Leadership, types of management are often discussed, or there is an endless controversy about which traits an ideal leader should possess. Certainly, an agile leader is grateful, and he shares that gratitude with his team on a daily basis.

In agile leadership, there are a lot of principles that are very applicable, so normal and simple. One of the basics is the one that says, “Lead yourself first.”

When leading a team, we automatically have to be ready to take responsibility, both for ourselves and for the whole team. You can equip yourself with a lot of tools and techniques for leading a team, but one thing requires special attention and effort. First of all, you need to understand your emotions, your values, and your communication style. When you are in tune with yourself and your values, you will easily understand and guide others. Team members notice very quickly when you are not in tune with yourself. And not only how harmonious your behavior is with what you say, but also how much you believe in it yourself.

A great leader once said that an agile leader shows his full potential if he uses the 50:30:20 rule.According to that rule, an agile leader should use 50% of his time to manage himself. That means investing in his development, understanding his own emotions, and trying to overcome them in that constant struggle with himself.

One of the best tools for monitoring personal development is the “leadership diary”.

In it, at least once a week, you answer three questions to yourself:

1) What did I do to develop my team?

2) What impact did it have on the business?

3) What did I learn from that?

An agile leader should use the other 30% of his time to work with his superior, to discuss with him and through regular feedback asks how his work can contribute to the organization and the superior leader himself. Because we are all on the road to success together.

In the end, an agile leader should invest the last 20% of his time working with peers, leaders on the same or similar position as him. The unhindered flow of information, learning, and exchange of experiences in the organization is something that separates a successful organization from a less successful one.

But where is the team here? Haven’t we counted ourselves a little?

Of course, the same rule applies to each member of your agile team. As an agile leader, you allow your team member to “invest” 30% of their time working with you. And so on, because agile leadership is two-way communication between a leader and his team member through constant feedback and reflection. In this way, the unhindered flow of information, energy, and tasks is enabled. Thus, an environment in which a mistake is allowed, in order to learn something from it, is created.