A few days ago, I participated in a Twitter chat – #mediachat to be precise, and their topic of conversation was ‘leadership’. Reading all the tweets and responses got me thinking. What makes a great leader? How does an average leader differ from a great one? What qualities do great leaders possess?
In our professional life, we all want to be bosses, managers, and leaders at some point of time. We wish to reach the top of the ladder. Some people do it well, while some – not so much. Leadership can make or break a company. Almost everything depends on how the boss manages and leads the employees. Here are my two cents about what makes a great leader.
1. Humility: A boss who is egotistical and considers himself/herself superior than the other employees is bad news. A good leader never demeans another person. Making the employees feel less important is a quality of a bad leader. Humility is key to a successful leadership.
2. Confident and motivating: A humble leader need not be any less confident. If the employees see how confident the leader is about a certain project, it gives them the necessary motivation & boost to work even harder on it, thus providing fruitful results.
3. Understands and communicates: If a leader does not communicate, the company will not grow. If the boss does not even listen to some criticisms or creative inputs from other members, the project might miss out on some great progress. He/she must be open to accept the team’s ideas and opinions and work accordingly.
4. Encourages team spirit & has a sense of humor: Nobody likes a boring, serious, sucking-the-life-out-of-you job. Each person spends the majority of their day in an office, and the best thing a leader can do is have a sense of humor and find creative ways to let the employees enjoy their working time. Someone who enjoys their work provides the best output.
5. Appreciates the employees : Every employee needs appreciation for their hard work as it makes them feel important to the company. If an employee feels that he/she is a valuable asset to the company, they will naturally work harder and perform better. Also, throwing a little party for the team after a successful project also rejuvenates the team members.
6. Positive : A positive attitude goes a long way, especially in a work atmosphere. Even in times of not-so-successful projects, a good leader stays positive and doesn’t give up easily.
7. Ability to delegate well : A great boss is aware of the best skills of each person in the team, and delegates work accordingly.
8. Problem solving skills : A good leader does not panic in tough situations and knows how to tackle problems and make decisions with a calm mind.
9. Enthusiasm : An enthusiastic leader is always a plus, who inspires other members to have fun while they work.
10. Ambitious and focused : These qualities are a must in any leader if the company wants to grow & become successful. If a person isn’t ambitious, he cannot innovate and create one-of-a-kind products. Focus is important in a leader in order to keep quality work consistent.
So there you go, a few pointers which define a good leader. Although, I don’t think there exists a ‘perfect’ leader who embodies all of these qualities – but if he/she possesses even a majority of these qualities, then he/she can surely be called a great leader.
Anything more to add to this topic? Be sure to comment below. 🙂
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Hi Nicky,
Thank you for the reminder of what a leader should be! I started a new job recently and after a few interactions with my upper management, I wondered to myself…was I like this to my team? I’ve done some serious soul searching surrounding it. I do know for sure from this experience that going forward I will be more conscientious about how I treat those around me. Confidence and knowledge are great…as long as you are conveying the information in a respectful (and not overbearing) manner and showing appreciation along with it.
Kudos! Jeanne
Exactly! You’re very correct Jeanne! Thank you for stopping by! 🙂