In the modern business world, a great deal of the success of a company is attributed to good leadership and management. How does a person get to be a C-level executive, such as a CEO (Chief Executive Officer), CIO (Chief Information Officer) or COO (Chief Operating Officer)?
There are many different paths to the C-level, including always being “top of the class,” having your talents recognized, and/or working your way up from the ranks to the top. However, good leaders are seen to possess a number of particular personality traits that make them stand out as a worker and someone worth following. In this guide, we will look at some of the most important characteristics of being a leader, and how you can improve your leadership skills in order to achieve your full potential.
Let’s get started in the first section with defining a good leader.
WHAT DEFINES A GOOD LEADER?
Being a good leader is about more than being a manager. It has nothing to do with your seniority level, your title, or being “blessed” with a leadership personality. Leadership is all about focusing on success, with each person in your company or team inspired by your example and willing to follow your lead.
Some people may appear to be born leaders, but the truth is that it can be learned. Attitude is often everything. If you think you can, you will. If you show you care about others, they will care about you and their job, or the task at hand.
These days there are all sorts of leaders, from the heads of corporations to community and church groups to online, with “thought leaders” in various niches and industries, and “trend leaders” who are seen to be worth paying attention to. No one had ever heard of Arianna Huffington until she launched her blog, and even then, it took her some time to become a thought leader to the extent that she was able to sell her company AND be offered a C-level position within it by the new owners.
As you can see, a leader possesses certain qualities which enable them to lead, such as influence and effectiveness. They may lead alone, or be part of a group, with the responsibility for making decisions on behalf of others. Leaders provide guidance and direction. It is not just about command, control and power, but effectiveness and persuasiveness as well.
Whether you think that leaders are born or made, or a bit of both, there are several characteristics that many powerful leaders tend to have in common, and which seem to be lacking in those who are less effective leaders. These characteristics include:
- Hard-working
- Goal-oriented
- Visionary
- Creative
- Proactive, not reactive
- Personable
- Motivating
- Laser focused
- Willing and able to see the whole picture
- Resilient
- Confident
- Self-aware
- Good communication skills
- Responsible
- Reliable
- Honest
- Able to transform stress into success
We will discuss each of these below.
Hard-Working
Many top leaders have been described as tireless, always striving to achieve their goals. It is probably no coincidence that many of them do not even own a television. They work towards their own vision instead, using a variety of strategies, tactics and innovations. Many seem to need little sleep as well, and are always alert and full of ideas.
Goal-Oriented
Are you the kind of person who likes to get things done? Do people come to you and ask you to do something for them and know you will follow through? Not everyone is goal-oriented, but those who are may end up being effective leaders.
Visionary
Good leaders do not just look at how things are, but also how they could be. They seek to improve things, usually for the benefit of more people than just themselves. They are constantly creating based on their vision or the potential of what they are trying to create or transform. They will use a variety of strategies and tactics to make their vision a reality.
Creative
Good leaders tend to be very creative or even innovative people who “think outside the box” and are able to come up with a variety of ideas and solutions which no one else has thought of. They lead by example and do not follow others slavishly.
Proactive, Not Reactive
Good leaders make things happen. They are the “movers and shakers” in their area of expertise. They tend to be known in their industry as the kind of person who is always at least a few steps ahead of everyone else. Again, they do not follow others slavishly; in fact, many people want to imitate them.
Personable
A leader tends to be a people person – someone who derives lots of energy from being around people and working with them or for them. Such extroverted personalities make great leaders, but introverts are not barred from leadership either. You can have a love for people and still be introverted. In this case, you just respond differently to interacting with others, and would be seen as a good listener rather than a great talker.
Motivating
Good leaders know how to motivate, even when (or especially when) times are tough. They can often get the best out of people who might not even think themselves capable of such great achievements.
Laser Focused
A good leader has a clear vision and purpose and does not allow himself or herself to be distracted or diverted away from that purpose. Think of the difference between a light bulb and a laser. Both use beams of light, but the bulb scatters the beams of light in every direction. A laser uses the beams of light with such focused concentration that they can literally cut through solid substances.
Willing and Able to See the Whole Picture
A leader has laser-like focus to try to accomplish their goals, but the best leaders will take both a focused and a broad view that encompasses a wide variety of factors which can contribute to their success, or hold them back from it.
Resilient
Resilience means bouncing back even when things go wrong. Good leaders aren’t daunted; they learn from what’s happened and press on.
Confident
A belief in himself/herself can sometimes be the only thing that sustains a leader through his/her climb to the top, and the often slippery slope he or she will have to live on once they get there. Even if a leader is not truly confident, they can often “fake it ’til they make it” and convey a sense of command and authority despite being faced with great difficulties.
Self-Aware
Leaders tend to be self-aware with reference to their weaknesses and strengths, but not to the point of letting either one rule them.
Good Communication Skills
True leaders are able to communicate their vision and get people to participate in it. They do their best to “keep people on the same page” within their company or team, while also retaining control of privileged information.
Responsible
Good leaders should not shy away from responsibility. If they take on a task, they should follow it through to its logical conclusion. If they make a mistake, they should admit it and not let someone else take the blame or try to cover it up.
Reliable
Good leaders are reliable and follow through with all of the work assigned to them. They do not make excuses, but deliver what is expected of them on time.
Honest
Leaders in history have possessed this characteristic in varying degrees, but on the whole, they should not be corrupt, greedy or adopt a leadership role simply for their own benefit. If they give their word, they should keep it if it is at all possible.
Able to Transform Stress into Success
Leaders feel stress just like anyone else. It is a question of what they do with that stress. For many people, it is the fight or flight response. Either they will make a stand and work hard to deal with the situation, or they will run from it and try to pretend it doesn’t exist. A good leader will make a stand.
Now let’s look at four main leadership styles, and the pros and cons of each.
LEADERSHIP STYLES
There are several leadership styles that are related to the personality of each leader. The combination of the two will have a direct influence on the success you enjoy as a leader.
Democratic Leadership
In this style, the leader seeks input from workers and members, encourages creativity, and values the team members’ individual skills and knowledge. This type of leadership has been shown to lead to high productivity and job satisfaction. The downside is that it can lead to a lot of “noise” and too many opinions, without enough focus.
Autocratic Leadership
This type of leader makes decisions without consulting anyone. They emphasize following rules, THEIR rules. It can be useful when quick decisions need to made, such as in a crisis. However, in the long run, this type of leadership can prove ineffective and hurts morale. No one likes to be dictated to or feel as if their contributions aren’t valued.
Relaxed Leadership
A relaxed leader allows team members to make decisions, often with little to no direct supervision. They trust their team and expect good results without the need to micromanage. This can be a useful style if employees are highly experienced, are very motivated, and need little direction. It can be a bad style if the trust in the workers is misplaced and things start to go wrong.
Micromanaging Leadership
The micromanager is the opposite of the relaxed leader. They have trouble delegating and try to tell people how to do their jobs. They get caught up in the minute details of the running of the company and expect people to report directly to them continually about every little thing.
The good point of this style is that the buck stops with the boss. There is no large committee trying to decide things. The bad point is that it makes workers feel undervalued and doesn’t give many people the chance to experience true leadership themselves.
Now that we’ve covered some of the main characteristics of a good leader and four of the main management styles, it’s time for you to look at your current level of leadership skills. Let’s turn to this topic in the next section.
IDENTIFYING YOUR CURRENT LEADERSHIP SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
One of the most important aspects of being a good leader is being able to assess your strengths and weaknesses honestly and do what you can to play to them on the one hand, and minimize them on the other.
The first thing to consider in relation to your current leadership skills and experience is whether you are in any sort of leadership role at the moment. You might not think you’re a leader because you don’t have a fancy title, but you would be surprised at how influential you might actually be in your company without even realizing it – or getting the credit for it.
For example, if you’re the person everyone comes to when they have a problem, you’ve clearly got leadership potential. If your boss or manager is always asking you to head up projects and initiatives, then you’re obviously functioning as a leader.
If you often help other staff through teaching them what you know, then you are also ready for a leadership role. It is just a case of having your role recognized and hopefully getting a title and salary increase to go with it.
If you’ve already served as a leader in the past, or are doing so now, how did it go? Did you have any issues with your own performance? Were there issues with the team? Or were there problems with both?
Being honest about what might have gone wrong and what could have been done better could make all the difference in your level of success if you get another chance to become a leader.
Or maybe you discovered that being a leader wasn’t all you had hoped it was going to be? In this case, assessing what went wrong and your own skills and abilities can help you decide whether you really want to climb the corporate ladder, or stay where you are. There’s nothing wrong with that if you do.
Remember, being a leader isn’t just about getting the best things in the company, but also the responsibility and accountability that goes with the role. The responsibilities could involve significant sacrifices in terms of time, effort, and your personal life. Therefore, it’s important to take a 360-degree look at the impact of a promotion on your family and friends if you were to adopt a leadership role.
Now it’s time to look at your weaknesses as a leader in order to come up with strategies to improve your skills in a structured way.
STRATEGIES FOR DEVELOPING YOUR LEADERSHIP SKILLS
One of the ways of determining what you need to work on in relation to your leadership goals is to think of the characteristics of a good leader, and then their opposite.
For example, think about being decisive. The opposite is wishy-washy, or not able to make a decision, or to stick to it. Other characteristics and opposites include patient versus impatient; humble versus arrogant.
Make a list of your weaknesses (and we all have weaknesses) so you can formulate a plan for addressing them. There are a number of effective ways of doing this.
- Set clear goals
- Create milestones on the path to your goals
- Listen to others
- Set out systematic steps in your business so you don’t have to keep re-inventing the wheel
- Get better organized
- Find support
- Read more books
- Look for mentors
- Go back to school
- Find online training
Training does not just have to relate to business skills. It can also relate to skills that will help with your personal as well as your professional life. Areas to learn more about might include:
- Stress management
- Anger management
- Relaxation
- Visualization
- Money management
- Budgeting
- Outsourcing effectively
…and so on.
There may be some aspects of leadership you feel you could do better in, such as staying calm no matter what happens. Adopt different strategies and take note of what works.
If you are having difficulty with relationships in the office or at home, consider learning more about emotional intelligence.
It can be difficult to look within and evaluate yourself critically, but it is better to be honest than to ignore your issues until the point where they become obstacles to your success. Look at your skills more critically. Are any of these going to have direct impact on your ability to do a great job as a leader? If they are, take action.
Once you’ve listed your weaknesses, jot down a few ways you could work on them so they don’t hold you back. For example, if you said that you’re not good at staying calm in a crisis, perhaps a stress management course might help.
Some people may seem to be born leaders, but the truth is that those who aspire to that position often work very hard to get to the top. They play to their strengths, set goals, and tackle their weaknesses. If you know you have a lot to offer in your company, it’s time to assess yourself and take action to move into a leadership role.
