In our lives, we would have come across some people with great leadership qualities. They may not be leading a team, or an organization, but they exude an aura. They conduct themselves in a manner that sets them apart from the rest. As the debate rages on whether leaders are born, made, discovered, innovated, invented!? Let’s see what makes a person a true and admirable leader.
Generally, a good leader should be successful, progressive, and positive, must possess good personality traits, communication and delegation skills, charisma, agility, adaptability, and ability to transform the air around them by effecting positive changes.
Some people are able to bring out the best in others and that is the edge they have over others. So, let’s look beyond and list out those qualities that makes a person or YOU a quintessential leader.
- Be passionate: Obviously, you would think it is the dedication, commitment for one’s work to up the number of clients, revenue figures, etc. However, it is not just about that. The passion that you have which affects not only your attitude and energy but that of those around you. Your passion should spread like a wildfire and inspire action and positive change among others.
- Face obstacles with grace: If any leader knows exactly what a customer or market truly wants from the business, they would be hailed as no less than a God! But alas, life is always full of obstacles, and a true leader knows which battles to fight and how. Effective leaders approach roadblocks with a high level of positivity and maturity. They adopt creative problem-solving techniques that allows them to overcome situations that others might give up on.
- Allow honest mistakes, spot talents: An over-protected child learns nothing and cannot sail against the tides. A good leader allows their people to just GO FOR IT! Failure often provides us with some of life’s biggest learning opportunities. As uncertainty and risk are inherent to running a team or business. Some people do commendable jobs under high pressure situations. A good leader spots such resources in their team and makes the best use of their qualities.
- Be street smart: It’s hard to find a substitute for old-fashioned street smarts. Knowing how to trust your gut, quickly analyzing situations as well as the people you’re dealing with and knowing how-to spot a bad deal or scammer is an important aspect of leadership. Maturity and experience complement each other, and a perfect combination of this makes a great leader.
- Be intuitive and take ownership: Intuition is to art as logic is to math. Leadership is often about following your gut instinct. It can be difficult to let go of logic in some situations but learn to trust yourself. Having said that, if your instinct fails, leadership is also about taking ownership for what happened, learning lessons from it and NEVER TO REPEAT THE SAME MISTAKE.
- Understand opportunity cost: Leaders know that many situations and decisions in business involve risk and there is an opportunity cost associated with every decision you make. An opportunity cost is the cost of a missed opportunity. This is usually defined in terms of money, but it may also be considered in terms of time, man-hours, or any other finite resource. Great leaders understand the consequences of their decisions before making them.
- Be liked: You can respect a person who talks flamboyantly, has a brilliant mind, impeccable manners, and business skills, but do you LIKE them? A leader should not only be respected but they should also be liked. Liking a person is a not a quantifiable quality, is it? But, it can be achieved in the way a leader captains the team, spreads a positive feeling among them and make the group feel that they belong there.
- Laugh: Yes…you read it right. The proven routes to a person’s mind or heart is a healthy sense of humor. It works well in getting the best out of your team. Nobody likes a templated talk or expression, even if it is good news you are trying to convey. Also, effective leaders can laugh at themselves as they understand that they are also humans and can make mistakes like everyone else. Leaders who take themselves too seriously risk alienating people.
Unique brands of Leadership
A quick look at some successful CEOs, new-age entrepreneurs, and their unique leadership mantras:
- Satya Nadella, CEO, Microsoft
Leadership mantra:
- An avid reader
- Looks beyond the Horizon
- Makes the right move at the right time
- Makes every second count
- Nurture strong company culture
- Nitin Saluja and Raghav Verma, Founder, Chaayos, fastest growing tea startup of India,
Leadership mantra: Give people wings to fly and they will carve out their own journey.
- Mukesh Ambani, Chairman & Managing director, Reliance Industries Ltd
Leadership mantra:
- Money is not everything but important
- Have a dream and plan to fulfill it
- Let your work speak for itself
- Trust your instincts
- Trust all, but depend on none
References:
- https://briandownard.com
- https://economictimes.indiatimes.com
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