Anyone can become an effective leader with the willingness to learn and practice the necessary skills. Everyone has a unique set of competencies, life experiences, and values that they bring to any situation. These competencies are the building blocks for making a good leader. The role of a leader is to inspire and guide people to reach solutions, not manage them.
“A team leader’s most important task boils down to only two key questions a week that he or she should ask every team member: 1) What are your priorities for the week? and 2) What can I do to help?” —Marcus Buckingham
Matching your leadership style to task is important. As a leader, you may have to navigate your team through ever-changing circumstances while never losing sight of things like vision, mission, budget and time! A single leadership approach will not be effective in every situation, so leaders must be flexible and adaptable. Leaders need to evaluate each circumstance and choose the right approach for the task at hand.
Watch out for potential problems. Anticipating in advance what might go wrong while having time to think about how to respond, is good planning. Your anticipation may help you avoid a problem all together. Some problems could be: a lack of understanding of the organization; losing perspective and becoming a micro-manager; doing too much or being a solo leader; ineffective communication or lacking personal time and commitment.
If you would like to learn more about being an effective leader for your organization, read the new Being an Effective Leader for Your Organization fact sheet available here.
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