Why communication is the one superpower every leader needs

By Heather Campbell


Hey there! I’ve promised to help you turbo-charge your results by helping you build some super productive keystone habits.

First, quick reminder of what a keystone habit is. A keystone habit is simple change that you make; one that automatically impacts many other habits in a positive way. With a keystone habit, you really get a bigger bang for your buck.

Here’s an example of a keystone habit that one leader in my network has been working on recently.  

Like many people, this leader has a habit of listening to business-related audio books when he’s walking his dog each morning. And, like may, he used to listen to the book, think it was full of great ideas and – so what?

The keystone habit?

Taking action instead of just listening.

He now takes one idea from the audio book each day and notes it in his diary. Then, at the end of each week, he selects one change he will make based on everything he has learned that week.

As a result, he’s actually changing many different habits as a result of this one change – and not just listening impassively.

My goal throughout this series to make it easier for you to achieve your goals by focussing on the small changes you can make without too much effort and still get big results!

Last week I promised to turbo-charge the impact of implementing the keystone habits I’ll share by focussing on those that relate to an overall big, chunky, life-changing superpower habit.

Make this your achievable superpower

That big, chunky, life-changing superpower habit? (Virtual drum roll here).

It’s the way you communicate each and every day. Communication is a big, chunky, life-changing superpower habit that  – when you get it right – will become the no. 1 (attainable) superpower every leader needs.

But don’t just take my word for it.

Good communication appears twice in the top 10 most important leadership competences as identified by leaders themselves.  Google any list of top leadership attributes and you’ll find communication appears.

Of course, communication takes many forms – maybe it appears as ‘good listener’, ‘collaborates effectively’, ‘shows empathy’. These are ALL forms of communication.

The problem I find is, the more senior the leader, the longer it is likely to be since they last focussed on refining and updating their communication skills. Too often, the focus on developing these stops as soon as you leave the ranks of middle management.

Even the C-suite must develop this superpower

Crazy when you consider that the more senior you become, the more people your communication impacts!

This big, chunky, life-changing superpower habit needs more conscious development as you reach C-suite level. And, if you’re still at a stage in your career where you’re aspiring to get there, developing it can only bring you results faster.

Next time, I’ll tell you about the first keystone habit I recommend you work on to get some seriously impressive results from your communication superpower.

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