The Best Handful of Tips 38 –

Hone your Leadership Skills

Good leaders are always in demand for top management roles so make an effort to work on your leadership skills.

Leaders are people who know where they want to go, and with enthusiasm and ambition get up and go.

Good leaders encourage people to improve their skills and confidence and inspire their team to higher performance levels. They can be recognised because their people display superior performance.

A good leader knows how to involve staff in team efforts, pays attention to details and standards and is able to delegate responsibility to others.

The five best ways to improve your leadership skills

1. Make sure your people understand clearly what is expected of them

Job specifications and instructions should be given verbally and in writing.  It should be flexible for changing situations and should be regularly reviewed.

Your staff must have guidance in their work and know who to go to for advice. They should have only one leader.    

2. Lead by example

Become a role model. Set a good example both at work and in the wider community. 

Be passionate about your job and full of enthusiasm for good ideas. Remember, ‘enthusiasm is contagious’.

3. Encourage your people to improve themselves

Give them opportunities to show they can accept greater responsibilities. Delegate down to where the actions take place

Challenge them and encourage them with worthwhile tasks. Good work should be praised or rewarded  publicly. Poor work should be constructively criticised privately.

Encourage training and learning new tasks and improving  personal skills

4. Support your workers

Make sure your people work in a safe and healthy environment. Look after them.

Give them credit for their successes and support them when they make mistakes. Mistakes are a good way to learn.

5. Inspire and motivate your team

Leadership is lifting people’s visions, raising their performance to higher levels and developing  their personality beyond their expected limits.

Always treat staff with respect and dignity.  Make time to chat and listen carefully to your people.

-Geoffrey Moss

“The art of being a good leader is to get your people to do what you want done, because they want to do it. “

Source: “Secrets for New Managers” first published by Moss Associates Ltd., New Zealand and Cengage Learning Asia, Singapore. Also available as an e-book from Amazon.com and VitalSource.