The Readiness Gap: A Shared Concern
Today, there are many areas where people disagree. Yet one topic on which there is intense agreement shows that leadership development is essential: Young adults say they feel woefully unprepared for life in the workforce, and employers agree.
A recent survey by Gallup and the Walton Family Foundation of more than 4,000 members of Gen Z showed that 49 percent of respondents said they did not feel prepared for the future. At Lead Star, we hear from our clients that professionals often lack the skills needed to engage with others, communicate effectively, take initiative, solve problems, and face challenges with resilience.
It’s as if people are not as work-ready as they might have been in other eras.
Why Readiness Matters
As someone who served in the military early in my career, I was fortunate to be taught the importance of readiness. I was trained to handle uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. The recognition that each member of an effective team needs to be prepared to respond to the demands of the job they are being asked to do was at the core of the learning process.
Many of today’s professionals have not been taught how to lead, how to influence outcomes and inspire others. Their schooling has been more about learning facts and getting the right answers versus developing success habits and leadership attributes. People have been prepared for structure, calm, and clarity when today’s world calls for the ability to navigate challenges, handle the unknown, and determine the best ways forward with limited guidance.
If you want to develop yourself and your team in ways that will allow you to perform better, focus on building readiness. Readiness isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about being fully prepared to take on a task, challenge, or opportunity and work collaboratively with others toward results.
How to Build Readiness
1. Ensure you are getting proper rest, exercise, and nutrition. Doing so allows you to respond to the unexpected instead of reacting your way through your days.
2. Own your missteps quickly by taking accountability for how you can be better. Don’t waste effort on placing blame. Instead, harness your energy toward what you need to do to resolve issues.
3. Give people the agency to make mistakes and the feedback to learn from them. Create development experiences where team members can trip, fall, and practice getting back up. And ensure you coach them through the journey.
4. Practice consistency with the little things. Be on time, respond to others in a timely manner, and follow through on the commitments you make. Doing small things well reduces stress and, most importantly, builds the trust that earns you the opportunity to work on bigger initiatives.
5. Be quick to identify skills you need to develop and act. A commitment to growth allows you to confidently embrace change.
So much of our success in the workplace comes down to having the necessary leadership skills and mindset. Readiness means we consistently prepare ourselves for the work we do and support others in building their capability to achieve success.
