Every great leader had to learn at some point in their life a couple of lessons from errors or mistakes that were committed during their leadership time. Leadership is a lifelong process where people keep learning day after day and they make great improvements based on everything that they learn throughout time. No one wakes up one morning learning how to be a great leader, this is a life-long process filled with errors and learning parts in order to improve their leadership skills. This is applied the same way to leaders of businesses, bosses, or even entrepreneurs, where they need to learn basic leadership lessons in order to be great at what they do.
Just in the same way that a great leader was developed, every boss and every head of a company, needs critical lessons in order to be great in a new leadership role. For that reason there are a couple of things that a person new to a leadership role should be aware of.
1. There is no “I” in Team Work
If you are looking into being a leader of a team, you need to understand that you are part of the team itself. Understand that work has to be divided and that you are not excluded from the whole process. A great lesson to be learned is that every great leader should be always included in everyone’s work, you can’t just point fingers and expect others to do something that you are not willing to do, or not even involved in.
2. Empathy is key
Putting yourself in other people’s shoes is very important as a leader, you need to understand what other people are going through in order to give out directions or orders. If you don’t have enough experience to understand what other people do, it might be hard for you to be taken seriously as a leader and for that reason empathy is key.
3. Respect is Earned
A great leader isn’t just respected overnight, respect is earned and it takes time. Having your team respect you involves you respecting them in the same way back, what you asked for is exactly why you give to others. Understand that if you don’t show your team enough respect for their work, they won’t show you respect back. Respect takes time so be patient and always show kindness to others, this is the best way for people to respect their leaders.
4. Inspire People
Don’t just look out for giving orders and telling people what to do. Look for inspiring people and being a leader that everyone remembers. Strive not only to give your best but for people to give their best as well while being under your leadership. Be not only an efficient leader, be a great one, and inspire others the same way you were once inspired by a great leader yourself.
