Being a business owner can be challenging. Once your business grows and you need to hire new people, you take on the additional challenge of being a leader – something which you may not have done before.
To effectively lead your team you will need to adopt some key leadership qualities…
There are many qualities that make a great leader, but here are my top 6:
- Be Passionate
You most likely started your business because you had a passion for it, right? So, make sure that passion and enthusiasm shines through to everyone in your business, your team, customers, and suppliers because that passion and enthusiasm is infectious.
- Be Decisive
You hire people who are experts in their field, top salespeople, accountants, and advisors. You pay them to provide their expert opinion and recommendations, but ultimately, you are the decision-maker.
- Listen and Communicate effectively
Everyone is different, so make sure that you listen to your team’s feedback, opinions, and recommendations. It does not mean that you have to agree, but if you don’t, explain why. Communicate your vision and any important changes in the business to your team so they can share your vision and understand the need for any changes. Your ability to listen and communicate will encourage openness and motivation within your team.
- Encourage contributions
No-one can be an expert in everything, and your team are made up of people who are specialists in different areas, so use their knowledge and expertise. Make sure that your team feel empowered and confident to share their ideas. This will increase motivation and engagement from your team.
- Encourage Personal and Professional Growth
If you want your business to grow and be successful, an important part of that is being invested in your team’s growth and success. Provide opportunities for further training and development, motivate, and inspire your team to take on new challenges and delegates tasks to give your team more freedom, creativity and responsibility.
- Set clear goals
Setting defined goals and ensuring that everyone understands them is vital to reaching your business targets. Whether you set individual goals, team goals or both, be clear. Include deadline dates, specific target figures and explain the reason for these goals – what will it help achieve? If your setting individual goals, help them to see the bigger picture and how their goal will help achieve that. Remember to monitor and refresh goals regularly.
- Give direct feedback about performance
Don’t wait until an employee’s annual appraisal to give feedback. If they have done a good job on a particular project or task, tell them and tell them specifically what impressed you. Or, if they haven’t hit their goals or there is a performance issue, give feedback as to what they could have done differently in that situation. Ongoing feedback will encourage, motivate, and develop your team.
- Be accountable
Lead by example. Make sure that you hold yourself accountable for your tasks and actions and allow your team to hold you accountable as well. Showing your accountability encourages your employees to do the same and hold responsibility for their own actions.
- Respect
Treating people with respect is one of the most important things you can do as a leader. Be respectful of your team’s individual values, culture, personal goals, and their time. Showing respect for your team will encourage trust, openness, and effectiveness
- Resilience and the ability to adapt
This is particularly relevant right now as business leaders are having to adapt to changes in the economy as well as changes to the way in which they operate under government health guidelines. Having resilience is being able to retain a positive, can-do attitude and rally your team to do the same. Focusing on the positive instead of the negative and being able to adapt your business plan and the way you operate to meet the needs of a new market and a new way of working.
Want to improve your leadership and build an effective and motivated team? – Get in touch for a quick chat!
