What Are Your Superpowers?

It’s not only the fictional character Superman who has superpowers; we all do.

My conversations with clients recently have focused on encouraging leaders around the world to be curious about their superpowers. What are we talking about? These are the things which all of us do effortlessly, brilliantly, almost imperceptibly, often without even realising it, and without even really understanding how we do it; we just do it. The result? Others appreciate our superpowers deeply.

In a fast paced, intense, urgency-biased, post-Covid business world, it’s very easy - and completely understandable - to focus exclusively on the ‘reds’, the ‘deltas’, the problems, the issues, and the gaps which we and our teams have and look to fix them. That’s understandable of course. However if we’re going to lead more effectively, engage more effectively, communicate more effectively, inspire more effectively and strengthen relationships more effectively, then we need to understand what we’re really, really, really good at, and be curious about how to use it, to serve the conversation, to improve a professional relationship, to overcome a challenge, to remove a barrier, to make progress, to increase the engagement and satisfaction of our customers, our colleagues, our team and ourselves.

Leadership is a relationship business first and foremost, and that means leaning into your strengths, your superpowers, for the benefit of everyone.

And if you’re not sure what your superpowers are? Start asking those whom you trust to share… and you might well be surprised as to what you hear.