As the new-year approaches, we all set resolutions to improve our quality of life in every aspect. So why not, this year, make a resolution for successful leadership? If you are leading an enterprise, you may be considering goals within your organization in terms of increased production, sales, and profit. If you are leading a military organization, you might want to increase a specific military capability, achieve unit readiness, or improve your team.
Understand that growing or improving an enterprise does not happen by chance. It requires the correct implementation of leadership to make these goals a reality and to sustain success over time. So how can you, as a leader, foster growth or improvement within your organization?
SET THE STRATEGY.
Growth begins with vision but manifests itself through achieving strategic goals and objectives for the organization. Remember that true goals should be realistic and achievable. Goals and objectives should not reflect a vision that bears no substance in the eyes of your team members. A good vision statement will become a new standard that gives your employees something to strive for in everyday work life. If you have a vision, you have already taken the first step as a leader towards growing your enterprise. Now, let us look at what to do with that vision.
PICK THE RIGHT TEAM.
Once the goals have been established, commission the right team to make your vision a reality. This team might be members from the same internal organization or could involve others from across the staff. No matter their place in the organization, the team should be inclusive of those players that will bring forth success to the vision and subsequently, the desired growth.
ESTABLISH THE PROCESSES.
Processes need to be established in order to expand any line of business (LOB). I have seen numerous organizations create a vision and fail to achieve it by failing to commit to the processes that implement success. To achieve a vision, we must establish processes that enable us to complete the goals and objectives in our strategy. Without processes our vision becomes unattainable. Lead your team towards success by incorporating processes with other tasks and functions required to bring forth expansion and achieve your strategic goals.
APPLY THE RESOURCES.
Once your goals are envisioned and the processes are established, the next step in expanding your enterprise is to commit to the vision. As leaders, we show our commitment through applying resources. You must enable your established processes with the right people, equipment, materials, and capital. Your people should be qualified with the right knowledge, skills, abilities; they should be armed with the correct equipment; and they should be backed with sufficient capital to succeed in achieving the vision of the organization.
The new-year is a new opportunity to expand and grow your company, as you continue to develop and grow as a leader. Happy New Year from Diamond Strategy Group!

Major General (Retired) Mike Diamond is CEO and founder of Diamond Strategy Group. Diamond Strategy Group is a leadership development and consulting company. We focus on improving the quality of leadership within organizations by utilizing the same methods Mike and his consultants have used in both military and civilian sectors.
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