Latest updated: 28 September 2023

Leadership development can occur through leadership programs and coaching, but regardless of the interventions chosen, they must ultimately lead to a change in behaviour in everyday work. No matter how much theory one learns, it is only when behaviour shifts, that leadership truly develops. To achieve this, it requires working on leadership over an extended period and allowing space for personal reflection.

Theoretical knowledge is crucial for developing good leadership, but in the end, it always comes down to changing what one actually does in their day-to-day work. A leader's behaviour constitutes leadership, and that is where the change and development must occur. Otherwise, the investment in leadership development may be in vain.

For example, one can discuss and theorise a lot about the importance of communication, interaction, and feedback, but it is only when the leader steps out into the workplace and engages with their employees that real change happen. Leadership is, first and foremost, something one does. It is also through changing their own behaviour that a leader can create a shift in behaviour among their employees.

But what is required for leadership development to lead to real behaviour change?

The Key to Behaviour Change: Time and Reflection It is not easy to create conditions for genuine behaviour change. It is not something that happens automatically just because one talks about the importance of the right leadership behaviours. Something must happen in the leader's mind that makes them genuinely want to change and be open to trying new behaviours and actions. You can call it a "lightbulb moment" or an "epiphany." The drive to change must come from within; otherwise, behaviour change will be superficial and not enduring.

You cannot press a button and make that lightbulb moment happen. However, you can create conditions that significantly increase the likelihood of the leader having that insight and becoming motivated to genuinely change their behaviour.

An important condition is that you must give the leader time. It is beneficial to let the investment in leadership development take place over a relatively extended period, so that you give the leader a reasonable chance to reflect and have insights. You never know exactly when or how insights will come, and they certainly do not come on demand. Therefore, leadership development should be a relatively long-term and regularly recurring investment.

In addition to time, the leader also needs space for personal and individual reflection. It can be challenging to gain deeper insights into one's own leadership and behaviour if everything happens at the group level.

This is where coaching comes into play. A competent coach can provide the leader with the right tools and ask guiding questions that open up self-reflection and self-awareness. Trying to reach new, revolutionary insights entirely on one's own is very difficult and requires a certain amount of luck. But a coach knows the tools that can be used to open up a person's mindset and get them to think differently.

The combination of leadership programs and coaching can, therefore, be optimal for achieving real behaviour change, which, in turn, is the key to developing leadership - not only in theory but also in practical reality and everyday work.