When you think of a great leader, who springs to mind? Perhaps it’s the best boss you’ve ever had? How did they inspire you to go the extra mile? Great leaders share a combination of traits that motivate others towards a common goal. They harness their emotional intelligence to empower others and foster collaboration.
Check out the top 7 leadership traits below, so that you too can start honing these skills on a daily basis and learn how to go from good to great.
1. Self-awareness
Great leaders are self-aware. They have a clear understanding of their own strengths and areas for development. This means they understand how their words, behaviour and body language impact others. Self-awareness is often described as the foundation of emotional intelligence. It enables leaders to recognise and manage their own emotions and those of others.
2. Courage
The ability to face your fears, dial up your optimism and challenge the status quo is a critical role of leadership. Great leaders are front-footed, they think creatively and have the courage to try new things and set new and challenging goals.
3. Empathy
The ability to put yourself in other people’s shoes lies at the heart of being a truly great leader. It’s about dialling up your empathy to understand different perspectives. This takes active listening. By reading beyond the words, you can understand what really makes people tick and discover how best to influence them.
4. Communication
It takes highly developed communication skills to motivate those around you. Great leaders recognise their own communication style and flex it accordingly to help them find common ground and build meaningful relationships.
5. Accountability
Great leaders hold themselves to account. They draw on their self-reliance to back themselves. They are able to act decisively when the need arises and make difficult decisions at challenging times.
6. Integrity
Integrity refers to a leader’s honesty and trustworthiness. Without trust, leaders struggle to motivate and lead others. Integrity sets the tone for an organisation. A great leader has honest and open conversations and behaves consistently. They lead by example, following through on promises and acting in an ethical way.
7. Passion
As the saying goes, if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. Great leaders display real enthusiasm and a drive to succeed. They are passionate about the work they do and this passion is contagious. They believe in their vision and inspire others to believe in it too.
By following the advice above, you too can learn how to hone your leadership skills and, as Simon Sinek says, “Be the leader you wish you had.”
