For a company to grow and thrive, it needs strong leadership. A good leader is someone who leads by example, and who also works to ensure that they are building up future leaders to support and to take over specific roles and projects.
Here’s a quick run-down of seven ways that you can encourage and support leaders within your organization.
1 – Practice Humility
Good leaders are humble. They accept that they will make mistakes, and they take on board criticism. They acknowledge the contributions of others, and they make everyone in the team feel wanted and appreciated. No one wants to work in an organization where they feel like they are just a cog in a machine. For people to give their best, they need to feel invested in the organization.
2 – Accept That People Make Mistakes
Just as you are not perfect, your employees are not perfect either. Your team leaders and line managers will be more tolerant of the mistakes that their direct reports make if the culture of the organization is not one of blame. One area where a lot of companies fail is that employees feel that they have to protect their jobs, so if a problem does arise, they work to cover it up, rather than resolve it.
3 – Lead By Example
Good leaders inspire people. When times are hard, they are the ones working the hardest. When the right thing needs to be done, even if it isn’t always fun, they’re the ones that do it. You cannot make good leaders if you do not model good leadership yourself.
4 – Never Stop Learning
Good leaders do not allow themselves to get set in their ways. It is crucial that you never stop learning yourself, and that you also support your employees to keep learning as well. Provide people with the time and the opportunity to work on personal projects, and emphasize the importance of continuing professional development.
5 – Accept and Support Questions
Show that you are confident and secure and that you are committed to the betterment of your organization by encouraging questions. Leaders do need to make tough decisions and to lay down the law, but there are a time and a place for it and a time and a place where questions and communication will have more value.
6 – Understand the Images You Present
Teach the people that you are building up as leaders to consider how people perceive them. A good leader presents an outward image of calm, even when they are not. A good leader will work with his team, but will always be the calming presence that inspires confidence.
7 – Value People’s Time
Time is the one resource that people have very little of, and it is something that you should treat as invaluable. Respect people’s time and they will respect you. That is something that more managers need to understand. Make it a part of your company culture, and your company will thrive.
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Adam Christing is a popular Event MC and Funny Motivational Speaker. He is the author of Your Life is a Joke: 12 Ways to Go from Ha Ha to AHA! (For more information go to AdamChristing.com)
