As a seasoned professional, you know the true power of head it's about recognizing the potential within your team and creating an environment that allows them to demonstrate leadership themselves. However, many leaders forget this and focus on immediate results instead of nurturing future leaders. The result? A disengaged workforce, stifled creativity and lost opportunities for growth.

Leadership potential goes unnoticed

Research shows that 58% of managers say they have never received formal training in leadership or management. If your current managers are not adequately equipped, imagine the untapped potential among your team members who have not yet been given the opportunity to lead.

This lack of leadership development leads to broader organizational issues. Gallup reports that 67% of American employees are disengaged at work, a statistic that should concern every manager. Disengagement affects innovation, productivity and retention. If your team isn't invested in the work they're doing—or if they don't see paths to growth within the company—they're less likely to contribute their best efforts.

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Creating an environment that fosters leadership

The key to solving this issue lies in knowing and educating the leaders on your team. Shifting your approach from simply managing tasks to mentoring future leadersyou create an environment that supports the long-term success of your organization.

This process involves three critical elements: empowerment, encouraging risk-taking, and creativity. Let's explore how each of these components can help you discover and develop leaders within your organization.

1. Empowerment. Too often, managers operate from a top-down management perspective to give orders and monitor that tasks are completed. While this approach may yield short-term results, it does little to deliver the growth needed for long-term success. Instead, adopt one the mentoring mindset. Mentors see potential in others, sometimes even before those individuals see it in themselves. When you shift from a command-and-control to a guide-on-the-side attitude, you empower team members to take ownership of their development. This change allows individuals to grow and sparks an organizational culture of continuous improvement.

2. Encouraging risk-taking: The next step is to create an environment where you encourage your staff to take risks. A critical ingredient in such environments is creativity psychological safetydefined by Harvard professor Amy Edmondson as a climate where individuals feel safe to express their opinions, try things, and make mistakes without fear of punishment. When people feel psychologically safe, they are more likely to step up, offer innovative ideas, and take on leadership roles. Google's “Aristotle Project”. The study found that psychological safety was the single most important factor in determining the success of high-performing teams. Without it, even the most talented employees will hold back, fearing failure or judgment.

3. Invite novel approaches. When your team tackles the next challenge, encourage them to approach understanding and solving the problem in new ways. For example, instead of assigning roles based on titles or hierarchies for a specific project, try presenting a challenge to the entire team and see who steps up. This exercise will not only foster innovation, but also reveal natural leaders in the group. When people are free to innovate, solve problems, and collaborate without rigid boundaries, you'll find your people take ownership in surprising ways. This is how you uncover hidden leadership potential and is one of the most powerful ways to ensure that your organization is continually growing new leaders from within.

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SOLV Energy: Leaders who deliver

An organization that has used empowerment, risk-taking, and creativity to grow leaders within its ranks is SOLV Energy. Through their structured mentoring program, employees across the workforce can step into leadership roles, collaborate across departments, and solve problems in new ways. Mentors help their mentees grow in confidence, enabling them to explore new approaches without fear of failure, fostering a culture of psychological safety. As a result, the organization improves employee satisfaction and increases its capacity for innovation.

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How to foster leadership in your organization

Practical steps to try today to grow leaders within your organization include:

1. Adopt a mentoring mindset: Shift your focus from managing tasks to mentoring individuals and encourage managers throughout your organization to do the same. Focus on long-term development rather than short-term results. Questions I ask to gauge the mindset of my coaching clients include: Are you simply giving your team direction or developing their potential? Are you creating opportunities for them to step into leadership roles, or are you making all the decisions yourself? Shifting your mindset from leadership to leadership is fundamental to nurturing future leaders.

2. Create psychological security: Fostering a culture where employees feel safe expressing ideas, taking risks and making mistakes starts with how you respond to challenges, mistakes and new ideas. Encourage open dialogue and actively seek different perspectives. When someone brings up an unconventional idea, resist the urge to dismiss it. Instead, ask questions, explore possibilities, and demonstrate that all ideas are valued. Creating this type of environment allows leadership to emerge naturally, as team members feel empowered to take initiative and contribute their unique strengths.

3. Encourage creative problem solving and growth: Implement projects where team members can approach challenges creatively without predetermined roles. This will help identify natural leaders who may not have had the opportunity to demonstrate their skills in a traditional setting. Once you've identified potential leaders, give them opportunities to lead small projects and take initiatives in other ways. Make sure there is a clear path for leadership development within your organization.

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Your most important role as a leader is not simply to show the way, but to build up other leaders. Fostering an environment of mentoring, psychological safety and creativity unlocks your team's full potential and supports the long-term health and growth of your organization. These are the secrets to developing the next generation of leaders who will take your company into the future.