Today is the tenth day of the new blog series entitled Bring Your Leadership to Life! Join us throughout the month of March and beyond as we feature guest bloggers who share their perspective on how they bring their leadership to life! This blog series highlights the theme of the 2nd Annual Evening for Austin Leading Ladies, an event that SOS Leadership is honored to be hosting in partnership with The Concordia MBA on Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at Concordia University Texas. Learn more about this powerful event and register at www.austinleadingladies.com.

Today’s blog post comes from Debbie Johnson

My approach to leadership has typically been fairly passive but I did make sure I was prepared for opportunities that came my way.  As such, here are three ways I make sure I bring my leadership to life:

1) Stay prepared

There are so many great resources available today, especially with the rising popularity of youtube and all things internet, to make sure I stay current on the business world and current culture as well.  I subscribe to or read/view on a regular basis:

1) several leadership-oriented eblasts (such as smartbrief, enewsletters from governance organizations, etc.),

2) good old magazines (for example, Fast Company)

3) interesting videos (such as ted talks)

4) inspirational eblasts (Rick Warren and others)

5) books on leadership (from 7 Habits of Highly Successful People to the myriad leadership books, new ones coming out all the time).

I am either a member of, or stay tuned in to, a number of organizations whose monthly programs are also great ways to stay current on the world and its trends such as Leadership Austin, Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, 8212, PEO, etc.  And conferences are another great way to stay current, offered throughout the year on all kinds of topics.

I view all of this time as well spent because it ‘sharpens the saw’ (per the 7 Habits) on leadership.

2) Practice

The old adage ‘practice makes perfect’ applies here.  Leadership is an active sport, not one where you can sit on the sidelines and stay theoretical.  I’m fortunate enough to be on the Leadership Austin board of directors and their executive committee so I am always learning by doing while engaged with other community leaders.  I find I learn something at almost every board meeting about leadership and how I can improve my own skills.  And, over the years, have been in similar organizations which provided me the opportunity to observe and learn from the ‘masters’.

3) Stay Open to Opportunities

I rarely set out with a specific goal in mind as it regards a leadership position.   But I have found that active involvement in organizations where my passions lie, inevitably lead to opportunities for leadership, if I will only stay open to accepting the challenge.   Throughout my career, I was blessed to be offered promotions on a regular basis by practicing the lessons above and by performing in my current job.  In the community, I can’t count the number of times that I participated in worthy causes, only to be singled out and offered leadership positions … I think because preparation met opportunity.

Hope you all will find the right opportunities where you can lead!

Stay tuned in the days to come as the Bring Your Leadership to Life Series continues….