0

Unlocking Leadership: The Two Most Crucial Keys to Effective Leadership

Leadership

The act of inspiring sub ordinates to perform and engage in achieving a goal Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. The individuals who are the leaders in an organization, regarded collectively. The activity of leading a group of people or an organization or the ability to do this Leadership involves –

  1. establishing a clear vision,
  2. sharing that vision with others so that they will follow willingly,
  3. providing the information, knowledge and methods to realize that vision, and
  4. Coordinating and balancing the conflicting interests of all members and stakeholders.

A leader steps up in times of crisis, and is able to think and act creatively in difficult situations. Unlike management, leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned and enhanced through coaching or mentoring. Someone with great leadership skills today is Bill Gates who, despite early failures, with continued passion and innovation has driven Microsoft and the software industry to success.

    The Two Most Important Keys to Effective Leadership

    1. Trust and confidence in top leadership was the single most reliable predictor of employee satisfaction in an organization.
    2. Effective communication by leadership in three critical areas was the key to winning organizational trust and confidence:
      • Helping employees understand the company's overall business strategy.
      • Helping employees understand how they contribute to achieving key business objectives.
      • Sharing information with employees on both how the company is doing and how an employee's own division is doing

    Four Factors of Leadership

    1. Leader - You must have an honest understanding of who you are, what you know, and what you can do. Also, note that it is the followers, not the leader or someone else who determines if the leader is successful. If they do not trust or lack confidence in their leader, then they will be uninspired. To be successful you have to convince your followers, not yourself or your superiors, that you are worthy of being followed.
    2. Followers - Different people require different styles of leadership. For example, a new hire requires more supervision than an experienced employee does. A person who lacks motivation requires a different approach than one with a high degree of motivation. You must know your people! The fundamental starting point is having a good understanding of human nature, such as needs, emotions, and motivation. You must come to know your employees' be, know, and do attributes.
    3. Communication - You lead through two-way communication. Much of it is nonverbal. For instance, when you “set the example,” that communicates to your people that you would not ask them to perform anything that you would not be willing to do. What and how you communicate either builds or harms the relationship between you and your employees.
    4. Situation - All situations are different. What you do in one situation will not always work in another. You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation. For example, you may need to confront an employee for inappropriate behavior, but if the confrontation is too late or too early, too harsh or too weak, then the results may prove ineffective. Various forces will affect these four factors. Examples of forces are:
      • Your relationship with your seniors
      • The skill of your followers
      • The informal leaders within your organization
      • How your organization is organized

    Principles of Leadership 

    To help you be, know, and do, follow these eleven principles of leadership guide expand on these principles and provide tools for implementing them:
    1. Know yourself and seek self-improvement - In order to know yourself, you have to understand your be, know, and do, attributes. Seeking self-improvement means continually strengthening your attributes. This can be accomplished through self-study, formal classes, reflection, and interacting with others.
    2. Be technically proficient - As a leader, you must know your job and have a solid familiarity with your employees' tasks.
    3. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions - Search for ways to guide your organization to new heights. And when things go wrong, as they often tend to do sooner or later do not blame others. Analyze the situation, take corrective action, and move on to the next challenge.
    4. Make sound and timely decisions - Use good problem solving, decision making, and planning tools.
    5. Set the example - Be a good role model for your employees. They must not only hear what they are expected to do, but also see. We must become the change we want to see - Mahatma Gandhi
    6. Know your people and look out for their well-being - Know human nature and the importance of sincerely caring for your workers.
    7. Keep your workers informed - Know how to communicate with not only them, but also seniors and other key people.
    8. Develop a sense of responsibility in your workers - Help to develop good character traits that will help them carry out their professional responsibilities.
    9. Ensure that tasks are understood, supervised, and accomplished - Communication is the key to this responsibility.
    10. Train as a team - Although many so-called leaders call their organization, department, section, etc. a team; they are not really teams... they are just a group of people doing their jobs.
    11. Use the full capabilities of your organization - By developing a team spirit, you will be able to employ your organization, department, section, etc. to its fullest capabilities.

    Attributes of Leadership 

    If you are a leader who can be trusted, then those around you will grow to respect you. To be such a leader, there is a Leadership Framework to guide you: BE KNOW DO
    1. BE a professional. Examples: Be loyal to the organization, perform selfless service, and take personal responsibility.
    2. BE a professional who possess good character traits. Examples: Honesty, competence, candor, commitment, integrity, courage, straightforwardness, imagination.
    3. KNOW the four factors of leadership — follower, leader, communication, situation.
    4. KNOW yourself. Examples: strengths and weakness of your character, knowledge, and skills.
    5. KNOW human nature. Examples: Human needs, emotions, and how people respond to stress.
    6. KNOW your job. Examples: be proficient and be able to train others in their tasks.
    7. KNOW your organization. Examples: where to go for help, its climate and culture, who the unofficial leaders are.
    8. DO provide direction. Examples: goal setting, problem solving, decision making, planning.
    9. DO implement. Examples: communicating, coordinating, supervising, evaluating.
    10. DO motivate. Examples: develop morale and esprit de corps in the organization, train, coach, counsel.

    The Process of Great Leadership 

    The road to great leadership that is common to successful leaders:
    1. Challenge the process - First, find a process that you believe needs to be improved the most.
    2. Inspire a shared vision - Next, share your vision in words that can be understood by your followers.
    3. Enable others to act - Give them the tools and methods to solve the problem.
    4. Model the way - When the process gets tough, get your hands dirty. A boss tells others what to do; a leader shows that it can be done.
    5. Encourages the heart - Share the glory with your followers' hearts, while keeping the pains within your own.

    Leadership Theories

    1. "Great Man" Theories: Have you ever heard someone described as "born to lead?" According to this point of view, great leaders are simply born with the necessary internal characteristics such as charisma, confidence, intelligence, and social skills that make them natural-born leaders. Great man theories assume that the capacity for leadership is inherent – that great leaders are born not made. These theories often portray great leaders as heroic, mythic and destined to rise to leadership when needed. The term "Great Man" was used because, at the time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male quality, especially in terms of military leadership.
    2. Trait Theories: Similar in some ways to Great Man theories, trait theories assume that people inherit certain qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. Trait theories often identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders. For example, traits like extraversion, self-confidence, and courage are all traits that could potentially be linked to great leaders. If particular traits are key features of leadership, then how do we explain people who possess those qualities but are not leaders? This question is one of the difficulties in using trait theories to explain leadership. There are plenty of people who possess the personality traits associated with leadership, yet many of these people never seek out positions of leadership.
    3. Contingency Theories: Contingency theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the environment that might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the situation. According to this theory, no leadership style is best in all situations. Success depends upon a number of variables, including the leadership style, qualities of the followers and aspects of the situation.
    4. Situational Theories: Situational theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon situational variables. Different styles of leadership may be more appropriate for certain types of decision making. For example, in a situation where the leader is the most knowledgeable and experienced member of a group, an authoritarian style might be most appropriate. In other instances where group members are skilled experts, a democratic style would be more effective.
    5. Behavioral Theories: Behavioral theories of leadership are based upon the belief that great leaders are made, not born. Consider it the flip-side of the Great Man theories. Rooted in behaviorism, this leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders not on mental qualities or internal states. According to this theory, people can learn to become leaders through teaching and observation.
    6. Participative Theories: Participative leadership theories suggest that the ideal leadership style is one that takes the input of others into account. These leaders encourage participation and contributions from group members and help group members feel more relevant and committed to the decision-making process. In participative theories, however, the leader retains the right to allow the input of others.
    7. Management Theories: Management theories, also known as transactional theories, focus on the role of supervision, organization and group performance. These theories base leadership on a system of rewards and punishments. Managerial theories are often used in business; when employees are successful, they are rewarded; when they fail, they are reprimanded or punished. Learn more about theories of transactional leadership.
    8. Relationship Theories: Relationship theories, also known as transformational theories, focus upon the connections formed between leaders and followers. Transformational leaders motivate and inspire people by helping group members see the importance and higher good of the task. These leaders are focused on the performance of group members, but also want each person to fulfil his or her potential. Leaders with this style often have high ethical and moral standards.

    LEARNGTR

    We invite you to explore Learngtr, your go-to resource for insightful blogs on accounts, finance, and management topics. Our platform is designed to keep you informed and engaged with the latest trends and best practices in these critical areas. Make it a habit to visit us regularly, so you don’t miss out on valuable content that is relevant to your career and professional growth. .