“Achieving something that’s never been done before starts with challenging yourself to do things that you’ve never done before.” – Melinda Gates

There are a lot of people in the world who say they want to be in leadership roles.  They want to lead teams, or committees, or organizations, and they want to do it for lots of different reasons.  Some say they want to make decisions or make an impact.  Some say they just want to make money.

Regardless of the reasons, a lot of people spend a lot of time and effort working themselves into leadership roles.  And then, having finally achieved their stated goal, a lot of people have absolutely no idea what to do next.  So, they find something they’re comfortable doing and ride that comfort for years, sometimes decades, all the way to retirement.

That’s not leadership.  Forget for now the fact that being a leader isn’t necessarily dependent on job title or role.  Let’s just say you’ve gotten the title or the role, and now you’re expected to lead.  Finding something that makes you comfortable and then stopping is the complete opposite of leadership.

You may think you worked hard to get yourself into a leadership role.  The reality is that once you’re in that role the hard work is just starting.  All the things you did to get to that point were great, but great leaders realize – or find out on the fly – that those were just foundational building blocks.   Now it’s time to actually build the house.

Think about yourself as a leader.  What new things do you need to learn?  The things you needed to know in 2004 aren’t going to be enough in 2027.  You’re going to have to stretch past your comfort zone.  You’re going to have to ask questions that might make you feel foolish. 

If the people and the organization you lead are going to be successful in a future that looks different than the past, then your skills and capabilities as a leader have to look different too.  Those new skills and capabilities could be driven by technology, or generational changes, or culture changes, or a hundred other things.

The point is, the world is going to be different, and you’re going to need to be different too.  What will your version of “different” be?  How will you make that happen?  Answer those questions and get to work.