Why Learning is a Leader's Most Important Skill

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Comments

[Steve Sherlock]

Kevin, excellent point! And leaders who are not life long learners will be short term successes, or only fit in and work in those circumstances where what they know is "still current". As the world flattens and competition increases across all industries, these non-learning leaders will be forced to either learn, or step aside.

I would go further and extend this to all of us, each leaders in our own way. If we do not take life long learning as an underlying principle, we will fall behind.

One of the glories of this Ho'ohana community is that while we formally come together each September, Rosa prompts and urges us to do so all year.

I want to thank you for your participation in this month long event, and by extention to the others before you: each day, the postings have been spot on. I just spent the weekend at the first PodCamp in Boston and returned home to read this. Good timing! Thank you!

[Phil Gerbyshak]

Great article Kevin. I had never thought of learning as being the ONE, most important skill for leaders, but you make a persuasive argument, and I think you're right. Well done, and well illustrated.

[Chris]

I too hadn't thought of learning as being THE skill but your argument is not just persuasive but strongly resonant with my own experiences of managing and being managed. Thanks for the insight

[toni]

Excellent insight Kevin! Your words ring so true to me. Without the want, desire and need to learn, none of the other things exist for leaders. Mahalo for the paradigm shift and the tribute to the need to learn.

[Rosa Say]

Kevin, I’ve long thought of leaders as being the ones who live in the brave new world of fresh ideas, brave experiments, and future-predicting visions, and certainly, all of those things are power-generated by the propulsion of learning. Leaders inspire us, and they can’t do that without being inspired themselves first; that’s what learning does for them.

With that as my usual starting point, what you’ve offered here adds some significant texture. I certainly do believe that leaders are champions of change, and that they are role models. Because I normally think of leaders as the best-fit partners to great managers, I love the thought that with both embracing the complexity of our humanity they are also very reasonable, and very grounded in knowing they must continue to learn. They simply must. It becomes a non-negotiable, and for me, that’s a very comforting thought.

As you say, better leader = better human.
Better human = better aloha.

[tim]

Kevin:

You've got me thinking about the leader's *underlying* skills. Learning is definitely an asset that a leader must have. I would say that there are certain things that lie at the core of an effective leader that isn't always obvious on the surface. I believe you nailed it with learning. In fact, I would say that the capacity to keep a learning mindset could be a combination of some other *underlying* attributes.

Learning = humility combined with courage.

What do you think?