5 Tips For Being An Effective Leader

 

 

 

culled from:.lifescript.com

 

Although we all have different talents and skills, make no mistake: Anyone can learn to be an effective leader. Need some inspiration get started?

 

Look no further than your fellow women. Women are increasingly taking on leadership roles and at the same time, providing a huge boost to our nation’s economy. According to the Center for Women’s Business Research, nearly 10.4 million firms are now majority-owned by women, and these businesses account for $1.9 trillion in annual sales.

If you are among those hoping to earn a spot at the top, here are five tips to follow as you strive to be an effective leader.

1. Be yourself, but be willing to grow.

Learning how to be a successful leader involves knowing yourself well first. In The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader: Becoming the Person Others Will Want to Follow, John C. Maxwell wrote that you should focus 70 percent of your time on strengths, 25 percent on new things like growth and change, and 5 percent on your areas of weakness.]

Once you have identified your strengths and weaknesses, being yourself lets those around you know that you are a genuine person and comfortable in your leadership role. Consistency in your actions lets them know what they can expect of you and that they can count on you; reliability helps build trust.

Being yourself, however, does not mean that you shouldn’t take risks and continue to grow. As Maxwell wrote, when you are in a leadership position, “if you’re through growing, you’re through.”

Be open to new methods and ideas from your team and also from the competition; being left behind because you’re out of touch with the world is harmful to both future success and team morale.

 

2. Establish goals and commit to your vision.

Once you’re in a leadership role, you must decide exactly how you want your group to accomplish your “vision.” If you want to learn how to be a good leader, you must hone the ability to take your vision and mold it into something the entire group wants to work toward.

You don’t need to devise the vision alone. In fact, if your group has input into the overall mission, they are more likely to stay involved and inspired to achieve the desired results.

Your first line of action is to communicate your vision to the group. Then go one step further and tell people outside of the group, demonstrating your commitment to the vision. Maxwell calls this public pronouncement the “Edison method,” since inventor Thomas Edison would first announce a new idea at a press conference and then go into the lab and invent it.

“Make your plans public,” writes Maxwell, “and you might be more committed to following through with them.”

3. Know your team and create camaraderie.

In addition to providing goals and vision, you will also be in charge of motivation, and you must know how to get what you need from each individual member of your team.

In conjunction with this, you must remain available for advice and support. In order to show your willingness to help, Leah Falgout, Assistant Director of Residence Life at Lamar University, advises keeping the line of communication open.

 

“Letting your group know that you are there to help them succeed is one of the most valuable tools you can give to your employees,” Falgout said.

As a leader you are responsible for creating an exciting, energetic and rewarding environment for your group, inspiring them to work toward common goals. You must be able to identify and recognize the various talents, interests, strengths and weaknesses of your team members and use them all to the group’s advantage.

You’ve probably heard that “there’s no ‘I’ in team.” Yes, you are the leader, but an effective leader understands that she is also part of the team and never loses the concept of working together to achieve common objectives.

4. Communicate: Talk and Listen.

It sounds simple and perhaps obvious, but in order to be an effective leader, you must communicate your ideas effectively and also listen to the opinions of your group. “Successful leaders, we have found, are great askers, and they do pay attention,” wrote Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus in Leaders: Strategies for Taking Charge.

Take into consideration what your group has to say; no one likes to be ignored, and your members may soon turn against you and the group goals if they feel their thoughts are consistently brushed aside.

Simply asking your team members what they think from time to time can make them feel like an integral part in achieving the group’s goals and keep them motivated to continue.

 

Maxwell cited Oprah Winfrey as an example of how listening can help someone become an effective leader. For example, one of Winfrey’s most successful features on her television show came from a brainstorming session with her staff, one of whom mentioned the idea of starting a book club.

By listening to those around her, Winfrey not only breathed new life into her show, which she had been considering ending, but she also positively impacted millions of viewers by encouraging them to read more often and talk about it.

5. Evaluate Performances and Appreciate Others’ Work.

Look at what you and your group have accomplished, daily, weekly, monthly or whatever time frame makes sense for the activity involved. Are you meeting goals? Are there particular problem areas that arise repeatedly? Are all members doing what is required of them? Are you handling problems swiftly and effectively? Are you staying firm in your decisions?

Be sure to ask your group to assess how you’re doing as well; evaluating yourself helps you ensure that you are treating everyone equally, fairly and consistently.

Of course where there are problems, you need to address them, but equally important is offering praise when someone is doing a good job.

“Good thoughts in your head that are not communicated mean ‘squat,’” wrote popular speaker and business consultant Dr. Ken Blanchard in The Heart of a Leader: Insights on the Art of Influence.

Sometimes these words of encouragement are just enough to push someone to continue when she may have been bored or discouraged and thinking of quitting.

 

Practicing Leadership

Learning how to be a leader is just like any other skill—the more practice you get, the more successful you will be.

If you’re already in charge, you can hold leadership workshops or seminars for other leaders in your workgroup; the best way to learn something is to teach it.

If you’re not in a managerial position yet, use skills you already have to assume leadership positions such as the coach of your daughter’s soccer team or leader of a book club. Or if you don’t have as much time to dedicate, how about planning an event for your church, workplace or child’s school?

If you are willing to accept the challenge, leadership opportunities are all around waiting for you to step up--and they are all potential learning experiences for becoming an effective leader.

What Is Your Leadership Style?When you have to take the lead on a project, how do you handle the situation? Everyone has a leadership style that feels most comfortable, but if you aren't aware of what works best for you, you may be attempting to force yourself into a role that doesn't fit. When you're in charge, do you need to check with the rules on every little issue or do you trust your team members' skills and capacities to make the right decisions? Take this quiz to determine your leadership style and then roll with it!