We are all leaders in a certain way and a certain moment. We lead ourselves through life situations, we lead our family members, we lead different groups during our development and each of us, probably, sometimes finds or will find ourselves in a position of a leader. That is why it is very important to have the values of a good leader or, if we do not possess those, it is possible to learn the skills of a true leader.

When it comes to business activities, leadership is something that is very important. We can actually see how important this is when we understand that the majority of international companies have memorable leaders, and their decisions have brought success to the companies they led.

What is leadership exactly?

Leadership is a dynamic and flexible process that directs decisions and behavior of those who follow in order to achieve a common goal.

What is a leader?

A leader is experienced, patient, calm, determined, confident and brave, and acts when needed, it’s a person who makes decisions when no one wants to, and someone who is ready to take responsibility for everyone in their team regardless of the size of the organization.

There are many theories about how to be a good leader, but remain charismatic. In case you want to be a good quality leader and, at the same time, charismatic and popular in your organization, then you should follow the next steps.

List of effective leadership skills

Offer part of the ownership to everyone involved in a joint venture. In case you are not able to give ownership, then give them a share in profits. Everyone likes to be part of something they are working on, so why not have everyone feel immensely motivated?

Include as many people as possible in your decisions. Bad leaders make decisions without consultations. We call them “gestapo leaders”, those people who make decisions quickly and without consulting their team. If you want to be a good leader then you should allow others to express their opinions without fear, you should support them when they are honest and active. A true leader is one who is popular in their organization. Include everyone in development programs, even the readers.

Provide everyone with a certain challenge. Everybody in the organization should set up some challenge for themselves, something that will motivate them much more than any amount of money would. It is important for them to set the challenge themselves without your interference. One tool we use and we are glad to recommend is the website www.stickk.com. Here, you can follow the challenge in a very interesting way and punish yourself in a funny way if you do not fulfill the challenge. It can also be a challenge of a personal nature, not necessarily a business-related one: for example, I want to lose some weight. Keep up with the challenges of your team members; it will mean very much them.

Set your own goals. What are your goals for this year, week or month; what do you want to achieve? This is a very important point, it is important to do this in detail.

You cannot hit a target you cannot see. Goals are used to set tasks and tasks are the points you need to accomplish to get to the goal. Use the SMART approach to setting goals.

Make estimates for six months and a year. Why is this important? The biggest reason is learning. When you make estimates and evaluate then you will get better and better with time, your estimates will be taken seriously. You can see today when someone important makes an estimate of the situation on the market that can affect even stock market prices.

Ensure that people feel safe (give them information, give them feedback, talk to them, give them the big picture, spend time with them). Good leaders inform their team members about the current status and position and where they need to go. Show them progress and how things are going. Imagine that you are the captain of a ship, and the crew does not know where they are nor where they are going, you can imagine all the stories that would circulate and what potential fear that kind of situation would bring about. Associates feel like that when they do not have information from their leader.

Praise people. People are eager to have their work and effort recognized, everyone likes to hear a kind word about themselves. It is important that the praise is honest and regular. If possible, thank people at least once a week.

Teach people. Delegate a task, and when there is a delay and a difficulty, in a calm way show how to do the task you have assigned to them. Always teach them something more, always try to leave a person in a better state than when you met.

It’s important to know your people. You are here because of them and they are the biggest treasure of the system in which you operate. Regularly talk to your team members, ask them how they are, what they need, what challenges they face, who they have next to them, and many other similar questions.

Offer learning. A good leader provides opportunities for associates to grow through education. Support each activity that leads to acquisition of knowledge. Investing in people is the only investment that is 100% returnable. For this reason, we recommend a course on Udemy on leadership by Chris Croft.

Develop the potential of each individual in the team. Help people achieve their full potential. Everyone has their own desires and goals that they strive to, ask members of the team about that. Ask them how you can help them to fulfill their potential and then really support them in that.

Keep things diverse, introduce new things. The world is changing, and learning is just outside of the comfort zone. It is important that you give people various challenges during work, introduce new technologies, change the way you communicate with people. This gives them a chance to revive the system just like a flower can make a place feel like home.

Create a sociable environment in the organization. A good leader will always support an initiative for starting various social activities, and will also encourage friendships and conversations. It is useful to support giving open feedback, because it is a diamond in the rough for every individual or organization.

Build team spirit. Make a common eating area. In the work environment, each leader will use space to make it better socialized. People are social beings so you should give them the opportunity to relax at work, to feel a pleasant atmosphere, because they are at work almost a third of their lives.

Money needs to be always on time in the way we said and agreed. Many leaders misunderstand their position, so they think that it is the position of dictators, but is the position of mutual respect; if you want to be a good leader, respect what you have agreed exactly agreed to do in the way you agreed.

Be positive. One of the most important things is that a leader should always look on things and difficulties in a positive way. Regardless of the challenge ahead, a good and good quality leader will expect a positive outcome, and will maintain the same energy in the team. Stay positive regardless of all, it encourages people’ and gives them extra energy that is usually needed to get things going in the right direction.

Stay flexible. Flexibility does not mean leniency, but the application of information that you receive during work and its application to the project or program that you lead, so even changing direction, if you consider it necessary, and for the purpose of achieving the goal.