Great leaders are made not born says the great Vince Lombardi and nothing could be more true. No one is born a great leader. It is through effort and study that they become one. It’s definitely not easy, but becoming a great leader is well worth the effort. The following are three time-honored steps to becoming a great leader. Following these simple steps will send you off in the right direction of leadership success.

1. Study, study, study. Find every bit of information you can on the subject of leadership. Watch leadership videos, read books and find a mentor. Information is king. Millions of leaders have come before you and you can benefit from their experience rather than shooting in the dark. Start with information from some of the great leadership gurus like Ken Blanchard, Joel Barker, Stephen Covey or Ben Zander. Their books and videos will be huge advantage on your quest for leadership knowledge.

2. Become an innovator. The most important part of being a leader is, of course, to lead. Innovators lead people into new areas and help their followers embrace change. Change is the way of the world and if your organization isn’t changing, its dying. Look for ways to improve your organization in every area. Change can be scary to people and it’s part of your job to quell that fear and lead them into the future.3. Empowerment. The people you are leading come to the table with diverse skills and experiences. Don’t waste these talents. Empower your people to innovate and do their job in the most efficient manner they see possible. Micromanaging people never works. An empowered workforce is always happier and more productive.

Follow these simple steps and you are well on your way. Remember the words of Vince Lombardi. You can make yourself a great leader through study, innovation and empowerment.

Charlie Bentson King is a writer and producer of training videos for TrainingABC. TrainingABC is a distributor of Joel Barker videos like the Business of Paradigms.