How Does a Woman Lead in Business
Over the past few weeks I’ve pondered on what it means to be a woman in leadership. There are so many incredible women out there across our industries that bring so much to their workplace, and I’ve reflected on the qualities that for me says this is a woman who leads with true power.
The qualities that stand out most for me are nurturing, understanding and authority. In practice, I see this as the ability to observe situations with understanding and to know what is needed next, without perfection of course. Nurturing I see in the preparatory detail that is brought to the office, the relationships and transactions that are occuring. For example, keeping a space tended to, clear and fresh. Sensing ahead of time what is needed to ensure relationships and projects run smoothly within a workplace although there will of course be unavoidable factors that arise. This level of detail sets a foundation that feels very holding for all who are a part of it.
Understanding follows from this nurturing aspect and here I speak of a level of understanding that can only come from remaining sensitive to and open with all that occurs within the work environment. This requires being sensitive to what is going on for the people around us, our colleagues, clients or customers, which leads to a deeper understanding of what is behind or influencing people’s behaviours when it comes to business dealings and interactions. Business projects and environments can only ever be a result of the quality of the people and the dealings within them and so we see how important sensitivity and understanding are when brought to the workplace.
The third quality that stands out for me is authority. Ie the ability to express what is felt and known to be true and to not hold that back. Authority isn’t hard or cold or tough as it can sometimes be defined as. True authority comes very much from the level of sensitivity and understanding we spoke of above, as it is that sensitivity that allows us to know what is going on around us and therefore what is needed in response. The authority then comes in when one chooses to not hold back with what is needed. This is a most beautiful quality for anyone to have.
There are of course other qualities relating to productivity etc, however it is these I see that lay a solid and true foundation for any business to thrive. To see a woman (or man) lead with these qualities is both inspiring and magnetic.
Written by Anna McCormack, Founder, Beacon Social Media
