In order to clarify a little what this concept consists of, as well as the qualities that define the leader, those fundamental characteristics that every good leader must have are exposed. And it is that, not everyone who leads is a leader, nor everyone who calls himself a leader. The leader is the one who presents a series of qualities that, as we expose below, tell us who is a true leader and who, on the contrary, is an impostor.
1. A leader is an example to follow
The leader is the person who should be an example in the company. The leader is that wolf that the whole pack must follow, so his actions must denounce trust and responsibility. For this reason, the leader must always act by setting an example to others of how to act in each of the different situations that occur on a day-to-day basis. And we are talking about a leader being a guide for the rest of the people who are by his side, so the guidelines must always be correct and, if a certain professionalism is requested, this must be previously demonstrated and reflected in our actions.
2. The good leader shows empathy
No leader will ever be a good leader without empathy. That is, if he is not able to understand the members of his team, know their problems and, in this sense, try to empathize with them. For a team to function at its best, there must be a cohesion that is only achieved through empathy. The leader is that captain who makes the whole team go to one and nobody is left behind. Therefore, he must show empathy, get to know the members of his team, while keeping them motivated so that they achieve their goals.
3. The leader has experience and knowledge
The leader is the person in charge of directing a group of people who depend on it. For this reason, and since we are talking about people who must learn from him, the leader must have experience and knowledge to support his decisions. When the leader has extensive experience, as well as considerable technical knowledge, he can better transmit decisions, choose the correct ones, while correctly planning the development of the plan. The leader, therefore, must always have that experience and that knowledge, that endorsement, that supports him in front of the members of his team, and the capacities they have.
4. The leader shows passion and commitment to his work and his company
If the leader does not show passion for his work, if he does not show commitment to his organization, no one within the team will be able to do it. As we said at the beginning, the leader is the example to be followed by the members of his team, so the actions carried out by the leader will be replicable by the team members. If these actions are done reluctantly and with a lack of motivation, the team members will do them in the same way. Thus, the leader must be aware of this, and transmit that passion and that commitment, to keep the team members motivated and committed to the company.
5. The good leader discovers and enhances talent
The good leader will never shut up anyone who tries to contribute their vision and ideas. The leader will not believe that he is always right, and will be arrogant to the group. He is not the one who knows everything, and shows everyone that he is the smartest of the group. The leader is the one who sees talent and empowers it; who sees a good idea and supports it; who sees a success and celebrates it together. The leader is a person who tries to bring out the best in each of the members of his team. For this reason, this is one of the fundamental characteristics of a good leader, since a leader does not humiliate, he encourages; does not argue, debate; don't yell, he advises. A leader, in short, is a person who must inspire the team, not make it complex.
6. A leader recognizes and shares successes
The leader should never think alone, should never try to achieve his own success, to the detriment of general success. Well, he is the person who must share the successes with his team, who recognizes the successes of others before his own, who celebrates the objectives achieved every end of the month, and who values the members of his team, and values their role in achieving it. thereof. He always thinks about sharing, so his successes are his team's, and his team's are his. This is an innate quality of the leader, as he will always look out for his pack, and their motivation and commitment.
7. The leader is the best communicator
The leader must be the best communicator within the team. This must coordinate all the actions that the team carries out, and communicate the objectives, the guidelines, as well as what has to be communicated for the execution of the project. For this reason, the leader must promote communication within the team. The leader must be the communicator who coordinates communication between all team members. And for this, communication skills are needed , as well as social skills.
8. The good leader delegates
The leader is one who is so committed to his team that he is capable of involving him in the projects assigned to him. Thus, the leader is a person who trusts his team, wants to empower it and motivate it to improve results. For this reason, he has no problem delegating tasks to teammates, who become more committed to the organization by transferring responsibilities. The task of delegating is very typical of the leader, and this usually does it with the members of his team. Some members who, with the passage of time, are becoming new leaders.
9. The leader flees from hierarchies
For the leader, all team members are partners, and they hold the same position in a horizontal structure . The leader is one who runs away from vertical systems , where there are bosses and employees. He prefers teamwork, assigning roles, delegating tasks, as well as other actions more typical of colleagues. Thus, we will never see a leader continually remind employees who is boss, beyond exercising authority at times when it is necessary to do so. For the leader, all team members are decisive, and fulfill their role within the team.
10. The good leader generates new leaders
Lastly, this being my favorite of all, the quality that most defines a leader is that a leader generates new leaders. As we said at the beginning, the leader is a person who enhances talent, who does not pursue vertical structures, who likes to share, and therefore also wants to share his position. The leader, as we have seen, is a person who wants to delegate his tasks, who trusts his team, and trusts that its members will also be leaders one day. The leader wants to generate new leaders, and that his legacy is transmitted between all the members of a company. Well, a leader does not look for himself, as has been said throughout this article, but for the company, as well as for its future survival.
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