How to lead up

Life 101: Develop competence. Build the discipline to finish small projects. Solve interesting problems. Help good clients succeed. Do lots of small good things for other people. Share the credit. Take the blame. Share your journey. Associate with good people. Help others realise they are capable of more than they think. Give them confidence. Lift them up if they fail. Celebrate their courage. Ask them what they learnt. Be present in their lives. Live with purpose and intention.

The days of sending your CV over to HR and waiting for the job offer are dead. No great job offers come through HR.

How to lead up in any organization

As Seth Godin says, “No one is going to pick you. Pick yourself.”

• “My boss won’t let me”
• “They won’t give me permission”
• “I don’t have a publisher”
• “Oprah Winfrey won’t respond to my emails”

Stop “waiting to be chosen” and “Pick yourself”.

If you want to write, write. If you want to make videos, make videos. If you want to be creative, make things with creativity. If you want to run an event, invite 50 people to an event. Don’t wait for permission… because there is nobody left to actually give you permission.

If you ask your boss for permission to do something, this is what they hear: “If this fails, blame goes to you (because you gave me permission); if this succeeds, credit goes to me (because I did it)”. Only an idiot would take this deal. Your boss didn’t get there by being an idiot.

Great problems create great leaders. Take the time to build the foundations before you build the skyscraper. Take responsibility. Become a trusted team member.