By Linda Van Valkenburgh, MS, CCMC, CJSS, CSMCS, CELDC
How does someone become a great leader? Are you born with the right qualities, or can you learn the skills to effectively lead?
Being a great leader is about more than having a single set of ideal skills. It’s about knowing yourself and those you’re leading. This list of the best leadership strategies will help you understand the strategies used by the world’s top CEOs.
With the right leadership, you can help ensure long term success for you, your employees, and the company.
Achievement Oriented
Leaders that are achievement-oriented like to set goals and then work towards them. They encourage those around and under them to grow and improve. This type of leadership is successful because it clearly aligns everyone within the company to work towards a common goal.
Employees who like to have autonomy appreciate this leadership style. They’re encouraged to take self-responsibility to grow and work toward their personal goals while also contributing to the company’s overall goal.
The one potential pitfall of this type of leadership is getting too focused on the here and now. As the leader, you need to look both at the current and overarching long term goals.
Supportive
Those that show compassion and empathy while striving to remain approachable are supportive leaders. There’s a genuine concern for employees, and everyone is treated with dignity and respect.
The benefit of being a supportive leader is that employees feel cared for and valued. This concern garners respect and loyalty.
Participative
For a democratic style of leadership, consider being participative. These types of leaders like to include lower-level employees in the decision-making process. This can be wise when you’re looking for varied points of view. It also gives employees a sense of ownership and importance.
As a participative leader, you’ll seek to elevate your employees. You’ll inspire them to work harder because you’ve given them a sense of inclusion in the direction of the company.
To make this style of leadership successful, you’ll need to balance participation with decision making. Ultimately, as the leader, it’s your responsibility to make decisions in a timely manner. Don’t let the operation of the company get bogged down in round tables, meetings, and updates.
Transformational
Are you the type of leader who loves innovation and has a vision? Then you’re a transformational leader. You’ll find this type of leader is most common in the technology industry, but you can apply it to other businesses.
This type of leadership works because it benefits both the organization and its employees. As a transformational leader, you look to the future of both your company and the industry as a whole. Then use that vision to model and align your mission and business plan.
Employees that are driven by a mission gravitate towards this leadership style. They appreciate a leader who has goals that are bigger than the next new product.
Directive
The final leadership style provides a clear structure and direction for employees. You’ll need to be able to provide performance objectives and effectively communicate expectations. This leadership style works best when leading employees in more of a repetitive and task-driven role.
Not all company roles need collaboration, innovation, or achievement. The focus is on getting the daily tasks done. A directive role is effective at ensuring employees perform to standard consistently.
Develop Your Leadership Style
When it comes to developing your leadership style, it needs to feel natural. You cannot force yourself into one of these best leadership strategies that don’t blend well with your personality. You’ll be perceived as not genuine and, therefore, untrustworthy by those you’re trying to lead.
Let’s get to work!
-Linda
If you are ready to move your executive career forward contact me today at [email protected]