Successful Traits That Lead to Effective Leadership

What follows are success traits practiced by 21st-century leaders to help build confidence and strength in others:

1. Happy but not satisfied. An old Zen proverb says, “Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water; after enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.” This can mean that one should have a goal and constantly strive toward betterment, but not concentrate so much on the goal that one forgets the path. Successful leaders help their team members?understand that life is truly a journey. This is why they focus on effort first and foremost.

2. Compare yourself not to others but to your potential. When you compare yourself to others, you are missing the mark. Someone will always be better than you at a particular thing. Comparing team members to each other leads to people feeling either incompetent or overconfident. Not everyone is equal in knowledge, skill, attitude, and habits. Successful leaders understand that the best way to build confidence and strength in others is to help their team members develop their own potential. They do this by supporting each set of realistic goals that help achieve the enterprise’s sacred mission while helping the team members grow and become more valuable.

3. Create small wins. High expectations are not an issue unless your expectations are out of whack with the team member’s ability. Successful leaders help their charges create small wins to build momentum. Once momentum is created, they help their team members set bigger goals with higher expectations. This helps create a self-fulfilling prophecy. If the team member genuinely believes you have their best interest at heart, they will work harder to reach their fullest potential. Remember, people don’t lack potential. They only lack a good leader: someone who believes in them. It is the belief and confidence of the leader that lifts us from ordinary to extraordinary. Successful leaders do this by starting with small wins. By doing this, they help build trust. It’s about getting some wins or “W’s” early and often. This leads to building confidence and, with time, the team member’s indomitable spirit. As victories mount, team members experience the winner’s effect or power of momentum.

4. Successful leaders praise. Successful leaders recognize personal and team victories. They do this by spotlighting and highlighting accomplishments in team meetings and on recognition boards. Successful leaders understand that people will work hard for the money but even harder for recognition. If you want to build someone’s confidence truly, you should start by letting them know how much you appreciate their efforts. The only caveat, as mentioned in an earlier chapter, is to be specific when complimenting your team members. Saying “good job” is not specific enough. Tell them what you appreciate specifically.

5. Successful leaders see problems as opportunities. One of the best ways to help your team members is to reinforce the idea that problems are nothing more than opportunities in disguise. A problem is nothing more than a challenge looking for a solution. The most successful leaders see problems differently than most people. They see opportunities where others see insurmountable obstacles. Successful leaders let their employees figure things out independently, which is always the best way to learn. It also strengthens their resolve for the next time a problem might be encountered. This is why good leaders never tell their charges how to do things. Instead, they tell them what to do and let them figure it out on their own from there.

6. Successful leaders listen. leaders understand that their team members will tell them everything they need to know if given the right opportunity. This is why they ask good questions and listen carefully to the responses. They also take good notes and summarize their understanding of the comments made. They have learned that silence is truly golden. While most people already think about what they will say next, successful leaders are very different. They know that listening effectively is the quickest way to uncover what is going on inside the minds of their team members.? We will cover listening in much more detail in the next newsletter.

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JOHN ST. JAMES Excerpt from The Master's Path: How to Intentionally Create More Happiness, Joy, and Fulfillment in Your Life (p. 90-94). Kindle Edition.

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