I am for the most part a mild-mannered person, a quality which is perhaps in my DNA, but largely the result of practiced patience and surrender. Still, my steadiness comes unglued when I hear tales of bad leadership (admittedly, something that happens more often for me in my profession). I staunchly believe it isn’t hard to be a leader. It really isn’t. But first and foremost you simply have to respect the gravity of the position. Leaders hold lives in their hands. Yeah, they do.
But not everyone who is legitimately a leader is qualified or enthusiastic. Surely you’ve known parents, teachers, coaches, and bosses who fell in the leader category of “abysmal”. I live in the camp of people who believe it is an honor to be identified as one who is worthy of following. As sometimes happens, the aforementioned “abysmal” group of leaders got the title without taking responsibility for their followers.
One of the most told stories is one of a person with authority who lacks appreciation for leading. (Oh boy, this is going to be a theme for her, isn’t it?) And, why do I hear this so often? Because the storyteller is miserable and vocal; they work under a cloud of dread because they work at the behest of someone they don’t trust or respect.
Every day your staff – those hired to perform specific work to achieve your company’s objectives – show up with their resume of skills and experience, their diverse backgrounds and needs, and their unique personalities and aims, to spend eight hours producing alongside one another. Your job as leader is to coordinate their efforts, remind them of the way to go, encourage them, inspire excellence, fan their talents, and cultivate positive team dynamics. You do this by getting to know them personally. You are committed to it because you know that you enrich the outcome by drawing on diverse perspectives, knowledge, skills, and talents.
By doing this you build strong relationships, improve staff retention, eliminate communication barriers, and amplify creativity. While it is always beneficial to improve processes and keep an eye on market and financial data, people are your greatest asset.
What gets me incensed about leaders is what most often boils down to two things: emotional maturity and integrity. First a person has to be respected before they will have true followers, and second they have to be able to focus on the needs of others in order to be able to help them achieve their goals. As you can see, both of these traits are pegged to a human being who wants to be valuable to others. Others.
So, hiring manager, on behalf of beleaguered employees everywhere, please begin there. What has this candidate done to demonstrate they are committed to being valuable to others?