Growing the Leaders of Tomorrow
By: Bj Gray
Tags: Growth, Personal Development, Leadership, Career Development

Where do we find the leaders of tomorrow?

Some might say in MBA programs. Others might say in poly-sci departments or law school.

But I think those answers are too limited.

My belief is that we’ll find the leaders of tomorrow anywhere we invest in helping young people develop confidence.

Earlier this year, I had what I would call an “Epic Week” full of amazing insight, inspiration, and incredible opportunities to meet and guide some of tomorrow’s leaders.

Here’s what I learned about confidence and the leaders of tomorrow.

Future Leaders at Girls, Inc

First stop in my epic week was the Central Coast Girls, Inc. chapter in King City, California. I spoke for one hour to 30 high school girls at King City High School. This chapter invited me to speak to the girls on how to have confidence and communicate effectively when giving a 2-minute speech for their graduation from Girls, Inc.

I had full participation the entire hour. So much that I had to put down my prepared talking points and dig in to their questions. It was beautiful to see them be so concerned about conquering their fears so they can get ahead. I have to tell you, I didn’t have this curiosity when I was in high school. They truly are the leaders of tomorrow.

Building Confidence Through Coaching

During my time with these girls, I was able to do some mini-coaching around three key areas:

Showing them that they are worthy. Every human being is worthy just for being alive. Looks, status, and imperfections don’t ever take away your worthiness. Helping them understand how they could feel their own worthiness and feel good by working on new thoughts and beliefs about themselves. Giving them tips for their speeches, such as practicing it over and over out loud. This might sound obvious, but there’s so much power when you know your stuff.

One of the most impactful things I did was to share with them my own experience around speaking. I told them that when I shoot a video for a blog, or for my ads, or even for Facebook live, I practice over and over beforehand. Sometimes 10 times for a one-minute video!

Even though I know my material, the more I say it, the more I get comfortable in my skin, and that gives me more confidence and less worry about getting judged.

They appreciated hearing that even though I’m a business owner with decades of experience, I still need to practice my material and boost my confidence before speaking.

Women Leaders for the World

Second stop, attending an event in San Francisco, California to honor 19 new Women Leaders for the World (WLW) who are starting businesses or growing their young business to a new level so they can stand up for women’s justice in their countries.

Can I just say “Wow?!?!” These ladies are in a league of their own. They are definitely leaders of tomorrow.

The annual event is sponsored by the organization How Women Lead. This is one powerful organization in supporting women’s personal brands and their missions in life.

My role in this event and as a sponsor to How Women Lead is serving as a Global Advisor to one of these fine ladies for one year. I will help one of them deal with her ups and downs in achieving her 2019 goals for her business.

In this capacity, I’m more of a business advisor than a coach. But I know that my coaching skills will come in handy. The truth is, growing a business requires more than knowledge- you have to have the confidence to take action.

Especially if you’re creating a big change, as my advisee is. She’s leading a nonprofit called Hope WorldWide Kenya. This organization helps young girls in Kenya attend college. Talk about women helping women lead!

Leaders of Tomorrow in the Workforce

Third stop, working over the phone to prep my nephew who lives in Arizona for his first big job interview of his career. He’s about to graduate from college and was asked to apply to a large national company.

I’d been helping him prepare for a few weeks, and now it was time to put the final touches on his game-day plan for his interview.

All the preparation gave him the confidence to deliver thoughtful answers in the interview and even demonstrate vulnerability by asking to take time to give an answer, as well as asking the interviewer to repeat questions.

He told them this was the first big interview of his life. He wasn’t pretending to be something he was not. It worked in his favor, as being human allowed him to connect better with the interviewer. And that’s what you want.

Guess what? He nailed it. He moved on to the 2nd round to interview with the VP of the department.

Confidence is King for Leaders

Of course I’m thrilled that my nephew nailed his interview, but I’m even more thrilled that he’s taking the skill of confidence into the workplace with him.

As a team member, employee, and eventual leader, I know that he’ll believe in his own worthiness, just like the young women I spoke with at King City High School.

And I know he’ll follow his passions and work for change, just like the woman leading Hope World Wide Kenya.

Our leaders of tomorrow show up in all shapes, sizes, and colors. They speak different languages and come from different backgrounds and countries.

But what they have in common is the confidence to step out and make a difference.

I’m passionate about instilling this confidence in all of our leaders. Because when leaders are truly confident-not arrogant or controlling-they help bring about positive change.

Whether you want to lead in your career, your volunteer organization, or even on the political stage, you must have confidence. When you’re confident, you can…

Know your own worth, like I was helping the young women of Girls, Inc. to do.

Work to make a huge change that goes against tradition, like my business advisee is doing.

Be vulnerable, like my nephew when he was completely honest and asked for what he needed in his interview.

I encourage you to reach out and help-men, women, groups-that need support to build confidence in their endeavors.

If you need your own confidence boost, let’s talk. My coaching skills can help you let go of the thoughts that are keeping you playing small, so you can lead with confidence! Schedule your free Strategy Session and start growing your confidence today!