You’ve just delivered a big project. It took weeks to pull it together with the help of your team and others involved. Feedback from recipients has been positive and you’re proud of your accomplishment. Congratulations!
When you’re in a leadership role, you have a responsibility for the outcome of the project. Good leaders are there to provide coaching and direction as well as answer questions. A good leader will also motivate the team to keep everyone engaged.
Leadership doesn’t just exist in the corporate world. You might be the head of a family responsible for the well-being of small children or extended family members. Or maybe you’re the coach of a softball team. Players will want to know the game plan. Or… you might find yourself lost in the woods and take the lead to find a way out. No matter what the situation, every experience is a learning experience.
Recently I helped organize a contest for my club. It was an opportunity to test my leadership skills in an arena that was new to me. With each task I gained knowledge and learned more about our club and its members.
It wasn’t always easy. Being virtual and in the midst of Covid, most planning happened online. As the meeting Chair, I had responsibilities that were new to me. Fortunately, I had a great team to help deliver what was needed. We delivered our contest with success and positive feedback.
It didn’t stop there. After the meeting was over, I held a “lessons learned” meeting — a retrospective look at the project — including organizers, volunteers, and even contest participants to gather feedback on what went well and where we could do better.
Working through this project, there were definitely some lessons learned… lessons that can be recorded and taken through to the next project team, or in my case, the upcoming Area competitions. What a great way to hear how others, who helped make the Club Contest what it was, viewed the outcome.
There’s so much to learn from the experience of others. Make a lesson learned meeting part of your project planning.
Writing for you. 