May 16, 2021
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5 min read
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Leadership
No matter which great leader you look upon, you will see that they were all self-aware. Self-awareness is a defining characteristic of good leaders. As a leader, you should know your personality, value, habits, and emotions as they directly or indirectly affect your actions and decisions. Having knowledge about these things will allow you to understand how they affect your actions and the actions of other people. Self-awareness is an invaluable quality of a leader that helps them remember why they aimed to be a leader in the first place.
To be self-aware, you will need to ask yourself some leadership questions. These questions can be tough, but they will help you become more self-aware if you answer them honestly. If the answer to these questions is yes, try to recall all the times when you exhibited leadership traits and behavior mirroring your answers. But if your answer is in the negative, then you can work towards adopting the traits you are missing. Given below are some leadership questions you should ask yourself to be a better leader.
Good leaders always hold themselves accountable before they hold anyone else accountable. They have a sense of ownership for themselves as well as the consequences of their actions. They do not allow anyone else to do something that they must do themselves. In the event of a failure, they first take a look at what they themselves might have done wrong before they take a look at what others might have done wrong. They hold themselves liable for the consequences of their actions.
No one is perfect, and you are not an exception. It is highly likely that you have made mistakes in your past and it is also highly likely that you will make mistakes in the future as making mistakes is a part of being a human. Good leaders own and accept their mistakes and learn from them so that they can avoid making the same mistake again. Good leaders admit to their mistakes in front of their team instead of hiding their mistakes or blaming someone else.
Good leaders respect their team members and others as they know it to be a crucial part of a good work relationship. Many bosses wrongfully think that they don’t need to be respectful to their subordinates as they are the boss. This is a very harmful mindset to have as one must first respect others in order to gain their respect. Good leaders understand the importance and value of their team members and co-workers and are respectful towards them.
Good leaders are always encouraging their team members to succeed. They provide opportunities for their team members to learn new skills that will benefit them. It is important to encourage and help your team to learn new skills and to succeed.
Empathy and compassion are traits that need to be present in you for you to be a good leader. Simple compassion and empathy will get you a long way on your path to success. All great leaders in history were compassionate and empathetic individuals. Learn more about the caring leadership post corona How to Be A Caring Leader That Understands the Needs of Team Members
Your team members might have important and valuable insights for you to consider when making a decision. So, it is crucial to make them a part of the process of decision-making and have a say in it whenever they are going to be affected by the outcome of that decision.
Good leaders know that people matter a lot more than numbers. They never reduce their team members down to numbers on a sheet of paper. Good leaders know the importance of people, and they understand how much more important people are compared to numbers. Some tips on leadership post corona Top 10 Essential Leadership Skills to Master Post Covid-19
It is the basic principle of leadership to lead by example. As a leader, you cannot expect your team to follow you if what you say and what you do are different. Good leaders always lead by example.
A team cannot function properly with an unreliable leader. You must and should be there for your team when they need you if you want to be considered a good leader. Good leaders are easily accessible to their team members, and they are always there for their team to rely upon.
It is important to celebrate the wins with your team as it serves to unify and motivate both you and them. When you celebrate the successes with your team, it serves to reinforce the motivation to keep up the good work. Celebrating successes honors the work done by your team members and shows gratitude.
Setting expectations for your team that are unreasonable is a recipe for disaster. Good leaders understand the limits within which they can set expectations without being unreasonable. As a leader, you need to try to make your team part of the process of setting the expectations and ensure that no employee bears a heavier burden than he or she can reasonably carry.
You, as a leader, owe it to your team members to give them credit and positive reinforcement such as a compliment when they do a good job. Good leaders know that giving credit to a team member when they do a good job is of high importance as it boosts morale and motivation in team members.
A good leader does his absolute best not to lose control of his emotions. Losing control of your emotions can cause you to make rash decisions, among many other things. As a leader, you need to have the ability to control your emotions and remaining calm even in heated situations, as being able to do so can save you from disaster.
As a good manager ask yourself these questions frequently to be the best version of yourself.
Dr. Tina Persson |CEO| Career & Leadership Coach| Author | Helping people to fulfil their goals
www.passage2pro.com
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