As many came to realize during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, public health officials play an incredibly important role in keeping people safe. For this reason, many aspiring professionals have begun to explore fulfilling career paths in the public health space.
Unfortunately, regardless of how motivated one is, it’s not always clear what skills one should develop to thrive in public health. Fortunately, having some guidance can make it easier to navigate the development process of stepping into a leadership position in this industry.
Here are skills people should build to become great leaders in public health.
Decisiveness
Whether one is in charge of health-related educational campaigns or is acting as a healthcare public affairs specialist, being decisive is key. Without the ability to make important decisions efficiently and with conviction, there’s little chance that one will be able to thrive as a leader in public health.
To be decisive in an effective way, one must have the ability to assess evidence and analyze it. This means being adept at quickly collecting and analyzing information on a consistent basis as a professional.
To truly prepare oneself for a successful career as a public health leader, it’s important to bolster these skills. To do so, one can engage in a variety of practices such as debate and critical thinking exercises.
Ultimately, it takes practice and experience to develop the skill of being decisive. As such, anyone with ambitions to rise to the top and become a great leader in public health should put themselves in as many situations as possible in which they must be decisive.
Persuasiveness
Though it may not seem like an obvious skill that amazing public health leaders must have, persuasiveness can play an integral role in these types of careers. Specifically, the act of convincing others to help one achieve public health aims and goals is a tremendously important part of being a professional in this space.
To put this idea into perspective, it can be helpful to explore the COVID-19 pandemic and the ways in which it was overcome. Though there was a barrage of varying ideas and attitudes around the ailment, it was the job of public health officials to convince the public to act in safe, healthy, and effective ways.
As this example highlights, persuasiveness is a skill that can help public health officials achieve their goals and keep people safe. For this reason, being persuasive is one of the most important skills that budding public health professionals can develop if they aspire to become outstanding public health leaders.
Integrity
When it comes to public health officials, integrity is a crucial trait that should always be present. If the integrity of public health professionals were to falter, they would be less capable of keeping the public safe and fulfilling their duties.
Much like politicians must do the things they promise if they wish to cultivate a strong and healthy society, public health professionals too must follow through on their promises to keep the public safe. This practice of always being true to one’s word is essential for gaining the trust of colleagues, other decision-makers, and the public at large.
Though it may seem overly simple at first glance, practicing follow-through with everything one says is a great way to strengthen this skill. Over time, one will develop immovable integrity that allows one to achieve great things.
Given the critical nature of acting with integrity in the public health space, it’s vital that those aspiring to leadership positions develop their skill of consistently acting with integrity.
Communication
In any role that involves making decisions about the fate of the public, communication is a pivotal and necessary skill. Without the ability to clearly convey one’s thoughts, ideas, and attitudes, one will have a difficult, if not impossible, time convincing others of their stances.
In public health, the ability to communicate is important in several keyways. For one, it’s important that public health leaders are able to clearly communicate with their teams in order to strategize, plan, and execute projects effectively. In addition, public health leaders must be able to clearly communicate their thoughts and ideas to the public.
To bolster one’s communication skills, it can be helpful to practice acts such as public speaking, debate, and active listening. Ultimately, these practices will make one a better communicator with a clearer understanding of how to elicit the right response from listeners.
Consequently, communication is a vital leadership skill for any public health professional who intends to one day thrive in a leadership position.
Building the Right Skills is Key for Thriving as a Public Health Leader
While there are many factors that go into a long and fulfilling career as a public health leader, having the right skills is one of the most important. From having integrity to being decisive, key skills are necessary for one to thrive and find success in these types of leadership roles.
As such, anyone who aspires to be a great leader in the public health space should do everything in their power to develop these skills.
This story originally appeared on CareerAttraction