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Insecure people make poor leaders. If you are not secure about your purpose, your strengths, and the strength of your team, then you will normally struggle in reaching your goals. If you are insecure, then you tend to limit your options in handling everyday obstacles.

Feeling secure is easier when you feel good about developing yourself. Do you ever wonder how you can add more value to your organization? Or do you ever invest in making yourself better to improve your team’s performance?

You can increase your level of security, and avoid being an insecure leader. A leader that is insecure:

1. Doesn’t value himself: If a person is self-conscious about how he looks, then they will have barriers to their success. They may not risk doing something they do not know how to do for fear of looking incompetent. A person with low self esteem will also spend time and effort trying to hide their internal perceptions about their inabilities.

2. Doesn’t know what to do: A person that is insecure usually has not invested in themselves or improved their abilities. This will lead to having less knowledge and less ability to manage different situations. Being humble and having an attitude that allows you to always learn from others and yourself will expand your capabilities.

3. Works to maintain control: If a person is not secure they usually believe that they must show control over every situation and every person. They are afraid to be seen as weak, or as needing other people. Great success can only happen with the support of others. You can’t enjoy great success by yourself.

James B. Stockdale said, “Great leaders gain authority by giving it away.” When your people do something great, give them credit. When they make mistakes, take the blame yourself. Building them up will only make you more secure.

If you feel secure in your actions, you create options for yourself. You can handle obstacles quicker, and you become more adept at dealing with change. Security provides you options for success.

We are never perfect, and we are never as good as we could be. Joining a mastermind group will help you explore how you can improve your leadership, and discuss leadership experiences with other leaders. Add yourself to our list to be informed about upcoming opportunities for joining a mastermind group.

The people closest to us are sometimes referred to as our inner circle. These are the 5 to 7 people with whom you spend the most time. These are also the people with whom you share your thoughts, ideas and feelings. The quality and characteristics of these people place limits on your ability to grow and succeed. Are you surrounded by the right people?

There is no specific formula to apply on selecting a correct inner circle. It is your personal preference that matters. However, your potential is determined by your selection. Did you select your inner circle, or did they select you? What qualities should you look to have within your inner circle? Lets take a look at three factors to consider:

1. Do they complement you? We tend to attract people that are like ourselves. Being with people that are similar creates a comfort zone for us to operate in. However, your potential will increase if your inner circle brings talents and traits which are different than yours. You should make sure you also add characteristics that are different and can add strength to your team.

2. Do they have influence? Each person has a unique circle of influence. Each person also possesses varying levels of influence within their circle. Adding people to your inner circle that will extend your influence, will increase your potential. Evaluate each person in your inner circle and see what level of influence they are able to bring to your team.

3. Do they add value to you? You will grow faster if you surround yourself with people that are great. Adding people to your circle that are the best at what they do, will accelerate your growth. Everyone in your inner circle should be adding value to you in some form. If you are the smartest or the best in your circle, then it is time to add some better people to your circle. Those that are better than you, stretch you to higher levels of success.

Even though there are no set rules for creating a perfect inner circle, you can evaluate your current status. People within your inner circle will change over time. Some will leave of their own accord, others you will let go yourself. Don’t be afraid of being on the lookout quality people that can be added to your inner circle. This type of change can have a very positive effect on your long term potential.

Phillips Brooks has said, “The best advisers, helpers and friends, always are not those who tell us how to act in special cases, but who give us, out of themselves, the ardent spirit and desire to act right, and leave us then, even through many blunders, to find out what our own form of right action is.” Your inner circle should support you, but not be you. You must be yourself. Select your inner circle carefully.

If you feel a barrier in evaluating where you are, and how you can increase your level of success, you may be helped by a coach. Contact us today to schedule your free introductory coaching session.

We all experience failure and regret in our lives, because no on is blessed with success all the time. No one enjoys talking about their failures or their regrets because these experiences hurt.

In this article, I am going to share three ways to view failure and regret that will help you generate more success and limit your pain.

1. Turning thought to action: Failure can cause people to freeze, and withdraw. The longer you wait to react to your thoughts of regret or failure, the harder it becomes to take action. Remember that you only fail when you give up. So take that negative thought, and turn it into action. What is the next thing you need to do to find pursue success? Define it, and then do it.

2. Turning failure to learning: Great discoveries usually come from examining failures. Learning why something did not work can often lead to an idea for another way. Hiding from failure will keep you from finding that other path. We all have failures, but the value is in looking for a discovery in our failures.

3. Using reflection: Reflection is a great tool for evaluating our activities and results. I think that most people are not good at reflection because they lack the discipline to do it every day. If we reflect only when we have a bad day, then our reflection process is less developed, less practiced, less sensitive to all of our experiences. If we reflect on our experiences every day, then we become skilled in learning from those experiences. And we will be better equipped to understand the bad days.

Failure and regret is unavoidable, but how you experience and react to those situations can greatly affect your level of success. You have failed only if you give up. Your feelings of regret are birthed only when you stop trying. You are in control, if you take control of these situations. They both hurt, but you can lessen the pain.

New Roads Leadership helps people grow through their experiences. Please join our mailing list: http://newroadsleadership.com/maillist/?p=subscribe&id=1