Leadership and Triathlons - What Do They Have To Do with Each Other?

By Chris Coward

Last week I completed my first triathlon and although my time was nothing to brag about, the experience was wonderful and I would definitely do it again. As I was cycling around the Philadelphia Art Museum (with hardly anyone around since I was the last wave of women to go), I thought about how the triathlon experience connects really well to leadership skills.

1) An excellent leader works on their weak areas, always looking to improve and at the minimum, not have their weakness be a liability. For me, the swimming was my weakness. As a result I spent most of my training time on improving my swimming, getting tips from anyone who said they swam competitively in high school or college. I'm still not good at it, but my goal was to avoid being rescued and to not be last in the race!

2) A healthy leader seeks balance in their life. For this race I did not go crazy overtraining or becoming obsessed with winning. It was important to me to continue with my life - play music, work, have fun and prioritize important relationships.

3) Another sign of a good leader is that no matter what is going on for them, they still make the time to encourage others and remain positive. If the budget is pessimistic or their knees are killing them in the race, a leader will continue to encourage others and remain optimistic and solution oriented.

4) An excellent leader always does their best, no matter what the circumstances are. Everyone's best is different and a person's best may vary day to day. For me, I can honestly say that I did my best in my first triathlon and of course, I want to do better next time.

5) Finally, a great leader sets and takes action toward their goals. My goal for my first triathlon was to: a) finish b) have fun c) not get rescued during the swim. As all strong leaders do, I will set the bar higher for my next triathlon and seek to be more competitive in my age group.

Did I mention that it is great when a leader can have fun being a leader? Employees gravitate to that "thing" about you that is the human element of your leadership. Don't forget to keep striving for the best while remaining optimistic that you will finish strong.

Chris Coward, MSW, LCSW is a licensed clinical social worker and Leadership Coach with over ten years experience supervising, managing and leading people working in non-profit agencies. She has worked with individuals and teams in various organizations, helping them improve their communication and gain clarity around their goals and mission. Chris is an experienced workshop facilitator and also uses adventure- based learning in some of her trainings.

Chris believes that each team member has a set of unique strengths that he or she brings to the group and that a team functions best when there is diversity in strengths versus sameness amongst members. She brings warmth, humor, energy and the ability to give direct feedback to clients working with her.

If you would like to improve your leadership ability or develop your work team, you can contact Chris at (215) 472-1572 or chris@chriscoward.com. The website address is http://www.chriscoward.com

Signup for her FREE monthly e-zine, the Leader's Edge at http://www.chriscoward.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Coward