In business, the need for efficiency is greater than ever. But too many employers jump straight to the end goal without changing their leadership style. As a result, their team feels uninspired and demoralized, with little passion for the end product.
Andrew Schubauer, the founder of NIS Empowerment Coaching, is flipping the script on leadership and mindset. Today’s climate requires real emotional intelligence in CEOs as more workers pick up where they left off in the office. Coach Schubauer believes promoting empathy, accountability, and intentional action could help employers prevent fragmentation and high employee turnover rates.
Schubauer is unique among corporate coaches in his understanding of psychological and neurobiological techniques. A military background has opened his mind to the shortcomings in conventional ‘top-down’ leadership styles. Here are three methods he believes will be critical in training the next generation of successful business leaders:
1. Empathize and evolve
The military leadership style has some positive attributes, but empathy isn’t one of them. Schubauer believes decisive leaders are missing the ability to really ‘get’ the people they are working with. Getting on their level and understanding what is important to them is the key to helping them evolve within your business.
“People are not their DISC profile,” the founder proclaims. “In the Navy, I found that dysregulated leadership led to disillusionment among servicepeople. It made me realize that understanding your team is critical to evoking their evolution and progress.”
Empathizing doesn’t mean disregarding your position altogether. Coaches like Schubauer encourage the clarity and determination of old-school leadership but with more emotional intelligence. Enlisting an expert in neuro-linguistic programming can help you change your mindset.
2. Dare to dream
Now you understand what motivates your employees, you need to plan their onward journey. Empowerment is that important to Schubauer’s beliefs; it’s in his company name. Making your team feel able to tackle the next big project is the first step to seeing that end product come to life.
“Unlike many leadership coaches, I don’t come from a C-suite background,” Schubauer says. “I know what it takes to motivate and inspire a structure from the middle and bottom of the organization. I believe the challenges a person faces are the key to inspiring more in them.”
Don’t just transform your employees’ mindset. Feeling inspired as a leader is equally crucial for your company’s success. An empowered understanding and awareness can set you on the path to long-term fulfillment in your leadership role.
3. Reverse the ranking
If there’s one thing Schubauer is known for, it’s bottom-up leadership. He wants to create a trend away from outdated structures where one person controls a company’s vision and towards a more inclusive approach. In short, you can’t roll out a strategy if the people implementing it aren’t on board.
Failing to adapt when your efforts repeatedly fall flat could only reinforce negative company culture and waste time. You could even risk losing employees if they don’t feel heard around the table. Filling the gaps in insight and providing growth opportunities is how you shape a prosperous future for your business.
“I have had the opportunity to see fantastic concepts fail at lower levels because of poor implementation,” the coach reveals. “Change your perspective from top-down leadership to a bottom-up mindset. Building leaders at the bottom always results in a better result at the top.”
The world is full of coaches who promise to grow your business. But you can separate the individuals with value to add from the opportunists by their desire to change the world, not just their clients’ bottom lines.
Andrew Schubauer is passionate about making workplaces more empathetic. As NIS Empowerment launches a new coaching concept to help employees manage challenges without leaving the office, its founder’s positive influence continues to grow. Because, he says, “Nothing is static: we either choose our change or exist at the whim of it.”
