Leadership is an important managerial quality which guides or inspires a set of people or an organization towards a goal of creating something new. A successful leader knows how, when and where to use its resources. However, everyone is not born with this quality. You must continuously learn and evolve to become a good leader. Here is a list of 10 resources which are easily accessible and will help you become a successful leader –

• Online Courses and Certifications

There are many online courses and certifications available to acquire leadership skills. The best part of these online courses is that you can learn about staying at home and at your own comfortable pace. These courses are quite affordable as compared to joining a business school. Some of the courses are free as well. Also, you can enrol in many courses at the same time and get lifetime access. Generally, these courses are affiliated to a university or known college and you receive certification at the end of the course which will add value to your resume. The known online resources you can get started with are –

• Coursera
• LinkedIn
• Udemy
• MIT OpenCourseWare
• Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania
• Cornell Online Executive Leadership 

• Advice and Quotes from real people

It is not only books or courses that will give you an insight into leadership skills. You can also get it from a mentor or advisor who can help you to think out of the box. Mentors can be any person. He can be a college professor, a business owner or an expert from an online platform. There are many online platforms and apps which provide a great leadership opportunity to connect with like-minded people and discuss ideas and knowledge. Real talk and Mara mentor are such apps which connect you to a vast list of professionals at different career stages which can help you to share their knowledge and experience. These apps support both iOS and Android users. 

Advisors on the other hand are individuals whom we know and share deeper bonds. These sets of people know their strengths and weaknesses and accordingly coach us to improve in areas where we lag. You can even hire a consultant which is specially hired to develop leadership skills in you and boost your confidence to become a successful leader. 

• Business Schools

Another valuable resource which can sow the seeds of leadership in you is business school. It is a traditional way to gain knowledge and experience and is popular amongst those who want to change their career path or fresh out of school. It is definitely expensive, time-consuming and doesn’t guarantee any return. You might have to prepare and qualify for a written exam or an interview to get through. However, you tend to make a lot of contacts during a business school program. 

There are many business schools around the globe –

• Columbia Business School
• IMD Business School
• IESE Business School, Spain
• Insead Business School, France
• London Business School, UK
• Stanford Graduate School of Business, USA
• Centre for creative leadership, USA

• Real-time Feedback

Feedback is a great tool of a leader as it gives him a chance to change and evolve himself. The leader is self-aware of what changes he needs to do to improve on his skill and learn from its mistakes. However, it is difficult to find people in your workplace who can give genuine feedback and guide you on how to improve on it. 

• Books

Reading is one of the most valuable ways to acquire any skill. It helps us gain knowledge about the subject and also about other’s experiences in that field. There are tons of books and resources available in the market on leadership. 

• Blogs and Websites

Apart from online courses and certifications, you can get access to vast data available on websites and blogs related to your area of expertise. These blogs and websites give valuable and latest information available in your field. This information can be used to brush your skills and learn new insight which you cannot get in books or schools. 

• Team and workspace

A leader or an entrepreneur should be an expert in his field and ready to gain information from any resource. Knowledge doesn’t come in a single day but it is a continuous journey. A leader has to learn each day and share the ideas and thoughts with his team. It is not necessary that he will have all the answers. Rather he should be ready to tap knowledge from his team and create a culture of learning amongst them. He should be ready to take critical feedback from his team and workspace and improve on it. 

• Conferences and workshops

Conferences are a great way to meet and learn from leaders. It helps us to gain the latest information in that field and how we can apply it in our life. There is also an opportunity to network with like-minded people. There are many workshops and training sessions organized during the conference which help in gaining hands-on experience. It helps in changing your perspective when you meet people during workshops or conferences. 

• Failures

You might think about how a failure can be a leadership opportunity? However, it is a proven fact that all the Stalwarts have faced many failures in their life but they didn’t succumb to these failures. Instead, use these failures as a learning tool and grow strong to become successful leaders. A failure teaches us gratitude and makes us mentally tough. It gives us new challenges and helps us to learn from our mistakes and evolve as a leader. So next time when you fail, don’t get disheartened. Treat it as a part of your journey, learn from it and leave it behind. 

• Volunteering

Another leadership opportunity which you can gain is through volunteering. It is a great way to give back to your society and cultivate a leader in you. Volunteering helps to elevate your spirits, increase your network and help in building leadership skills. You are able to improve on your ability to solve problems and soft skills too. In addition, volunteering also helps in boosting your confidence and prepares you for your future challenges. 

Conclusion

Leaders don’t create followers; they create more leaders – a true quote by Tom Peters, who is a co-author of the bestselling book ‘In search of excellence’. Leadership is a continuous process which improves our thinking by continuously practising, learning and preparing ourselves for the next challenges. Hope our list of resources will motivate you to self learn and cultivate the quality of leadership in you.