I have been blessed over my career both in business and the military to be led by exceptional leaders as well as those who struggled with leading. In my career I have tried to learn from both. I wanted to share a few things that stood out to me that the most effective leaders did vs those who struggled more with leadership.
1) Leaders understand that while you may be given authority you must earn the right to lead. Building trust and confidence with the team you are to lead is a key component of this. An example is to observe first before making major changes as a new leader, otherwise you may “fix” something that isn’t broken and is working for the team which causes unnecessary chaos. Another example is remaining calm in a crisis – resist the urge to just do something – again this can cause chaos without addressing the root cause.
2) Seek to understand before seeking or proposing solutions – finding out what the team is experiencing or believes is the problem in many cases is your best source of information on issues and possible fixes.
3) Words matter – good leaders in my experience use the word “I” primarily when taking responsibility for something, they use the word “we” when talking about accomplishment as they recognize any accomplishment is the result of the team’s work not their own.
4) Provide negative feedback or constructive criticism in private, praise in public.
5) Provide the following – training, clear guidance, the tools to do the job and then let them do it. Don’t micromanage – if you want to be trusted you must trust. If you don’t trust your team then you need to provide better training, guidance, etc.
6) Show your team that you are invested in their future success and career progression. Meet with them regularly individually, use individual development plans to drive personal goals, mentor them where you are experienced in portions of their job, and encourage them to seek mentors outside the team. This goes a long way in building the trust needed to truly lead.
In conclusion, in my experience, leadership is more of an art than a science – you can lead an effective team without having the role of manager, but you cannot effectively manage in the long term without earning the right to lead.