Many leaders are not very much aware of the kind of leaders
they are. Such create blind spots in one's leadership and depending on how
strong the blind spots are, it is recipe for disaster. Awareness is the only
route to effectiveness. As a leader you need to know your style of leadership.
If your style is charismatic, participative, situational, transactional,
transformational, are you a quiet leader, a servant leader, are you applying
the managerial grid, Lewin's leadership styles, Likert's leadership styles, six
emotional leadership styles, post-hoc management, micro-management, Seagull
management or mushroom management.
You see, there are many leadership styles and none of these
is better than the other.
These styles are all effective provided the situation is
right; also consider the calibre of people you lead, nature of business and
level of operation and system in place. There is also another style, leadership
by confusion and it as well achieves certain results.
Awareness is critical for effectiveness in leadership. One
setting or situation will always require a certain style to be applied but if
you are a confused leader there can be problems.
Most importantly, what kind of leader are you? If you can
answer this question then you are on your way to mastery.
Leadership is an art on its own and you can master it like
Tiger Woods has mastered golf.
Leadership is about people and as a leader, the more aware
you are about people behaviour, the more your chances of success.
A leader has to understand business systems, industry and
the market the same way they understand people. Master people into the market,
master them into your business systems, master them into the industry and you
are well on your way to the top of the game.
Effective leadership is when you shape yourself around the
environment and come up with a leadership brand that works.
It's like introducing a product on the market, do your
research first and let it be driven by demand. As a leader, look at the
industry, your systems, the nature of your people and your goals and let those
determine the kind of leader needed to produce results.
You cannot just wake up and say "I'm a charismatic
leader", the kind of leader should be relevant and fitting to the
situation.
Become more aware of your blind spots, your weaknesses, your
attributes as a leader, your styles and your strengths. Awareness is important
for improvement. You cannot improve something you do not know, you have to
acknowledge that first.
Ask your subordinates to give you feedback; they are the
people who feel your leadership and if they are honest, you will benefit and
improve tremendously in your leadership.
Be more aware and improve.
Improvement should be a daily commitment. Become a better
leader every day. Be the best leader you know. Just be the best.
About the author:
Pascal Nyasha is a leadership expert, management consultant,
motivational and conference speaker. He is an author of five books on the
subjects of leadership, motivation and success. Pascal is a syndicated
columnist with over 200 articles published across Africa. An award winning
public speaker, Pascal is the founder of Pascal Nyasha Seminars, a training and
development organisation focusing on leadership development, motivational
speaking and capacity building for organisations of all shapes, sizes and
focuses
The SME Times Guest Author can be contacted at pascalnyasha@gmail.com.
