One of the most prominent women in the UK army says there's a counterintuitive trait to making a great leader

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Lianna Brinded/Business Insider

(Second from the left) Colonel Lizzie Faithfull-Davies, Chair at the Army Servicewomen's Network.

Colonel Lizzie Faithfull-Davies, Chair at the Army Servicewomen's Network, is one of the most prominent women in the UK armed forces, a traditionally male-dominated organisation.

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As it is, Faithfull-Davis knows a thing or two about leadership and she shared her top tips on the subject with the audience at the FT Women at the Top event in London on Thursday.

Her biggest tip? Know what you're not good at.

"In the armed forces, we have looked at how allowing people to have different leadership styles allows people to develop as an individual," Colonel Faithfull-Davis told the audience. "It has taken me years to be confident and embrace recognising and saying what I am not good."

"It has made me a better leader, it has allowed me to recognise what people I need on my team and we all work better together. It has taken a while to recognise that there are better people to lead a task and to bring those people on a team, without feeling threatened."

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Colonel Faithfull-Davies is from the 6 Battalion Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) and works with the Army Servicewomen's Network to help provide support women of all ranks in the army.

Women only make up 10% of the armed forces' personnel although 80% of jobs are open to women, according to government figures cited by The Telegraph.

Earlier this year, former prime minister David Cameron removed the ban on women in close ground fighting roles. And this could lead to other avenues of promotion for women in the armed forces.

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