8 ways to lead without the title

In our daily job how often do we tell ourselves: “That’s something I cannot decide myself”; “This is not on me”, “Who should be the decision maker?” Often the first thing that comes to mind is to speak to our manager.

How often when we have an issue and can’t find the solution easily, we escalate to our manager?

How often does we happen to be referred to people above us in the organisation and to be afraid of making mistakes or sharing our opinion?

The reality is that the job title and hierarchy matter to us and and regardless of whether we like it or not, it can affect our behavior, our motivation and the effectiveness of our leadership.

Brilliant people understand that developing the right skills and leadership is key to progress on their career, no matter their current job title. They work hard on their objectives and get ready to be promoted before the title is even given.

Here are 8 practical tips to develop your leadership and self-confidence which are independent of your title:

1. Be a strong influencer counts more than being the decision maker. Leadership is not making decisions, nor even by-passing your boss (…and pissing her/him off). True leadership is to inform and influence the decision makers and guide them towards the direction you feel is the best. Being a strong influencer makes you the de-facto leader and even more senior people will seek your consultation before making their decision. You don’t need a title to do that!
2. Be knowledgeable, be competent. The true leader is who knows.
   You will struggle to lead if you miss the actual problem or the context. When you have the knowledge, you become a reliable adviser for both in more senior a more junior positions.
3. Care about the big picture, the overall challenge, not just your bit.
   Understanding bigger and more complex matters helps you to engage with more senior people and put you on the same page. If you care just about your link of the chain, you will not develop the ability to “speak the same language” of your manager and her/his peers.
4. Be assertive, qualifying everything you say.
   The key point is not to say something but to contribute, add value and back up your words with facts. How many times have you heard your audience saying: “that’s actually a good question!” This is a good indicator to measure the value of the points you raise.
5. Be confident, don’t be afraid of speaking up (if qualified).
   Show initiative in the organisation, don’t wait for authorities to start the discussion before you share your view. If you are in a meeting, likely it’s because people want to hear from you. Raising the right question at the right time is key to resolve cross-domain problems, especially when people might not have the same level of understanding. So, not only will you get exposure from initiating the discussion, it will also help others to get on the same playing field.
6. Be creative, embrace new challenges and challenge ideas from others.
   Great value can arise from “genuine disagreements”. Don’t be afraid to start a debate or being unpopular. Show your lateral thinking and creativity to approach situations in a different way. Be an active contributor of improvements in your area and support others on their ventures, bearing in mind support can often mean a simple word of encouragement, not necessarily a lot of effort from you.
7. Be honest, don’t take credit for what have not delivered. You don’t need it.
   Acknowledge, give credit and shine light on others when is due. Doing this will make you more credible, respected and people will open up to you, without fearing you can use the info for your advantage.
8. Be an effective communicator, by adapting your perspective to understand others.
   Behave according to the situation, get into other people’s shoes and present what is most relevant to them to get their “buy in”. An effective communication happens when you “satisfy” your audience. It’s not an exercise of sharing what you believe is important.

Co-author Alex Dimitrov