<span style="font-weight: 400;">I’ve got a bit of a soft spot for Apple’s Chief Technology Officer, Kevin Lynch. He is a guy who is clearly more of a techie than he is a public speaker, yet whenever he takes to the stage during the Cupertino company’s huge product launches, Kevin never fails to impress.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">It took Lynch </span><a href="https://www.agil8.com/path-to-cto/#"><span style="font-weight: 400;">twenty-four years to reach the position of CTO</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> for the world’s largest company. That’s a colossal amount of time, but what impresses me the most is the way in which he appears to have developed strong leadership skills from virtually nothing.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">I don’t doubt that Apple has invested considerable time and expense in </span><a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/leadership-the-number-that-truly-matters/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">leadership</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> training for Lynch, but if he is, as I suspect, a somewhat more reserved guy (certainly, far more so than the late Steve Jobs), I understand exactly what he’ll have gone through to reach his current position.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">I’ve not reached the heady heights of a top tier role at a company of Apple’s size, but I did spend ten years developing my own leadership abilities without any formal training, and in this post, I’d like to explain exactly how I went about it.</span>
<h3><b>I Embraced Failure</b></h3>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">I’d never led a team before, therefore I knew I’d get it wrong - regularly. And, with that in mind, I approached every task as manager knowing full well that I’d have to be ready to learn from my mistakes.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">And, </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">boy</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> did I make some mistakes. But, each one taught me something new and, most importantly, proved that the people I managed were forgiving of them. Like me, they were only human, and could clearly see that I needed just as much support as they did.</span>
<h3><b>I Learned From Video Marketing</b></h3>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">I had something of an epiphany one day, which was that leadership is almost identical to video marketing. So much so, in fact, that </span><a href="http://www.slinkyproductions.co.uk/10-ways-your-business-can-make-the-most-of-live-video-streaming/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">if you look at the constituent elements</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> that make a great video, you might spot the definition of leadership contained within.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">For example, you need to build an audience as a leader, even if they’re stood right in front of you (why would they listen if you’re not engaging?). Likewise, and just as the sound quality within a video is important, so is that of your voice; you need to be authoritative, clear and concise. You should also never put on an act in front of your team, because they’ll respect you far more for being yourself.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">The list goes on, but once I’d worked out how closely leadership resembled video marketing, I was able to mould myself into a star manager.</span>
<h3><b>I Teamed Up With a Mentor</b></h3>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">I quickly realised I couldn’t become a true leader on my own. And, because I’ve never been a fan of formal training, I sought help from elsewhere - specifically, a mentor.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Even the aforementioned Steve Jobs relied on a mentor, and countless leaders of the largest corporations in the world continue to do so. For little old me, teaming up with someone who had </span><a href="http://leadchangegroup.com/6-keys-to-inspiring-leadership-no-matter-your-style/"><span style="font-weight: 400;">the experience and insight I lacked</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> helped me come to terms with leadership and put my best foot forward.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">Plus, sometimes, it’s just nice to have a shoulder to cry on.</span>
<h3><b>I Never Assumed I Knew It All</b></h3>
<span style="font-weight: 400;">Lastly, I never, ever stopped learning. Even when I had particularly great days managing the team, I avoided the temptation to assume I’d ‘cracked it’.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">No one knows it all and, certainly, no one will ever master leadership. We’re all capable of it, but it’s a skill that will continue to develop for as long as the world turns on its axis.</span>

<span style="font-weight: 400;">If I can become a leader from nothing, you can do the same. The world is full of Kevin Lynch types - so why not join us?</span>