8 Ways To Be More Effective Leader

How do you define leadership? Is it a way to exert dominance and show power? Or, is it something that correlates to collaborative work and harmony in a workplace? Things in the business world, including the rising global competition, demanding an increase of shareholders, and the rising instability and turbulence in the market, are changing.

Thus, it isn’t surprising that leading companies and successful organizations are now heavily reliant on their leaders – more than ever. An effective and successful leader carves business strategies and prepares for any situation, despite the levels of volatility.

But what augments one’s leadership skills? What kinds of foundational principles enable an existing leader to showcase better leadership?

8 Ways To Be A More Effective Leader

Learn more about those individual skills and behavior from a certified leadership coach.

• Understanding the Leadership Style

Yes, there are certain leadership styles and approaches that are subjective to individual people. Some leaders believe in independence and letting their employees be, while a few others believe in assistance-type of leadership.

Understanding and reflecting on the present style of leadership enables the leaders to pinpoint their shortcomings and eventually work on them. Knowing what kind of approach, you take will help you analyze if these qualities are helping or hindering.

Taking the time to analyze your leadership traits and style will also help determine which areas need work and which leadership approaches are working. It is definitely a work in progress. In order to determine your leadership style, you need to be in that role for a subsequent period.

• Be a Role Model

There are leaders who micromanage and then there are leaders who support and encourage. A good and ideal leader is in the latter category. Transformational leadership is based on idealized influence. Instead of sitting on the top and just instructing, a transformational leader walks with their team. They encourage creativity every step of the way, foster healthy relationships among team members, and are usually admired too.

People working under such leaders often have signs and feelings of optimism and work with positive enthusiasm in them. Instead of expecting every team member to be perfect and model all the successful qualities, a good leader hones these qualities themselves.

• Avoid Being Demanding

There’s a fine line between delegating tasks and demanding the tasks. Leadership isn’t just about practicing power and control. Instead, it is about understanding the team’s bandwidth and delegating the tasks to the ones who would enjoy doing them and performing them optimally.

A good leaders should be aware of their team members’ strengths and weaknesses and leverage them to drive growth in the team. Also, when delegating tasks, a good team leader will avoid micromanaging and allow the team members to do their tasks without consistently poking and prodding.

• Maintain Transparency and Clarity during Communication

When you have a team working under you, the best way to lead them is by encouraging open and transparent communication. Employees need a degree of direction when it comes to attaining specific goals. And, clear instructions and task delegation promote that.

Instead of expecting team members to just know what is expected of them, a good leader informs, reports, and communicates those needs. Building transparency bridges the information gaps to promote independence in the work progress.

• Be Available

Leadership isn’t about sorting through the tasks in a project and just assigning them to team members. One of the most important traits of a good leader is availability. Standing like a supportive pillar beside their team is a key quality in a good leader. Leadership is about the people.

So, instead of governing the processes from afar, a good leader stands with their team. When someone needs them, they should be accessible to either clear the doubts or correct the wrongs in the process. Good leadership is when one focuses on their individual team members and emphasizes problem-solving skills.

• Have a Positive Attitude

A business is full of ups and downs. Some days promote successful project completions, and some days bring a lot of downfalls. A good transformational leader has an upbeat, optimistic, and empathetic approach towards different situations in the business.

When the business takes a hit and things look bleak, a good leader knows to stand as a strong pillar for the rest of the team. Instead of letting everyone feel disheartened and question their contribution to the projects, a good leader encourages them to see things in a positive light and work through the shortcomings instead of festering them.

Challenges are part of personal and professional growth. It is how one tackles them that makes all the difference in the world.

• Create Lasting Solutions

Every business, every company, and every organization will face problems on a regular basis. This is part of the cycle and something that every leader experiences with their team. However, a good leader acknowledges these problems and focuses on creating long-term solutions and not temporary ones.

Quick fixes don’t necessarily fix the actual problem, they tend to the evident consequences that the problem creates. A good leader nips the problem at the root so it doesn’t branch out later. Lasting and long-term solutions also address the trigger that is causing the problem and mend that too.

• Encourage Contributions from Team Members

Participative leaders are praised, respected, and treated as role models. If your team members know that they can share their opinions and ideas without fear and obstructions, it helps them feel valued in the organization. Encouraging team members to share their contributions allows everyone to approach a problem in a different light.

Although leaders do have the final say in the decision, having a collaborative brainstorming session with the team members encourages a better exchange of ideas and allows everyone to take active participation in a project. Even studies indicate that democratic leadership styles promote better problem-solving.

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Conclusion

Leadership isn’t a one-way project. It is hands down one of the biggest collaborative projects that involve team members. Becoming a good leader is about learning and self-reflecting every step of the way. Instead of priding yourself in being the best, stop and listen to what your people are saying. Taking feedback is part of being a good leader.

Becoming a loved and respected leader isn’t a one-day thing. Instead, you need to work every day towards it. You need to learn what worked in the past and improve those approaches for future projects. Being a good leader is about adapting to the needs of the team members.

Considering leadership coaching services? You can book a consultation with ICF-certified Coach, Dr. Paras for a one-on-one session to improve your skills as a leader that can inspire, motivate, and reward your team members. Visit www.coachdrparas.com/contactfor further details.