A good leader should have the ability to inspire the best behaviors and outcomes from the followers. He or she should be firm enough to prevent delinquency and at the same time accommodating enough to allow the followers to have confidence in them. The following are the top ten components that each leader should have in order to be effective in discharging his or her duties.
- Transparency
The position of leadership often requires one to make decisions that will affect the lives and professions of others. If the change caused by the decisions is to be embraced by the followers, the leader should be transparent in explain how decisions have been made. Transparency is further enhanced when the followers are involved in the decision-making process.
- Learning from Failure
A leader is supposed to be comfortable with taking big risks for the progress of the organization. The bigger the risk, the higher the potential gains. By taking risks, the likelihood of failure is increased as well. An effective leader is not afraid of failure but is ready to learn from the failure.
- Trust
The relationship between a leader and the followers has to be based on trust. The leader should be trustworthy so that the followers feel confident in placing their fates and resources under his care (Jenkins, Lock and Lock 11). The followers must also have integrity enough to be trusted by the leader. This mutual trust makes the organization run smoothly.
- Confidence
A good leader should be confident in his/her abilities and reflect the same to the subordinates. No one is likely to follow a leader who second-guesses himself/herself. At the same time, people can quickly notice façade put up by unconfident leaders.
- Selfless
The leader should have his/her focus on making the team led perform better. He should also understand that he is not in a leadership position for personal gain but for the benefit of all the members of the team.
- Be a Great Listener
An effective leader should listen to ideas and concerns of the rest of the team or organization. Being a good listener informs the leader of what is happening on the ground. It also assists in giving insights on how performance of the organization might be improved from the perspective of the team members.
- Charismatic
A leader should cultivate the skill of making people under his/her authority feel valued. Their contribution to the organization should be recognized. If they perform exceptionally, they should be praised. This should be tempered with encouragement whenever the performance is below expectation.
- Visionally
A leader should have a clear idea of where he/she wants the organization to be in the future. this vision guides the strategy and the set of values adopted to help in making decisions that will ensure that the vision is accomplished.
- Put People First
The leader should cultivate on having healthy relationships with the other members of the team before focusing on the strategy of the organization. Healthy interpersonal relationships generate the synergy needed to propel the organization forward.
- Flexibility
A leader should be ready to accept and embrace changes in the organization. The changes can be in the form of technology, processes or the team members that he/she is to lead. For change to improve the organization, the members need to be excited about it. Creating that excitement is the responsibility of the leader.
Work Cited
Jenkins, Judi, Larry Lock, and Mary Anne Lock. “Leadership-A Critical Bridge to Accountability.” Delta Kappa Gamma Bulletin 84.3 (2018): 10-5.