If you want to become better at leading change in your organisation, then choosing the right hobbies outside of work could be just the ticket you need.
But which hobbies actually make you better at leading change? Let’s take a look.
Volunteering
There’s an abundance of good causes out there requiring people like you to drive them forward. It could be a community project to improve the lives of vulnerable local people or something with global implications.
However, volunteering is not just a philanthropic activity. It is also a great way to build leadership skills.
Why?
There are two main reasons:
- It helps you build a serving attitude without expecting anything in return.
- It lets you lead by example.
Reading
Becoming a better leader is all about being able to think creatively and solve problems. Following a formula isn’t an option for every situation. Sometimes, you need to expand your horizons.
Reading is a great tool for helping you do this, whether you’re into fiction or non-fiction. It stimulates your imagination and helps you see problems from new angles. After reading something influential, you may find that it prompts new thoughts that allow you to solve a particularly vexing problem.
Mountain Climbing
The act of mountain climbing sounds like a leadership metaphor in itself. But outdoor activities like this also help to calm the mind and relax the body. Just being out in nature can have positive effects on your biochemistry.
All of the best leaders find opportunities to relax, chill out, unwind, and improve their health. Having peace of mind helps you to make better, clearer decisions.
Going To The Gym
Many of the world’s most successful people are obsessed with going to the gym and working out.
Why? Because solo pursuits like these provide time for deep meditation.
When you’re hitting the gym or going for a run, you’re changing the types of stimulation reaching your brain. And that, in turn, changes your thought processes. Many people, for instance, find that they’re able to have profound thoughts while using gym equipment that they wouldn’t necessarily have elsewhere.
Plus, going to the gym and taking regular exercise helps to dramatically improve your mood. It’s much easier to deal with employees complaining about their work, lack of pay, overtime, or other colleagues when you’re feeling good.
Get Into Pottery
The idea that pottery could improve your leadership skills might sound a little far-fetched but hear us out.
It’s not the act of moulding clay with your hands that makes the difference – it’s the fact that it helps to bring out your creativity.
Leading Change
We all start out in life with enormous quantities of creative energy. But as we get older and our psychologies mature, we cease seeing all the opportunities available to us. We leave our child-like “blue-sky” thinking behind and become staunch realists.
The good news is that you can turn back this process with the right hobbies. Pottery, music, dance, and theatre all expand your “possibility space,” and help you entertain a greater diversity of thoughts. With them, you are much more likely to engage in “out of the box” thinking.
We provide a range of training and development programmes for companies that help to build leadership skills in novel ways. With coaching, you can use hobbies to your advantage at leading change and further improve as a leader.
