Take a minute and ponder this question. What is a leader? It’s important to have a basic understanding of what a leader is. I think, for the most part, we all have a pretty good understanding. There’s usually someone that comes to mind when asked about leadership. Maybe a former/current supervisor or a family member. We may not have a solid definition, but we can think of someone. So, here are some definitions of leader/leadership I found online.
leader: the person who leads or commands a group, organization, or country. “the leader of a protest group.”
Dictionary.com
- a person or thing that leads
- a guiding or directing head, as of an army, movement, or political group.
U.S. Army
the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.
Leadership Traits
Now that you’ve thought about leadership examples and have read a few definitions, it’s time we establish leadership traits. In other words, the essential qualities that make you a leader. Identifying these traits will help you form a better definition of a leader. Again, these are just my opinions formed from my experience. I encourage you to do some more research and then adjust to what you’ve read here. You can probably list dozens of different traits, but I’m just going to list a few. Also, it can be easy to confuse traits with soft skills. Just remember that traits are more character-based while soft skills are tasks, done well, in a specific field. These traits are not listed in any specific order:
Mentorship
There are different types of mentorship (formal, informal, peer, situational), but the overall purpose of a mentor is to provide influence, guidance, and knowledge to someone. This can be done directly in a formal setting. For example, sitting down with a mentee or subordinate and having a professional discussion. This can also be done indirectly. As in, leading by example. I’ll elaborate more than that later on in this post.
Accountability
Most leaders are responsible for a group of people, or a specific section within the company. As the leader of that specific section, you should hold yourself accountable for your section’s performance; be it good or bad. Definitely praise your team members when they perform well (still provide constructive criticism to help them improve aka ‘mentorship’). With that same token, be ready to take full responsibility when one of your members doesn’t perform well. Those areas of improvement are very crucial to proper development. Make sure you analyze the whole situation and figure out the best way to overcome it.
Team-building
Good leaders know how to build a team and use that team to receive maximum performance. You have to identify your team member’s strengths and weaknesses. Figure out who’s good at what and who needs development. Keep in mind the big picture. The ‘team’ doesn’t just consist of you and your section. It’s the company as a whole. How can your section help other sections be successful in order to fulfill company goals? Don’t be afraid to work laterally as well. Maintain open lines of communication with your peers.
Adaptability
We spend so much time making these grandiose plans just for them to fall apart as soon as they’re initiated. As a leader, you need to be ready to adapt. You need to learn to be flexible and be ready to pivot on a moment’s notice. Through experience and time, you’ll develop great problem-solving skills and find ways to be resourceful. At the end of the day, the mission still has to get accomplished. Are you going to be part of the problem or the solution?
Conclusion
There are many more traits out there; I just wanted to list a few to get your gears turning. Before we wrap things up I want to talk about leading by example. I wouldn’t necessarily deem it a trait, but more of a way of leadership. Understand that as a leader, you will constantly be in the spotlight. Whether it’s by your supervisors or your subordinates. Don’t be a “do as I say, not as I do” type of leader. That will steer you toward toxicity. Something we will talk about in a different post. You are a reflection of your section just as your section is a reflection of you. Make sure you’re performing the way you want your section to perform. It can be difficult at times. Trust me. However, it’s so worth it when you accomplish your goals and you did it the best way possible.