This is a guest post from Caryn Walsh.
Being a good leader has never been easy. Not everybody can learn how to carry the expectations, demands, and ambitions of a company on a single pair of shoulders. You need to know when to be tough and have a willingness to make the difficult decisions, but it isn’t all about grit and determination. It isn’t all about power and wielding your authority.
This is one of the most important lessons for modern leaders, because the business world has changed. Employees have a lot more power now than they ever did. They want to feel personally invested in the companies that they work for and they want their contribution to be recognised. But, most of all, they want to feel happy at work. If you can give them this, you’ll have their trust and respect.
At Pure Magic Business, we work with people who are finding it hard to be good leaders. The first thing that we teach them is that there’s always time to turn it around. No matter how many mistakes you might have made in the past, you can flip the script and start again.
It’s Okay to Be Humble
The idea that managers and executives have to be untouchable is outdated and it fosters an ‘us’ and ‘them’ attitude within the workplace. If you wouldn’t feel happy taking orders from somebody who looks down on you, don’t expect your employees to be. A good leader knows that power isn’t always visible. It is about taking care of the people that you’re responsible for, even when the job doesn’t directly benefit your own image.
Your Ideas Might Not Be the Best
For a business to thrive, it will need to adopt the most promising ideas in order to make smart goals and effective plans. Leaders who fear ideas better than their own only serve to stifle the organisation’s potential. Leaders need to cast the creative net wide and listen to their employees. Some will have great feedback and wonderful ideas that can improve, develop, and enhance the company. Many minds working in harmony are always more constructive than a single, lone voice. Plus, inviting workers to contribute encourages them to get emotionally invested in the future of the company.
Gossip and Drama Are Not For You
Being a leader isn’t always a positive experience. The very act of having more power than others and being in a position to tell them what to do can foster resentment. This is common in people who find it hard to deal with figures of authority. The most positive and constructive response is to treat them with as much kindness and fairness as possible so that they understand that you’re not a threat. What you must not do is engage in any kind of gossip, drama, or sniping. Rise above and lead by example. There are leadership courses that can help you learn how to combat negative behaviour within the workplace.
You Know That Success Is a Journey
And finally, a great leader is a person who’s never truly content with where they are and what they’ve achieved. They know that there’s always another ceiling to push through and a bigger challenge to tackle. Crucially, some of these challenges will be to do with their own leadership style. As businesses and corporate cultures change, so too must leaders if they want to adapt and survive. So, don’t be afraid of self-appraisal, because it will ensure that you stay relevant, valuable, and perfect for the job.
For the past 25 years, Caryn Walsh has consulted to countless organisations in Australia and overseas in areas of leadership and team development. At the helm of Pure Magic Business, Caryn leads an impressive team who focus on ‘Growing People and Transforming Organisations’ in the corporate, community and education sectors.
(Image Source: Entrepreneur.com)
🔴 Interested in consulting?