Leadership Lessons from an Olympic Medallist

To follow-on from last week’s blog post exploring leadership qualities and approaches in more detail, I wanted to share key Art of Leadership takeaways from five-time Olympic medalist, Hayley Wickenheiser. Hayley gave an inspiring and entertaining talk which had everyone in the audience captivated. In particular, it was a good reminder that great leaders can be found everywhere – not just in the corporate world.

Hayley’s tips included:

• It’s important to differentiate between your role and yourself
• Keep perspective in check – be present
• Lead from the front – show your team the way
• Lead from behind – step out of the way
• Do the best job you can
• Have the courage to step ahead of fear
• Find the courage to stick to the plan
• Celebrate the small successes as well as the big wins
• Find unity in adversity
• Enjoy the ride!

Although short and sweet, a lot of Hayley’s points came from her experience training with her team and then becoming the team captain. I think any of these tips can be applied to the corporate world and are just as valid as some of the more corporate-based suggestions that may delve deeper into strategy and relationships. Often, keeping things real and keeping things simple are what will really be effective and have a genuine impact on people.