Have you ever bought one of those kits that contain a magic trick? Sometimes they seem so simple and brilliant. It can be eye opening to see how it works and it can give us a lot of satisfaction just to understand the trick. Sometimes we go further and we begin to practice it. We get a sense for how difficult it is to perform the trick.

As we begin to practice, we quickly realize there is much more to the trick than just understanding how it works. Knowledge and mastery are very different.

This is especially true for folks whose job requires deep subject matter expertise. In those areas, there is a premium on knowledge. In those fields getting to point of understanding can be difficult.

What can leaders learn from magicians? They know that knowing the trick is just the beginning. They know that the performance of the trick is just as important.

They know how to work with your brain to create the right picture in your mind (aka the illusion). They know how to perform the trick itself in a completely smooth way. They draw no attention to it (by the way, in doing so they show enormous humility, because they have high self-awareness and are willing to submit themselves to something that’s more important – the illusion). They know how to put an effective show around the trick, so that the overall impact is greater.

Also in our leadership, we have to go beyond mere knowledge of a leadership technique. Knowing how to give feedback, how to set goals, how to run effective meetings, how to give a presentation is just the beginning. It’s easy just to get the knowledge by reading the latest book of a leadership technique or attend a training program and then bathe in the delight of a brief ‘aha-moment’. The key to success is how we perform the leadership technique. This requires more than a little knowledge and instead requires a lot of practice.

Let’s take presentation skills as an example. Almost everyone knows that it’s important to connect with your audience. Do you know what tools you have available to connect with your audience? Have you tried all of them? Are you practicing all of them regularly? Or are you limiting yourself to what you’ve always done and what you’re comfortable with?

Do you just know how something is done or are you a great performer of that skill?

 

Take the next step

 

Think of an aspect of your leadership that you really enjoy. This could be how to run meetings, how to delegate, how to inspire your team, how to onboard new staff. It could be going for lunch with your folks, having water cooler conversations, making decisions or a myriad of other things leaders to. Pick one. Then read up on it to understand all the options you have (and don’t just look for confirmation of what you’re already doing – look for new approaches, and especially those you believe don’t work). Now try them out. Practice. Really practice! Go beyond being an apprentice of that tool.

Become a maestro of your favorite leadership tool.