Over the years, we’ve come to understand that leadership, very simply, is why people choose to follow one another in the context of what’s going on in our worlds at the time. 

So what leadership ‘personality traits’ or qualities correspond to the business, societal and environmental challenges and opportunities we’re all facing, as we focus our attention on 2022 and beyond? Who would you follow? What are you doing that would inspire others to follow you?

Over the last couple of years, the traits we’ve identified as being fundamental to being a successful leader have shifted. The war cries for “hustle, grit and grind”, which were so loud in the few years preceding the pandemic, have quietened somewhat. And it's no surprise. Our context has changed. We’ve been on a rollercoaster ride, journeying through a foreign landscape needing a different array of skills and a fresh new mindset and perspective.

We’ve learned much about ourselves. We’ve dug deep to unearth and hone strengths we might not have used much — and become conscious of blind spots we could not previously have begun to fathom. Ours and other people's mental and emotional health have been front of mind and we’ve normalised talking about how we feel in the workplace.

We’ve also heard much about how we need to be more innovative, resilient, agile, empathetic, compassionate, inclusive, courageous, collaborative and so much more. All well and good if these come naturally to you, but, can you and I really get better at doing this stuff? Can we be more of these things?

The simple answer is yes — and we have some great research to prove it. Behavioural science-based organisations have been hard at work measuring how our personalities might have changed over the course of the pandemic. In one study from Lumina Learning, in association with Henley Business School in the UK, CEO’s from across the sectors, around the world have become more ‘people focused’ (accommodating, collaborative and empathetic) with more open access to those they lead.

There is also a collection of ‘mental models’ or our lenses on the world, which, when developed, will help us navigate the future better. Sensemaking, futures thinking, critical thinking, systems and design thinking all spring to mind. And there are no shortages of organisations to help us to be ‘lifelong learners’.

At the heart of our ability to change is a desire or need to do so. Coaching is by far the quickest, most effective way of developing ourselves to be the leaders we know we need to be, today and into the future.