Notice I said poor leader and not bad leader. Leaders who are not very effective are not essentially bad people, and they are just people in leadership positions who have not grasped the skills necessary to be good leaders.
John Maxwell said, “The better you lead, the more you succeed.”
I think this is because you are able to create a vision that your team wants to follow. They see where you are going and want to follow you there. Not only follow but help you get there.
Here are some lessons I have picked up from being led, which I plan to implement as I climb the ladder
Assertiveness
There must be in the water that people think that as leaders, they have to be nice and let people walk all over them in order to get their team to work towards a goal. This produces the opposite effect, as the leader loses respect, and the team members could care less what the objectives are.
It is essential to be kind as a leader; it’s a basic human right to receive kindness from the person leading. However, this kindness is not to be confused with weakness, and a leader needs to understand the difference.
Assertiveness is being able to ask for what you want or need while respecting the needs and wishes of the other party. It is essentially mutual respect for each other’s needs.
An assertive leader is able to listen to their team and not put themselves ahead of the team members, but when it comes time to make decisions, they can do so without succumbing to fear or intimidation.
Having oversight of the projects or objectives means they know what needs to be done, and they can ask their team to move in that direction.
From experience, leaders often find it difficult to be assertive when leading a team of people with who they used to be on the same level.
This stems from the fear that their previous colleagues know their weaknesses and will therefore not respond to their leadership. Or maybe from lack of acknowledgment and understanding that their new post and office entitles them to ‘lead’ the team, and doing so could be isolating because It’s lonely at the top.
Lack of follow up
It is frustrating for team members to raise issues with their manager or team leader with full expectation of change only for there to be no follow-through. Not only is there no follow-through, but no explanation is given to the team as to why their expectations have not been met.
The team will then assume that they have not been listened to, and leaders who do not listen will soon be surrounded by people who have nothing to say.
Clarity of expectations
We know from life in general that lack of clarity delays the achievement of goals. Lack of clear expectations leaves people unmotivated, wondering where they stand within the team and if they are doing the right thing. Not only does this mean the team will not achieve its objectives, it also predisposes the team members to imposter syndrome.
Selling out their team
Great leaders unite their friends and divide their enemies.
Your team needs to know that you have their back. They need to know that you will defend them in circles outside their reach, that you will fight their corner when push comes to shove. Without this knowledge and confidence, I know I will lose trust in a leader and will not bother raising any issues with them.
Excluding your people
I once had a leader who was two steps above me, and she lines managed my team leader. When I started at the organization, it took her almost three years to say hello to me without saying it first. When I said nothing, she just walked right past me as if I was invisible.
She once treated me as invisible in a meeting: went around the room and spoke to everyone in the meeting except me. All that taught me was that she is not reliable, she is not someone I could take challenges to, and that she is a snub. The joke was on her, really.
Treating team members equally and kindly is of paramount importance. What does it cost to say hello to someone? Apparently too much for some leaders to pay.
I acknowledge being a leader is hard and that I might not always exhibit these traits consistently, but I intend to try. After all, attitude reflects leadership.
