Last week, I had the opportunity to speak to over 50 interns that just completed their summer internships at CHS. I thought long and hard about what relevant message I could bring to this group and landed on the subject of early-career leadership.

Over the years, I’ve become known for my leadership lessons. When I speak with students and early career professionals, they often tell me that they aspire to be a leader, but they are unsure of the steps to take.

Looking back at my own journey, there are several steps I took that made all the difference.

I’d like to share with all of you, the same insights I shared with this group of interns. Because I had a lot to share, I’ve written this as a two-part blog series. If you missed last week’s article about finding the right environment, go back and read it first, then continue on here.

Master your craft

Most people don’t go to school to learn how to lead, then come out of school, and land a job as a leader. That’s not how it works. Most people go to school to learn a discipline and skillset and then get an entry-level job doing that as an individual contributor. That skill and job is the platform and context upon which you build your leadership capability.

Leadership is all about serving people. First and foremost, do your job really well. Initially, that will seem tough to do, but you’ll get the hang of it in a hurry. Doing your job skillfully and joyfully is the platform for building leadership capability. It starts there, and you can’t skip that step.

Being new

I remember being the new person on the team in my early career. I didn’t like the feeling much. It felt like the opposite of leadership. I was dependent on others for everything. However, it didn’t last. Sooner or later, there came along someone newer than me. Then, all of a sudden, I was no longer the new person on the team. Overnight, I became the voice of wisdom and experience.

As an aspiring leader, it is important to take the opportunity to help those newer on the team than you. Show them the ropes. Introduce them to people. Offer to help in any way. Even if you are only slightly more experienced, that’s okay. This is a great way to develop informal leadership.

Take initiative

Long before anyone will give you your own team to lead, they will want to see you lead in informal ways. There are all sorts of ways to do this. I remember constantly volunteering to lead informal initiatives for my team early on. “I’ll lead that project.” “I’ll organize that meeting.” “I’ll plan the team outing.” “I’ll learn that new technology.”

Help your leader

I know something about your boss. She’s a hard worker. She shows up before you and leaves after you. Once you’ve adequately mastered your job, walk up to your boss and ask if there is anything you can take off her plate. Keep doing that and you’ll develop a reputation with your boss and you will become a trusted destination for delegation.

Create connections outside your team

Assuming you’ve formed good working relationships within your team and with your boss, the next step is to get to know people in other teams that interact with your team. Which team do you depend on to be successful? Which team is the customer of your work product? Get to know them. Understand what they do and how they do it. Become the go-to person on your team for any inter-team issues. This is a powerful demonstration of informal leadership.

Build your network

I have one more bonus tip for you. If you are an early career professional or student, you might have a LinkedIn profile, but you probably don’t have many connections. Connect with everyone you’ve worked with. Connect with me. I started building my network on LinkedIn 15 years ago. Like you, I started with only a few connections, and now I have thousands. Start your professional network today.

Those are my core lessons for building leadership capability in your early career. Do these things, then fast forward 20 years. You’ll be a Vice President, and I’ll be retired.

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