3 CHEAP Ways to Grow your Leadership Skills

If you can't remember the last time you read a book, took a course that wasn't required training for the job, or spent a few minutes reflecting on your personal growth lately, then my dear, it's no wonder you feel crappy half the time!

You feel crappy because you keep going around and around
I'll be honest with you. It sucks being a hamster when you are supposed to be a leader. Yet that's where many leaders are.

Far too many leaders focus on the same old stuff every day! Round and round you go.
     Sure, you might experience a different flavour of crisis.
     The drama today could sound a bit different.
     Yet, when you look back over the last year or two, does it look the same?
 
Are you trapped?
If you keep experiencing basically the same crisis and dramas every day, that might be because you've become trapped in the same spot. It's like swamp water that doesn't move, and it's why you feel icky.

If you feel icky,
​perhaps your growth & development has stagnated

Are you living in the past? 
Just like those who still have the 80's hair doo, are you approaching problems with the same mindset and skillset that you learned 10, 20 or 30 years ago? Those old ways are not going to keep you at the forefront of leadership or help you to enjoy life.

Do you want to know what else is causing you grief?
Let me explain something that you may not have considered. If you are like many women leaders, at times, you struggle with imposter syndrome. Instead of feeling competent, capable and confident, you feel:

• Incapable
• Insecure &
• Incompetent

And you hope no one will ever figure out how inadequate you really are.

To get out of imposter syndrome, you need the training to feel competent and thus confident! If you aren't getting the training you need, then you keep feeling like you are incapable, insecure and incompetent.

Ongoing personal & professional development 
​is your path to confidence

Here's how to get moving 
Strong, confident and capable leaders are those that are continually learning and growing. And let me tell you a little secret, it's by engaging in ongoing personal and professional development that you will find success in leadership and happiness with life.

But you may be hung up here 
Here is the extra challenge. If you are like most women, you are:

• Waiting for someone to approve your training
• Hoping to find funds for your development.
• Wondering how you would fit training into your already busy schedule!

Let me tell you a little secret:

1. You don't need anyone to approve your training or give you permission. You can take training right now to make you a more confident and happier leader.
2. You don't need a ton of time. Some of the best training happens in smaller bits. It gives you time to digest and apply it!
3. It's not costly. You can grow yourself without spending a dime or very little. 

THREE FREE PLACES TO LEARN

1. Watch my Leadership Excellence series
2. Watch a playlist of leadership TedTalks
3. Choose a mini-training session to watch and grab your free guide sheet here

THREE LOW-COST PLACES TO LEARN 

1. Purchase a library card 
2. Get an Audible membership  Grab my list of favourite books to listen to here
3. Subscribe to The Training Library​

THREE WAYS TO FIT TRAINING IN

1. Get up 15 minutes earlier and do a bit of journaling
2. While driving is a great time to listen to an audiobook or shut everything off and do some inner reflection.
3. Take a lunch break and spend 15 minutes of it watching a video or working through an online course. 
4. BONUS: Watch a video with your team at a staff meeting or create a time each month for team online learning. The team that learns together stays together. 

 
Remember, effective leaders,
️️️√ Focus on learning and growth.
√ They are continually developing themselves
√ Keep the knowledge flowing through them and onto the people they serve.

DO THIS

1. Pick one of the options above for either free or low-cost ways to learn.
2. Choose one of the suggestions to fit it in
3. Tell us what you did in the Confident Women Leader's Community​​

Remember, ongoing personal & professional development is your path to confidence. If you want help to find low-cost ongoing training, learn more about The Training Library below.