When talking about great leaders each one of us can imagine at least one person in their lives that had had that inspirational and motivating effect on you. A “real leader” type of person. It might have been your first boss, your university professor or even the captain of your football team.
All these people have something in common. But can you tell exactly what is that make them leaders? Not that easy, is it? In its essence, every leader is unique because they use their personality to attract and motivate the people around them, no matter whether it is a business or not.
Peter Ducker once said, “Management is doing things right; Leadership is doing the right things.” Here are some of the right things you should try to become a better leader.
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How To Become a Better Leader?
1) Be the kind of leader you would want to follow
One of the characteristics of great leaders is that they are proactive. A leader not only needs to delegate people but also show the way, take the lead. If you see an opportunity take the initiative and encourage others to do the same. Failure to do this, might even have a damaging effect on your business.
Vision is every leaders best friend. It will help you direct your team members and inspire them. Creating a vision together with your team will form a productive environment and the inclusion will only strengthen your leadership.
When problems arise, try to approach them with a can-do attitude. Leaders need to assure others that there is no such problem that cannot be solved with a positive attitude. But even better, when approaching a new task, try to foresee the possible complications and act upon the risks before the actual damage is done.
In real life, however, mistakes happen no matter what. Everyone makes them, even the best leaders. The key here is to take responsibility. Be the cushion for your team to fall back on. Make it your problem.
One of the buzz words connected to leadership is innovation and not without a reason. Leaders are not afraid to change things. If you see there is a way to improve the processes of your business, do it. Don’t get stuck in a faulty workflow. Innovate and motivate others to do the same.
2). Leadership descends from character
Some people have a natural charisma that immediately puts others under their spell, but there are still some characteristics that you can work on to improve your leadership.
Every better leader is a human. It is important to show that behind the inspirational persona there is just a common man with the same earthly problems and ambitions. A good way to start is to know the people who you work with. Minimise the distance between you and your team members. Know their first names, know what drives them.
Be humble about your work and recognise the investment of others. This will not only help you gain respect from your employees but also show your human side.
We all look up to people who can motivate us and the leader has to do exactly that. Creativity and enthusiasm are values that every leader has to nurture and eventually innovation will come. Showing your enthusiasm about your work even when it’s not all that simple will show that even you do not have it easy.
Finally keep learning and keep evolving. You need to adapt and change depending on the situation. Gaining new skills will keep you up to date and provide with new opportunities, hence innovation.
3). True leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders
Being a great leader doesn’t mean you have to be alone in your position. Just like you can acquire new skills in life, you should try to find opinion leaders that can help you evolve and tackle new challenges. If you are not moving ahead you are going backwards.
This mindset will also help you to work with young talent and help them evolve. Leaders surround themselves with people who inspire them and who are capable of things that they might not be able to do. They know how to utilise talent in the most productive way. You should always be on a lookout for new talent to add to your team.
Nevertheless, a new talent is great, you should constantly work on the relationship and the growth of your team. Provide your team members with growth opportunities and guide them. If you see a possibility for a talented individual to grow, don’t stick to rules.
This is not the time to concentrate on tasks. Today you take the talent and adapt the work environment around them. Who knows what great things will happen if the right people will be given the right resources. Doing the right things, remember?
One thing that a better leader understands is that talented people need challenges and if they don’t feel challenged they move on. And that is alright. The modern workplace is about the outcomes rather than the obligation to stay in one workplace. Challenge your team and encourage them to grow, ever if that means growing apart.
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Being a great leader can come easy to some people. Some people may even be born with it. But just as they say, 1% talent and 99% work. You are not guaranteed to be a brilliant leader, but if you do all of these things, you might just one day accomplish that.
Author Bio
Madara is a freelance business writer with a passion for sharing her insights with the community. Being a media and business enthusiast she keeps her hand on the pulse of the latest news in the field. Read More
