- Introduction
- What’s the Need to Improve your Leadership Traits?
- 8 Ways you can Improve your Leadership Traits
- Conclusion
Introduction
Whether you are the CEO of a fortune global 500 company or the owner of a local ‘chai’ shop, having the right leadership traits can help you excel in your domain. These leadership traits equip an individual to face challenges and emerge victorious by delivering quality results. It might be tough to imbibe these traits but it will eliminate the bottleneck in your leadership story.
So, if you want to be an effective leader who shows resilience, empowers your team, and empathizes with them, nurturing these traits can improve your leadership style. Keep on reading this blog as we are spilling some beans about the leadership traits that you must improve.
What’s the Need to Improve your Leadership Traits?
In the current fast-paced working environment wherein it is difficult to keep up with your own responsibilities, it can be daunting to be responsible for others. That’s why it has become necessary to improve leadership traits to easily adapt to changes, take on responsibility and stand out in a million different ways. Also, a paradigm shift in leadership styles has made it crucial for individuals to work on their attributes.
Many challenges can be eliminated by harnessing leadership traits. Continuous improvement will enable you to boost work efficiency as well. At any level of leadership, you perform better when you know your shortcomings and hone your skills.
8 Ways you can Improve your Leadership Traits
There are multiple leadership skills that a leader can learn, but nurturing all those characteristics in yourself can be confusing and time-consuming. Practicing discipline, self-awareness, and updating your knowledge can consistently help improve your leadership traits.
1. Practice Two-Way Communication
Two-way communication, to a great extent, is like the game of Chess. Each move from an opponent is a message to be decrypted to provide feedback which in turn becomes your next move. In the two-way street of communication, the sender conveys a message which the receiver comprehends and then takes action accordingly.
You can leverage two-way communication to improve your leadership traits in a few simple ways.
- To initiate effective two-way communication, understand your team and their needs.
- Apply this understanding to develop an efficient system to collect the team’s inputs.
- The established system should include feedback collection which flows throughout the team.
- Implement the inputs that you think will contribute to your team’s success and act on the feedback received to improve the cycle of work delivery.
2. Design a Clear Leadership Development Plan
A stitch in time saves nine, and the stitch that we are referring to here is the Leadership Development Plan. An hour of planning can save you hours of executing it. Hence, it is important to design a clear leadership development plan. It will help you foresee your goals and make sure your actions lead to goals fulfillment. A leadership development plan will put all your resources to best use.
The plan has to be tailor-made for you to measure progress. It should include your vision, goals, and an achievable timeline. Click here to read about the five steps to create a successful leadership development plan that will help you get started.
3. Update and Share your Knowledge Regularly
“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other” – John F. Kennedy
We are living in a fast-paced world, and staying relevant and connected during such times has become more necessary than ever. But it can be done at ease by updating your knowledge regularly. Critical thinking skills and confidence to face challenges head-on are a few benefits that can be gained from updating your knowledge regularly.
This can be done by subscribing to news sources and magazines to keep up with changes around the world. Also, watch documentaries and interact with diverse groups of people. An ideal leader shares knowledge to utilize cognitive resources to the greatest extent. This also creates trust among the team and helps you earn respect.
4. Work on Conflict Resolution Skills
Do you think the only way to do great at work is to love what you do? Imagine loving your work, but having to walk on eggshells around your team due to unresolved conflicts. If Conflict Resolution is taken lightly, it can result in demotivation and unsatisfactory work performance of an individual. The breeding ground for negativity is often unresolved conflicts; therefore, they have to be resolved promptly.
Leaders who listen first and then dig deep into the root cause of the conflict are skilled with conflict resolution. Trust facts and eliminate emotions when you encounter a conflict. Excellent conflict resolution skills come with emotional intelligence and maintaining professional relationships.
5. Take Risks for Greater Good
Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, all had a vision and took calculated risks to establish themselves as effective leaders. Leaders are required to be problem solvers and quick decision-makers. Great leaders take risks which benefit the entire team and organization. A risk can motivate the team to be creative and confident.
Are you not sure about whether a risk is worth taking? Try answering the following to find your way to becoming a strong leader.
- Will the risk result in a greater good?
- What are my strengths and limitations in executing this risk?
- Will the risk be of benefit to my team and organization?
- What is the opinion of my team regarding the risk?
- Do I have a contingency plan if I fail?
6. Think Big; Expand your Network
Assuming that your professional network is sufficient can be a mistake. Leaders keep on expanding their network and building professional relationships. Networking within and outside your organization can help build a team, stay updated with your industry and seek expert advice when required.
Expand your network within your organization by taking an interest in various activities and finding a mentor to guide you. For external networking, take advantage of various events and conferences. Join professional associations pertaining to your domain which can create networking opportunities for you. You can only leverage networking if you are willing to help others as well.
7. Empower and Motivate your Team
Teamwork indeed makes dreams work. An ideal leader has the ability to make each member of the team see their true potential even when they are unable to. Empowering others demonstrates and builds trust. Involving the team in all decisions made can bring up more creative solutions to the table and increases self-belief in each individual. A leader who empowers, communicates constantly. They communicate their vision and let others contribute towards it.
Empowerment increases satisfaction and motivation. Meaningful and simple ways that motivate individuals more than monetary compensations include healthy work culture, appreciation for work well done, or even just being a good listener. Practice these, and you will notice more commitment and creativity from your team.
8. Take Time to Reflect on your Strengths and Weaknesses
Leaders who are aware of their strengths and weaknesses can become the best version of themselves. Being self-aware can help one focus on the areas that need more attention. When the situation demands, focus on your strengths and in other situations work on your weaknesses.
A leader should always lead with their strengths but never avoid their weaknesses. To improve leadership traits, take time to identify your strengths and weaknesses. Once you do so, involve your mentor or close colleagues and consider their opinions. Never shy away from trying new things as this can contribute to becoming more self-aware.
You can also attempt the Big Five Personality Test to identify your strengths and weaknesses. The Big Five traits include conscientiousness, agreeableness, extroversion, openness, and neuroticism.
Conclusion
A leader should know the way, go the way, and show the way. You can be that leader by constantly improving on your leadership traits. If implemented, these eight ways can help you become an effective leader.
One may also look at our 3-month Future Leaders Program. This program is designed to help learners imbibe crucial leadership traits through its comprehensive curriculum. Click Here to read more about the Future Leaders Program offered by the National University of Singapore, Asia’s #1 University in collaboration with Great Learning
