How To Be A Leader

If you think, that your employees owe you loyalty and are obliged to the top performance just because you pay them a salary, sorry to disappoint you, but you are stuck in the middle ages. An extra shilling doesn’t translate into an extra motivation unit or an extra minute spent on work. Advances in human psychology shed light on the complex human behaviours and have long established the pyramid of needs where money plays a mere secondary role. It is a typical hygienic factor, i.e. its presence doesn’t motivate, but its absence demotivates. After we satisfy our basic needs for food, shelter and safety (and money is just a means of providing for these), we are motivated by recognition and achievement.
Interestingly enough, a recent research has found out that people perceive leadership as another hygienic factor, meaning constructive “good” leadership doesn’t increase job satisfaction, but destructive “bad” leadership reduces it. (By the way, the most prevalent form of destructive leadership is a so-called “absentee” or laissez-faire leadership, simply put “do as you please”, not tyrannical as many tend to think.)
Being an entrepreneur, life has probably thrown you in the leading position and you need to learn on the go. As business owner, you often have to lead people who know more about the job than you do, like your finance or marketing guy. It is in no way a contradiction. You hired people for their expertise to help your business thrive.
So start with acknowledging that you don’t know everything and have no solution for every problem. Experts will discover it anyway, and if you don’t admit it, you will lose credibility. People value authenticity. Don’t be afraid to show you are human who makes mistakes. Be generous in sharing what life has taught you.
Think of yourself as someone with authority, not an expert. “Being a leader is a lot like being a conductor in the orchestra. You don’t play a single note, but you are responsible for ensuring that all the instruments play well together.” Leader is not the one who knows it all, but a person who, according to a talent specialist Tracy Duberman, combines the following important characteristics:
· Create psychological safety;
· Assess each team member’s strengths and goals and align them to the team’s work;
· Provide continuous feedback;
· Set the stage for the team’s work, co-designing time-frame and process;
· Focus on results while engaging in open communication, creating shared vision, resolving conflict and developing clarity in decision making; and
· Create mutual accountability.
What skills can you consciously nurture in order to grow as a leader?
Be accountable
Somebody has to take the responsibility to move the team in the desired direction. Just as the best vehicle won’t move without a driver, you will rarely find a high-performing team without strong, active leadership. Often, if a team is struggling, change of leadership maybe a remedy.
Communicate
8 out of 9 complaints have to do with the lack of communication. People work better and with a greater sense of engagement if they understand the “why” behind their actions.
Listen actively
Not just hear away waiting when people finish talking but pay attention and ask questions. It will also help you gain expertise. Learn from your experts.
Empathy
Make your team members feel valued. Appreciate contribution and be specific in it. Genuinely ask for their opinion and don’t take credit for others’ ideas; establish a safe environment where people have an opportunity to express their ideas and be recognised for them. Lastly, don’t underestimate saying thank you for little every-day things and calling your employees by their names. Alexander The Great is still remembered for knowing every one of his soldiers personally.
Feedback
Give continual constructive feedback, not just once a year or before firing. Don’t just criticize but offer ways to correct and improve. Enable an atmosphere where it is an achievement to learn from mistakes.
Remember, your goal as a leader is to remove obstacles and create such a working environment that your employees can perform better.
How to select a leader
When seeking to hire a leader, the most wide-spread mistake business owners commit is taking their top performers and making them leaders. Remember? Being an expert doesn’t equate to being a leader.
When hiring a leader, rather than experts look for people with the traits described above: proven skills in communication, trust building, conflict resolution, decision making, coaching, authenticity and accountability. A sort of litmus test is asking how many people would follow your candidate. High-performing talent follows good leadership.
