader, build up a team and be a one-call-closer. Naturally, that means I have to know how to lead my team. For that, I’ve started reading books about leadership. The book I read for this essay is from a finnish author Arto Hiltunen, and the title is Johtamisesta, which translates to About Being a Leader. Here I showcase some of the things that stopped me to think for a while.

Pick your teammates to success

You have to carefully choose with whom you work with. Some might say Apple’s workers put up to Jobs torment on them, because they had good enough benefits and salaries. Or that the workers, some of which were owners of the company, saw the technology and its potential and for that reason stood their stance (Arto Hiltunen,2015,52). I don’t believe either of the reasons to be the case here. They put up with bad treatment, because they were people that saw it necessary, were ready to be challenged, saw the vision Job had for Apple. Job had done phenomenal job getting the right people to be interested in the company.

Not everyone has the right mindset for the job. Just because someone thinks the leadership is unacceptable, doesn’t mean someone else couldn’t need it. Ambitious people, me myself included, want some ass kicking to get the most out of us. It makes us go to our uncomfort zone. That zone is were we grow as humans.

How to choose the right people. Set rules, that you want everyone working with you, to follow. Disqualify everyone not meeting your criteria. You don’t have to put up with people, you don’t like. They drain your energy and waste your time.

Make a strategy

Strategy tells where a company or a team wants to be in the future and what is done to achieve it. To know what needs to be done, you need to analyze your current state, to see what is the distance to your goal. A strategy can be very simple and concise at its best (Arto Hiltunen,2015,61). For me it is to help ten million people to life up to their potential so that they life their lives to the fullest. Right now I influence only a small number of people. To get going building my strategy I have to find ways to grow my influence. The key to that is my personal brand.

Respect those who work for you

A good leader has five things: flexibility, ethicality, energy, empathy and predictability (Arto Hiltunen,2015,96). It is to show respect towards your employees.

Predictability is to be a stable leader. A stable leader acts in a certain way. The more the employees knows who the leader acts, the better. I believe that is done through personal branding. You have to show your employees who you are, what do you stand for and what kind of expectations you have for your employees.

Everyone wants to be led by a leader that understands and supports them. The support comes from empathy. Empathy is not about being soft (Arto Hiltunen,2015,97). It is about being caring. Be a mentor for your team. Raise them. They do not always do the right things. Teach them. Empathy has flexibility woven into it.

Ethicality is about being just and rightful. As a leader you have to be direct, walk your talk and open (Arto Hiltunen,2015,99). Being all of those things requires confidence. Because, confidence makes you act consistently.

Fifth thing is to have energy. You run the business. You are the role model. Positive energy from the leader creates motivation (Arto Hiltunen,2015,98). That reminds me to keep good care of my sleep, exercise and eating.