How to Demonstrate Leadership in Your Community

sLeadership in a community can be beneficial to everyone in said community, especially when trying to inspire change. Through demonstrating community leadership, you will significantly impact the lives of those within your community. If you feel as though you want to make sure that there’s a change in the community, you have the opportunity to create the change that you want to see. But how do you demonstrate this level of leadership to inspire change?

Empathy

Empathy is such a crucial skill for any leader to have, especially an aspiring community leader. This trait can be essential because it makes it possible to gain valuable insight from different perspectives. This empathy and ability to put yourself in another person’s shoes will earn you more respect as a leader and show that you care, which will increase your credibility with your fellow neighbors.

Self-Awareness

Excellent community leaders must have a high level of self-awareness, which is vital because understanding your strengths and weaknesses simply makes you a better leader. This is the first step in improving yourself and your abilities.

Communication

Communication is another essential skill for all types of leaders. You need to be articulate and easily able to discuss your expectations and goals. However, your ability to speak is only part of your essential communication skills. There are other parts of the picture… another important piece is that you need to be an excellent, active listener. This ability helps you better understand the needs of your community.

Lead by Example

You can’t just order people around when leading your community; you have to show them that you are willing to get into the trenches with them. It would help if you showed them that you are eager to put in the same hard work you expect from your colleagues. Community leaders need to pitch in and put in the time and effort to be influential.

Walk Beside Your Team

One of the unique aspects of demonstrating leadership in the community is that you are leading right beside them rather than leading from above as you would in the office. Community leadership isn’t necessarily about you being a leader; it’s about developing those around you and making an impact together within the community.

Mentor Others

As previously mentioned, a community leader, is responsible for developing others within the community. By recruiting and mentoring people, you can create future leaders that will significantly impact their community down the road. You can teach them how to take their passions and turn that into positive change to make the community a much better place.