Diving into the core of leadership

<< Background >>The project aimed to strengthen leadership in youth work by enhancing soft skills and professionalism among youth workers. Leadership was identified as essential for directing organizational resources efficiently, achieving goals, and motivating teams toward a shared vision. Effective leaders harnessed individual talents to advance collective objectives, fostering excellence.The project sought to develop leadership that inspired, guided, and supported organizations while avoiding toxic practices. Denmark had ranked second in global happiness (World Happiness Report 2021), while Romania and Spain occupied the 28th and 29th positions, respectively, based on metrics like social support, life expectancy, and GDP.The partners’ needs and goals were identified through focus groups within their organizations. Results revealed that most youth workers experienced leadership prioritizing company goals over employee well-being, leading to work overload, stress, fatigue, and reduced productivity. This partnership shared best practices in leadership and well-being while equipping young leaders with the knowledge and skills to lead authentically, responsibly, and empathetically.<< Objectives >>Our project aimed to:• To consolidate the soft skills of youth leaders (teamwork, communication, decision-making) in order to lead with passion, authenticity and responsibility;• To raise awareness on the issue of toxic leadership, its harmful impact on employees’ health and the further spill over effect on productivity and profit;• To acquire key concepts related to leadership, such as integrity, honesty, adaptability and empathy.• To strengthen participants’ competencies to effectively use digital tools to manage teams (e.g. project management software, profiling team members)• To exchange ideas and good practices linked to leadership between Scandinavian, Mediterranean and Balkan countries (Denmark, Spain, Romania).• To acquaint the participants with the Erasmus + Programme and encourage them to take an active role in the project;• To reinforce the relationship among the organizations and develop new project ideas that could be implemented with the support of the Erasmus + Programme.Furthermore, these came in direct correlation with the general objectives of the Erasmus+ program which is to support lifelong learning, the educational, professional and personal development of people in education, training and youth.<< Implementation >>We implemented 3 activities in our project - A1, A2 and A3.Activity A1 - was focused on the Quantiative Research that we carried out successfully. Based on the research results, we planned the training course activity (A2) and the educational content course (A3). Also, in this first activity we implemented the kick-off meeting, in Denmark, which brought all the partners together at the same table, we planned ahead the flow of the project, divided responsibilities and made an Action Plan.Activity A2 - we implemented the training activity in Bucharest (Romania), which brought together youth workers and staff from the partner organizations. Participants kept journals, shared project responsibilities, and formed teams for tasks like timekeeping. They explored key leadership concepts, including styles, motivation, job satisfaction, and organizational culture, while exchanging best practices.Activity A3 - we developed an educational online course, based on the research from A1 and on the results of A2. The course is a free resource which is available for everyone to access on the Thinkific platform. Also, we implemented the final conference & multiplier event with 60 participants in Spain to disseminate the project's results.<< Results >>A1 - Quantitative Research report, available on the project's website and spread through other channels. It emphasized the needs and challenges of the youth sector from Spain, Romania and Denmark on the topic of leadership.A2 - 16 youth workers from the partner organizations were trained and equipped with the following skills by participating in the physical training course in Romania:- Public speaking/communication skills;- Building nourishing relationships;- Self-care;- Knowing how to motivate a team;- Learning how to manage resources;- Decision making;- Build a positive organizational climate;- Critical thinking ;- Conflict resolution.They also discussed and brainstormed on the quantitative research report from A1, laying the ground for the educational course to be built in the next activity A3.A3 - we developed an educational online course, based on the research from A1 and on the results of A2. The course is available for free on the Thinkific platform and can be accessed worldwide.The course consists of 6 learning modules, carefully tailored for the needs and challenges identified during A1 and A2. Also, it has self-assessment quizzes after each module which helps the users track the learning process.