MillenialsEmad Rahim

1. Do Your Homework

To be an effective leader, do your homework.

Simple as that! There is no shortcut to true

leadership, unless you aspire to be a one-time

leader, a flop. Go to school, get the education

you need, and read as much you can, especially

the biographies and leadership styles of those

you want to emulate. Besides management

skills and charisma, a leader also needs to know

a thing or two about literature, culture and

society, to name a few. The bottom line is: expand your horizon.

2. Learn the Ropes of True Leadership

Learn the ropes of leadership by paying

attention to your elders. They can be in your

current company, at your local congregation,

in your community... or in your house – we

mean your parents. The goal is to learn how

true leaders react when faced with challenges,

from the simple to the complex. Sharon

Weinberg, a Professor of Applied Statistics and

Psychology at New York University, suggests

that true leadership comes from experience, resilience and patience.

3. Hang Out With the ‘Doers’

You should cultivate the company of doers if

you want to be a doer one day. Look around your

community, at work, in your professional network,

and identify those who are the rising stars in their

respective areas. Earlier, we said you should read

about the leaders of the past; now, we are saying

you should emulate the leaders of today, learn

from them, and apply the best practices they are

implementing at work and in their private lives.

4. Cultivate Patience

Author and philosopher Karma Peters says that

patience is an important trait in leadership, not

only because it appeals to your better angels,

but also prevents you from making serious

leadership mistakes that might cost you

dearly down the road. Learn to wait

for the right moment, at the right

place, before making an important

operational or business move. To be an

effective leader, understand your interlocutors' priorities and make sure they mesh perfectly with your own aspirations.

5. Embrace Cultural Diversity

Expand your social

horizon and learn about

other cultures. In

today’s economy,

globalization is the order of the day. To

hone your

leadership

skills, open

yourself up to

other foreign

lifestyles and

learn a thing

or two about them.

Familiarize yourself with

the most popular leadership traits

around the world, so that when your shining

moment comes, you can adeptly cope with cross-

border challenges and lead a global team.

6. Be Operationally Open-Minded

‘Operational open-mindedness’ means you

believe there is more than one solution to a business problem – or a social problem, for

that matter. The idea here is to recognize that

true leadership does not have solutions to all

“Understand the importance of ceding the limelight to your team members.

Need to Know and Execute

What is a Millennial, really? You hear this word every now and then, uttered by one pundit

after another, relayed by traditional and social media alike. Simply defined, a Millennial is someone born between 1981 and 2000. Millennials are, in essence, the next generation, preceded by Generation X (1965-1980) and the Baby Boomers (1946-1964). Lately, companies and business leaders have spent much time and effort wooing Millennials – an understandable strategy given that this market is as diverse and forward-thinking as social observers have ever seen.

But now that we know these Millennials are

next in line to run the world in the years to

come, what leadership skills and strategies must

they develop to work and perform effectively?

If you are a Millennial or have children who are

Millennials, heed our top 10 leadership tactics to

know and execute in the next few years.

LEADERSHIP STRATEGIES

That

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Biography

Dr Emad Rahim is Endowed Chair of the Project Management Center of Excellence, Associate Professor for Project Management at Bellevue University and Jack Welch Management Institute Fellow. You can find him on Twitter: @DrEmadRahim

problems, but can adroitly shape the right mix of

resources and vision to fix all problems. That is

what will be expected of you once you become a

leader. So get used to that operational mindset.

7. Mimic the Best Millennials

Emulate the best Millennials we have today.

From prominent names like Mark Zuckerberg

to less-known doers, such as Luis Alvarado and

Sam Barnett, you have a wide array of people

and leadership styles to mimic. Forbes Magazine

publishes an annual list of “30 under 30,” and

this can be a good way to start your research

into your own leadership skills and to determine what really matters for you.

8. Act Like a Social Entrepreneur

When it comes to leadership, don't just pay attention to business executives. Social

entrepreneurs are also doing their fair share

of social betterment, changing the lives of

millions around the world. Even if you have a

business mindset, you should read about the

passion and philanthropic bent that most social

entrepreneurs possess.

9. Empower Your Team

Learn to empower your team – that is a key trait

of a true leader. At the end of the day, a winning leader is backed by a winning team of high performers. So understand the importance of

ceding the limelight to your team members, so

they also can shine and reach their full potential.

Empowerment is, in essence, a byproduct of

patience and humility, the kind of mix you

usually see in legendary leaders.

10. Create a Millennial Business

To better execute your ‘Millennial leadership

strategy,’ why not create a business? That is, a

business that caters to Millennials, understands

their aspirations, and can smartly accompany

them throughout their lives, especially the

second phase of adulthood that starts past 40.

Founding a business can also be an effective way to fulfill a life dream, whether it is

leadership-related, a desire to bring about

social welfare, or a lucrative need.

To Sum It UpMillennials are the next generation of

consumers, but also the people poised to lead,

nurture others and bring social improvement on

Earth. Millennial leaders must possess the same

skill set their predecessors had, in addition to

multicultural mentality and technological savvy.

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