You may think the road trip you have planned is just that – a trip that’s all about driving from one destination to another. But taking a trip along the road is the perfect opportunity to build up your leadership skills. Whether you already spend much of your time in a leadership role or are getting ready to move into a position of a leader at work, there are some necessary skills that are going to make you more successful when leading a team. And you can learn some of these skills behind the wheel of your car. Here’s how:
1. Goal setting and planning
Just like you need to plan a well-organized road trip, you’ll need to do the same as a leader, as you set goals and guide the team.
2. Curiosity
Driving off the beaten path and meeting new people from different walks of life is exciting. Connecting with people who have different lifestyles provides you with the skill of being able to communicate with the diverse cultures on your team.
3. Adaptability
When your road trip doesn’t go as planned, you’ll need to make changes and adapt to any situation. The same can be said for leadership – you’ll need to be able to quickly adapt and modify your plan of action.
4. Resilience
Just like you need to adapt to any changes on a road trip, you’ll also need to learn how to be patient and just accept the changes, such as a road closure that makes you take another route. As a leader, showing patience and calm when under pressure is a good way to gain team trust and confidence.
5. Embracing mistakes
Ignoring the GPS, forgetting snow chains…these are all mistakes even the best drivers make. Your travel companions may be annoyed but admitting to your mistake, learning from it, and moving on are going to make your road trip that much more pleasant. As a lesson for leadership, take the same concept to work by not getting upset but rather avoiding those mistakes in the future.
Check out the following infographic to learn all about the 8 leadership lessons you can gain when taking your next road trip.
Please include attribution to CarRentals.com with this graphic.
