Are leaders born or made?
“Great leaders pay attention to detail, but they give people room to improve,” says Rosabeth Moss Kanter.
Good Leaders always make you feel safe, a great leader is someone who makes their employees feel secure and who draws people into a circle of trust. Only in an environment of “trust and cooperation” can people produce great work. There are a few qualities I have seen leaders possess, which do not go with the title of a good leader. As a matter of fact, there are a few organizations that have failed to recognize the attributes of a great leader. Just because someone holds the top position does not mean he/she is a good leader. Below are some pointers which I think good leaders should keep in their minds
1. Creating competition within team – Healthy competition is always productive in the team, it can increase efficiency. But some competition elicits fear and anxiety because they focus employees on the threat of being laid off, losing income, or being publicly humiliated. Competition between employees may be an inescapable part of many people’s work lives and can lead to improved performance. But if leaders want to ensure that competition unleashes creativity and not unethical behavior, they must resist the temptation to lead through fear.
2. Micromanagement –Micromanagers watch for errors or inadequacy while feeling they would complete the work more effectively than others. They struggle to delegate and don't know when to let go. This can be annoying for workers and can cause them to become demotivated. With their confidence lowered, workers will stop giving their best as they feel their work will never be up to the standard. This can be problematic for efficiency in production.
3. Great leaders are not tattletale: Trust is one of the essential values of any organization and it is the foundation for successful leadership. But many leaders do not realize that trust is often undermined, or even lost, through some small behaviors.
How to be an Inspiring Leader
When employees are not only engaged but also inspired, that's when organizations see real progress. Inspired employees are themselves much more productive and, in turn, inspire those around them to fight for greater heights.
Inspiring Leaders are made, nor born. HBR research shows that inspiring leaders are those who use their unique combination of strengths to motivate individuals and teams to take on bold missions – and hold them accountable for results. Also, they unlock higher performance through empowerment, not command and control.
You Need only one Inspiring Attribute
People who inspire others are incredibly diverse, which emphasizes that to become an inspirational leader, it is essential to focus on your strengths.
According to the Bain Inspirational Leadership system, all leadership skills are categorized into four groups on the type of interaction they are most closely associated with.
What Inspiring Leaders Do
If you analyze some common attributes of leaders who have received the highest score on the competency of “inspire and motivates to high performance” you will see some specific and tangible points. For example, they set stretch goals with their team. They spent time developing their subordinates. They engaged in highly collaborative behavior. They encouraged those around them to be more innovative.
There are some less specific and less tangible points, like, they are keener at making an emotional connection with their subordinates, they are more effective in their communication and willing to spend more time communicating. In fact, these leaders are perceived as role models in their organization.