Note: This is a post in the Practical Tips for New Leaders series. For more tips, learn about running effective meetings, working with senior leaders, and writing a strong email.
I’ve held formal leadership roles for four years, and I’m preparing to take responsibility for a new team and a new set of priorities. It is a humbling milestone, far enough in to have earned a few scars and stories, but still close enough to the beginning that I remember exactly what those early days felt like. With the new year here, it felt like the right moment to pause and name the lessons I’m taking with me.
For those of you stepping into your first leadership role, here is my best advice, offered from someone who has recently completed this phase of the journey.
1. Reflect. A Lot.
Leadership is a skill built through deliberate reflection. Journal after a tough moment. Talk through scenarios out loud while you cook dinner. Replay conversations and ask yourself: How else could I have said that? What might I try next time?
Reflection turns experience into growth. Without it, you are simply collecting moments. With it, you are collecting insight.
Here is what I have learned to support this habit: I keep regular blocks on my calendar that prompt reflection throughout the year. I also seek feedback from my team very intentionally. While we end each meeting by sharing feedback, once a quarter I ask in a one-on-one setting, “How could I be supporting you better? How could our team operate more effectively? Is there anything else I should know?”
These conversations help us grow together and encourage the candid dialogue that leaders need.
2. Give Yourself Grace.
Remember the S-curve of learning. Every leadership chapter starts at the bottom, where everything feels unfamiliar and progress sometimes feels slow or uneven. You will have moments when you do not know what you are doing. That is normal. You will make mistakes. You are human. Those mistakes are necessary for growth.
What matters is learning, adjusting, and moving forward. Offer yourself the same grace you offer others.
We all have moments when we think, “I could have handled that better.” No one is perfect. Think of the leaders or coaches you admire. Were they perfect all the time? Probably not. You can likely name moments when they disappointed you, and yet they are still people you look up to. We are defined by how we return from and grow beyond those moments. Growth, humility, and accountability shape us far more than flawless execution.
3. Stay Curious.
A new title does not make you all-knowing, and no one expects you to be.
Curiosity is one of the most underrated leadership capabilities. Ted Lasso said it best: Be curious, not judgmental. There will be a moment when someone on your team says something that makes absolutely no sense to you. In those moments, if you choose curiosity instead of judgment, two good things can happen. You might learn something new that expands your understanding, or you might create an opening for a powerful coaching conversation about how they are thinking and what mental model they are using. Either outcome is a win.
Ask questions. Learn how the system works. Ask your team how they are approaching challenges and what data they are paying attention to. When you stay curious, you make better choices, build stronger relationships, and avoid the trap of false confidence.
4. Leverage Your Team.
As you step into a leadership role, your focus shifts from delivering results on your own to delivering results through others. Leveraging the collective brilliance of your team is one of your greatest opportunities.
One of my biggest early mistakes was believing I needed to create the team strategy myself. I thought leadership meant always bringing the answers. I was wrong.
Leadership is sometimes about bringing answers, but it is also about bringing questions. Good questions spark insight, create dialogue, and unlock collective thinking. Engage your team, listen deeply, synthesize their ideas, and share a draft for feedback. Invite critique. Iterate.
In my first year as a formal leader, I created our team strategy and simply asked for input. The conversation was flat. By my fourth year, I designed four or five high-impact brainstorming questions and facilitated a collaborative session. We talked about what we would do with unlimited resources, what we were most proud of, what trends would most impact our work, and so on.
I then compiled that thinking into a draft. The team could see their ideas reflected throughout the plan. Which version do you think led to better results?
You will be amazed by what your team can create when you stop leading with answers and start leading with inquiry.
5. Be Yourself.
Leaders come from all backgrounds, strengths, ages, and educational histories, and that diversity is a gift.
Whatever makes you uniquely you is your superpower. When you show up authentically, people trust you more, follow you more willingly, and feel safer bringing their full selves to work. If you want to learn more about how authenticity builds trust, watch our founding partner Nick Noyes explain it in the Business Cycle of Leadership video.
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Leadership is not a destination. It is a practice. You do not arrive. You evolve again and again, shaped by the people you lead, the mentors you have, and the moments that stretch you.
If you are stepping into your first leadership role, welcome. We need leaders like you who are curious, thoughtful, imperfect, learning, and authentic.
Your journey is just beginning, and it will be worth it.
Bonus: Want to Jumpstart Your Success?
If you want structured development for your first year, here is a curated reading plan aligned to the most common challenges new leaders face.
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Quarter 1: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey: A foundational book that guides deep self-reflection. It builds awareness of your own patterns, habits, and drivers, a critical capability for any leader who is learning to influence others.
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Quarter 2: Radical Candor by Kim Scott: New leaders often struggle with giving feedback or having hard conversations. This book reframes candor as a gift and teaches how to challenge directly while caring personally.
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Quarter 3: Multipliers by Liz Wiseman: This book offers a powerful lens. Are you making people around you smarter, or are you unintentionally diminishing them? It provides practical insights for becoming a true talent magnet, one of the most important skills for long term leadership success.
