Hi blog friends! Despite a nasty storm this end of Marble Falls, Texas, it’s promising to be a great Memorial weekend. This week’s blog inspiration came to mind when a colleague asked me if leadership retreats were worth the investment. Of course I said yes and started to talk it through with them. So, I’d like to do the same with you today. Grab your floaty and let’s jump into it!
One of the more biggest lessons coming out of 2020 is the importance of professional development across all levels of the organization. Leadership development is itself a unique and important endeavor. Last week I made a joke about how heavy the leadership crown can get. This is where I add, to walk well with it, one must train and develop one’s comportment.
Movie references aside, great organizations know their greatest competitive advantage lays in the development and quality of their leaders. The struggle in business today is finding the time and allocating the funds to continually develop them. But let me tell you this, ongoing leadership development is key to sustain organizational success. As a leader, who probably has a tight budget as is, you still need to ask yourself, how often, what format and how much can we invest in ourselves and fellow leadership colleagues’ development?
Great leaders are developed not hired!
While there are various leadership development options, today I’m focusing on leadership retreats. Let’s breakdown three reasons why it works and its many benefits. Grab that sunscreen lotion and lather up!
Leadership workshops encourages better motivation and focus
As a leader, in your day-to-day schedule, you’re pretty much focused on the business. You’re dealing with customer issues, employee issues and the normal crazy rat race of getting things done. Also, when there is a building full of eyes trained your way, you must remain on the ball. A quarterly or semi-annual leadership workshop allows leaders respite from performing these daily tasks and instead allows the focus to turn inwards. This is necessary to recharge and refocus.
When you take this time to grow your knowledge and confidence, you get a sense of motivation and focus that paves for a brighter tomorrow. This is a great way to stay motivated.
Leadership retreats creates the space for awesome learning experiences
To paraphrase Steven Covey, to enact real change a leader must be engaged in massive learning experiences. Naturally, this happens when you participate in leadership retreats with your fellow colleagues. With just this niche group around, leaders can drop their masks and learn.
Here are some benefits of learning leadership principles in a group setting:
- You stand to bond with your colleague, creating a stronger team
- You can be vulnerable about your challenges as many of you may have similar issues
- This type of learning experience provides the space for new perspectives to excel as a team
Although having great leadership skills are not always required to be a leader, to truly be the best, you must actively and continuously develop your skills.
Good leadership is not something a person learns all at once, it is a skill that requires practice to better evolve.
Leadership retreats create a more cohesive team
I touched on this lightly above, but I can’t over state it enough. In fact, I wrote a whole section about it in my book, Serve Up, Coach Down. There is a value in spending time with your peers and learning from and with them. Most leaders are so busy, they tend to spend very little time connecting and serving their fellow leaders.
Here’s the thing, retreats like this often mitigate company silos. As a leader, you are afforded the opportunity to learn how your fellow colleagues work, to get more insight on their goals and challenges. This makes you more aware and facilitates better team integration.
Final Thoughts
Leadership is a learned skill, the more you practice, the better leader you’ll become.
This one of the many reasons Shannon and I built Retreat Ranch. We wanted to create a unique and comfortable learning space for leaders, like you. Our primary goal for our executive retreats is that leaders leave feeling renewed and inspired. We want to invigorate fresh ideas that will allow you to lead and coach your employees better. We want to help you create a more thriving work culture. Feel free to check out our options (though everything can be customized), or find a place near you that allows you and your group to bond, connect, grow and expand together. For the company success, it matters.
