Author: Ashish

Decision-Making: A skill you can’t live without as a manager

Decision-Making: A skill you can’t live without as a manager

Manager – AKA the most responsible person in the team. Isn’t it? A manager carries a load of numerous responsibilities on their back. While it may be hard to define their job precisely, a few essential duties are central to the role of a manager, including coordinating functions and generating efficiency. Their role requires them to be effective at many different tasks, which need mastery of multiple skills. In today’s iteration of The Top newsletter, we will discuss one such central skill of a manager – decision-making.  #Managers and #leaders are responsible figures in the workplace. Undoubtedly, this responsibility arrives due to their proven expertise and long experience, enabling them to carry out their jobs effectively. Among their key goals is leading their teams to ensure they reach their full potential. 
Besides, managers are also responsible for ensuring that their team members are motivated and engaged at their jobs. In this journey, they also have to focus on personal and professional development avenues for all of them. Building successful teams is not just about making changes with the existing team members; it includes other responsibilities, such as hiring the right people and organizing the workflow.  We can see that the responsibilities of a manager do not follow a set template. Different tasks require them to take up different roles, where one skill may shine over the rest. As such, we can understand that leadership is a function of the situation, i.e., leadership is situational. It means that managers adapt to circumstances as and when they change.  Instead of adopting a fixed demeanor, a manager who practices situational leadership molds their leadership style as per need. For instance, if they are handling a new team member who, although high on motivation and willing to learn, lacks experience and experience, then they can adopt a coaching leadership style. It will allow them to guide the new employee into their role and help them achieve their full potential.  Situational leadership can bring many benefits to the team itself. However, there are many facets within this one leadership style too. You can read more about it here. 
So far, we have understood that effective leadership requires a manager to change their style a lot. Such an adaptable method – called situational leadership style – can be effectively used only when the manager focuses on some critical skills, including decision-making. Decision-making is particularly important for picking the right leadership approach with your teams, as it becomes the basis of all your further actions. Hence, you should strive to build top-notch decision-making skills to succeed as a manager.  Managers who are influential decision-makers typically develop frameworks to increase the speed and quality of their process. They also attempt to create a balance of objective data and intuitions to arrive at logically and emotionally sound decisions. A lot is dependent on a good decision. It provides a critical foundation for the team’s growth and development. Not only that, managers who are good decision-makers are often more efficient and successful than their peers. Are your decisions helping you stand out? Check now with this free decision-making self-assessment.  Risely’s free decision-making self-assessment helps managers and leaders accurately assess their decision-making abilities. After taking this assessment, you can identify the weaknesses in your decision-making process that have reduced your efficiency. Not only that, but it also helps you refine so that you can climb ladders of personal and professional growth effortlessly. 
The difference brought by sound decision-making skills in the manager’s effectiveness is crucial. It not only helps them make better decisions, but it also helps them in laying the foundation for achieving their vision progressively. Hence, although the skills of a manager grow, everyone, including their team and organization, shares the benefits.  In this way, the growth of a manager always becomes a catalyst for change in their team. They can pull their teams through hurdles by developing the skills critical for their personal and professional rise. Therefore, the skill development of a manager is vital for all stakeholders.  Decision-making is one of many skills that managers need to focus on. Apart from this, they should also develop the habit of active listening, improve their ability with constructive feedback, and conduct great one-on-one meetings with their teams to effectively carry out all their responsibilities.  #leadership #leadershipevelopment #managerdevelopment #managereffectiveness #decisionmakingskills

Breaking Free from Unhealthy Expectations: The Power of a Digital Detox

Hey! It’s time to hit the pause button and take a breather. Trust me, spending endless hours glued to your screen isn’t the healthiest choice, and it can actually be risky for your career too! Let’s face it: long hours of internet and computer usage bring more negatives than positives for professionals. The constant influx of information and the lightning-fast pace of the world can be overwhelming and stress-inducing. It sets unrealistic expectations that are nearly impossible to meet. And trust me, that can lead to heavier workloads, increased stress, and difficulties in disconnecting from work responsibilities. So, if you find yourself ticking off a lot of boxes below, 
  • 📱 Constant distractions and notifications
  • ⏳ Work that never seems to get done
  • ⏰ Hours slipping away unnoticed
  • 🌍 Falling out of touch with many people
  • 😩 Tired, heavy, and itchy eyes
Then it’s time for a change. In the long run, excessive screen time at work can take a toll on your mental health and lead to burnout. That’s why it’s crucial to take a step back and look in a different direction. Digital detox is all about intentionally disconnecting from your digital devices and reducing your reliance on technology. It means stepping away from screens like smartphones, laptops, and tablets and engaging in activities that promote relaxation, mindfulness, and face-to-face interactions. A digital detox can take many forms. Either you can plug out totally or get there bit by bit. The key is to set boundaries for internet and technology usage and stick to them honestly. And while you are at it, there’s so much more that you can do.  Discover and engage in activities that don’t require screens. Read books, go for walks or hikes, practice mindfulness or meditation, pursue hobbies, spend time with loved ones, or engage in physical exercise. Take time to reflect on your digital habits and their impact on your well-being. Now, I understand that breaking away from everything can be pretty challenging. That’s why we should start slow. Begin with shorter digital detox periods and gradually increase their length. It helps you adjust to the experience and assess its impact on your well-being and productivity. With time, you can incorporate longer detox periods into your routine. It’s important to understand why we get trapped in the internet spiral. Often, it’s a form of escapism. The never-ending workload and constant pressure push us to the point where we want to leave it all behind, even if we can’t. But the root cause lies in unhealthy expectations in the workplace. Expectations aren’t just imposed by others; we often set them for ourselves too. A competitive environment constantly pushes us to outperform others and set new standards. However, this environment isn’t just motivating—it can also be detrimental in many ways: 
  • 😥 Constant pressure to meet unattainable goals or work unreasonable hours can lead to physical and mental exhaustion
  • 😣 Unhealthy expectations can demoralize team members and negatively impact their motivation
  • 🙁 They can create a culture of self-interest and undermine cooperation, leading to silos, communication breakdowns, and a lack of trust among team members
That’s why managers need to ensure that their expectations for their team and themselves are within human capacity. Want to test your expectation-setting skills? Take a free assessment to see if you’re hitting the mark. It will help you understand and overcome the hurdles that are creating untenable situations for your team.  In the end, remember that growth doesn’t have to come at the expense of your health and peace of mind. Setting good traditions and examples begins with a single step, and sometimes that step can be a much-needed break.  Constant professional challenges like these leave little room for learning and development amidst tight schedules. Risely offers a break from this hither-thither run with its bite-sized nudges that push you toward growth at your own pace. Sign up today to start achieving your goals. 

Why Conflict is Actually Good for Your Team

Why Conflict is Actually Good for Your Team

Teams that run smoothly, never get into a conflict, and always jump over difficult conversations – sound so good. Are you also trying to create a team that is 100% free from conflicts? Let’s see why you shouldn’t and instead learn to manage conflicts better in today’s edition of The Top newsletter.  The word conflict rings an alarm bell for managers and #leaders. But that may not always be the case. While conflicts have a negative reputation for valid reasons. There’s a lot that you can develop from them too. So let’s take a look at the healthy aspect of conflict:  Competition creates value: Working on the same desktop day in and out can get pretty monotonous, right? What if you were tackling ideas and comparing solutions daily? That’s the good side of the conflict, which helps team members create more value and add their best ideas to the team’s repository.  Build synergy: Unresolved disputes and internal grievances can create hassles in daily operations. Once the conflict comes to the surface, it allows team members to clear assumptions and move forward with clarity. Such discussions generate a synergy that helps teams collaborate effectively.  Making a #respectful workplace: Differences of opinion often contribute to personal issues among team members. For instance, if two team members have different work styles and a resultant conflict, there would be problems in communicating. It can escalate to negative conversations, snide remarks, and a toxic atmosphere. A visible conflict resolves this. It allows team members to enunciate their perspectives and reach common ground – creating a more respectful workplace where people understand and appreciate the differences.  Shows you where to work: Even when managers are trying to constantly improve with the help of feedback sessions and actively listening to their teams, some points might get missed! It could be due to a team member’s inability to elaborate on concerns or a manager’s failure to see the signs. Conflicts allow managers to find these areas and work on them.  Sets boundaries between people: Many conflicts arise when one person disrespects the boundaries of another. As team members often avoid confrontation, conflicts provide space for these much-needed conversations about boundaries within the workplace. In addition, engaging in a conflict can help one reflect and rethink how they want to set boundaries, which is helpful for managers, especially as their broad role can enable overstepping limits.  Lastly, identify potential troubles: A team in conflict points to disharmony, miscommunication, and even unproductivity, all of which are ominous signs for a manager. Spotting an ongoing conflict before D-day helps managers and leaders minimize the impact of constant disruptions. Letting the emotions out, clearing things with the team, and setting the record straight could help immensely, and a conflict could be the starting point.  #Managers chase a utopia of building a team with no conflicts at all. However, as it’s nearly impossible due to the various and numerous causes, it becomes a significant source of frustration for managers.  But chasing a more realistic goal of managing #conflicts healthily is always possible! First, try to create a workplace that observes positive habits to ensure conflicts are wrapped with positive outcomes.  An excellent opportunity to learn more about effective #conflictmanagement is knocking on your door soon. Risely and Discussions by Design have come together to deliver an insightful webinar on conflict management on the 10th of May. By signing up here, you can join this set of curious managers who are ready to unleash their true potential. The best part is that it is FREE!! #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment

Proactive Conflict Management for Managers: Red Flags You Can’t Miss

Proactive Conflict Management for Managers: Red Flags You Can’t Miss

Conflict management is one of the most challenging aspects of a manager’s job. Not only does it have the potential to impact the entire team negatively, but it can also hurt the manager’s professional growth. Thus, conflict resolution is one aspect of the job in which every manager needs to be proactive rather than reactive. But how do you resolve something before it even occurs? Let’s find this out in this week’s The Top newsletter. #Conflicts are not a matter of a few hours or just some changes. Instead, they simmer over time before they boil over and spill onto the entire team. This is where the manager can step in! As someone who’s worked in teams, there are some sure signs of conflict that every manager should know. So here are some alarm bells to watch out for: Discomfort: If you notice team members feeling uneasy around each other while discussing shared issues, it could be a sign of an underlying conflict. People tend to feel uncomfortable in the workplace if their boundaries aren’t respected, or their views aren’t heard. Pay attention to body language; if you find yourself having closed-door conversations with individual team members instead of shared meetings, it’s a major red flag. Groupism: A team splitting into particular groups indicates underlying conflicts. Groupism and favoritism can harm team dynamics by promoting biases and the dominance of specific people. Returning to the basics: Is your team referring to the policy documents throughout everyday workplace interactions? It can be because the informal communication norms have been ineffective and insufficient. Team members who feel that their boundaries are violated borrow support from systemic resources to reinforce their position in the group. It could also indicate a lack of psychological safety and security at work, revealing more issues for the manager. Absenteeism: When the workplace environment becomes too toxic to bear, team members are more likely to disengage and drop out of informal and formal settings. Rising #absenteeism and disengagement can be a hint of conflict within the team. It is more likely visible in unofficial team-building activities and catch-ups. Remarks that make no sense: If you struggle to decipher the true meaning of sentences between team members, there may be some issues with grapevines and rumors across teams. Often, diatribes that begin as jokes can transform into genuine conflicts. Instances of bullying and toxic behavior toward particular team members might be hiding in plain sight. Rigid relationships: Rigidity and over-the-top formality in interactions at work are other signs of conflicts that managers need to look out for. For example, if some team members are avoiding communication or collaborative tasks, it might be due to tensions playing under the surface. Body language is another effective indicator of a lack of connection. Team members stay on guard and do not look relaxed around each other in case of conflicts. Unproductive meetings: Dysfunctional meetings can be a sign of conflicts brewing silently. High-stress situations and lack of cooperation can hamper productivity, leading to ineffective and inconclusive meetings as teams struggle to communicate effectively. In such scenarios, team members become unable and unwilling to contribute to projects, as their ideas are likely to meet confrontation or neglect.  If your team is experiencing any of these signs, it’s time to brush up on your conflict #management skills! Conflict resolution is a vital function of a manager and critical to your team’s success. Neglecting this critical area can prove to be a significant hurdle in the professional growth of managers and leaders.  Interested in learning more? On the 10th of May, join us for an insightful webinar on #ConflictManagement Strategies for #Leadership, brought to you by Risely and Discussions by Design. Industry experts will be sharing secrets to effective conflict management in the workplace. So don’t miss out – sign up now to secure your spot! #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment

Effective Guidance starts with an Effective Goal Setting

Effective Guidance starts with an Effective Goal Setting

One of the most critical aspects of guiding your team in the right direction is properly setting goals for them. Wandering teams with little clue on where to go are trouble. Do you also find your team lacking a clear action plan and typically wondering what to do after every short duration? Confusion among team members hurts productivity big time. However, even hyperactive and seemingly busy teams can sometimes fall into these traps. While they keep working, the tasks do not bring out the manager’s vision. Instead, the picture is blurry and slightly tilted in the wrong direction.  Goals are set at multiple levels. Depending on the team’s organization, plans can be collaborative, individual, or team-level. The lack of clear objectives at any level can be spotted very easily with the help of a few signs: 
  • Lack of direction and purpose
  • Lack of motivation
  • Low productivity
  • Confusion among team members
  • Unclear understanding of what they are working towards
  • Poor communication
  • High turnover rates
Bad goals are about more than team members sitting idle without enough work. Bad goal-setting can overwhelm team members to the extent of burnout too. Setting unrealistic goals is an effective strategy to raise the productivity and morale of team managers. However, this myth often leaves them with overworked team members who can no longer contribute actively to their innovation and ideas.  Clarity and transparency are of essential importance in any team. Teams with these qualities can ensure their team members can find their place in the team’s journey. They can spot their efforts when the team’s success is finally celebrated. However, if the team’s ideas are chaotic and ad-hoc at best, it is hard for team members to see where they stand and why their contribution matters.  For instance, let’s see the example of Joe, a marketing specialist who has recently joined a new team. Despite being in the role for several months, the team member has not received any clear guidance or direction from their manager on what goals or objectives they are expected to work towards. As a result, Joe feels unsure about their role and what they should prioritize in their work. So, they spend time on tasks not aligned with the team’s overall objectives and struggle to complete tasks due to a lack of clarity on their expectations. They also feel demotivated and disconnected from the team and the organization as a whole, as they do not clearly understand how their work contributes to the larger goals. Without proper goal setting from their manager, their potential is not fully utilized, and they become frustrated and disengaged over time.
The challenge here lies in the ineffective goal-setting of the manager. If the manager had set goals for Joe initially, they would have clearly understood their roles and responsibilities. Additionally, achieving goals would help them build motivation at work too.  Make sure that your team members do not face the same troubles as Joe; take the free self-assessment on goal-setting skills by Risely now.  The free goal-setting self-assessment analyzes the goal-setting skills of managers to bring out the strengths and weaknesses which impact the whole process. The assessment also collects feedback from team members to ensure that your development is not limited to your vision but includes everyone.  Setting effective goals for your team is not just about keeping them busy. Instead, it brings out several advantages that enable productivity and define the manager’s success, such as:
  • #Clarity: Clear and specific goals provide a roadmap for the team to follow. This clarity helps everyone understand what is expected of them and how their work contributes to the team’s overall success.
  • #Focus: Goals help managers and team members focus on what is most important. It helps them prioritize their work and allocate resources accordingly.
  • #Motivation: Goals give team members a sense of purpose and direction. When they see progress toward their goals, it can be a powerful motivator to keep working towards them.
  • #Accountability: Clear goals also create a sense of accountability. When everyone knows what is expected of them, tracking progress and holding team members accountable for their work is easier.
  • #Performance evaluation: Goals provide a basis for evaluating performance. When goals are set at the beginning of a project, it is easier to measure progress and determine whether the team is on track to meet its objectives.
Not setting #goals is like leaving your team in the desert with no map to get them home. Hence, ensure that you always set smart goals for your team and become the guide that delivers success.  #goalsetting #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment

Small Steps to Big Wins: How Micro Goals Can Improve Your Team’s Performance

Small Steps to Big Wins: How Micro Goals Can Improve Your Team’s Performance

Do you find yourself staring at tall piles of work but unwilling to move? If the answer is yes, then today’s edition of The Top newsletter is the panacea you have been looking for! Pretty much all of us have found ourselves waiting for motivation to strike until we start working. This act of continuously postponing or delaying the work you set out to do is called procrastination. It can include not completing tasks on time or not making decisions when needed. There are many reasons why procrastination may happen.  For instance, a manager is delaying a crucial decision for their team’s strategic direction. At the back of their mind, they fear the adverse outcomes that can occur because of the associated risk. Thus, the manager avoids deciding for as long as possible not to confront the feeling of fear.  On the other hand, we can have another manager who has an offsite planned for their team. Throughout the planning process, they keep on postponing decisions whenever the team members preparing the event ask about it. Generally, the responses leave them uninspired and confused. The manager could be doing this because they do not consider this event important for their team. The manager believes the team should focus on working instead of organizing this event which distracts everyone. The perception of team-building activities as unnecessary and distracting makes them think the associated work is a burden. So, it keeps on getting deflected day after day.  Apart from health-related issues, people procrastinate because they might be anxious or overwhelmed. The fear of outcomes, an environment full of distractions, and a lack of purpose can also drive procrastination high. But that’s not all, and managers often procrastinate when they are low on motivation or do not see value in any particular task.  You can read more about procrastination here to understand how it manifests for managers at work.  Managers are not the only ones cornered by feelings of anxiety or demotivation. Similar issues can strike your team members too. However, team members caught up in procrastination and resultantly delaying work are more likely to be termed lazy. One often ignored and underrated cause of procrastination among employees is overworking. As ironic as it sounds, having a list of tasks that piles up just too high can make people push it away too.  How can you identify an overwhelmed employee on your team? Take note of the following signs: 
  • There are visible changes in their mood, especially signs of distress
  • Their productivity might be going down 
  • Engagement seems to be falling, as they are disinterested in work 
 If these signs are present in your employees, they might feel overwhelmed. As a result of this feeling, team members may lose interest in their work, and thus their performance falls. The impact can spread further than procrastination and become health issues.  Read more here to check how managers can help overwhelmed employees at work. Escaping the feeling of overwhelm and getting back to work can seem complicated. But there are ways out for sure. One slow and steady but smart way to overcome procrastination is setting goals. However, huge and ambitious goals sound like too much. Hence, start small with micro goals.  Micro goals are small, actionable steps that lead to more significant success. Think of them as the stepping stones to your dreams across the bridge. Micro goals are great for managers because they provide clarity and a sense of accomplishment to keep doing things regularly. You can think of them as a to-do list. It’s an excellent way to stay organized and keep track of your progress toward the larger goal. Plus, they help create and sustain positive momentum! For example, if you want to increase your team’s productivity by 20% by the end of this quarter. You can create some micro-goals such as: 
  • Identifying and eliminating the main productivity blockers at work in the first week 
  • Providing additional training and coaching to team members who need it afterward
  • Establishing clear expectations for your team members 
In this way, the road to higher productivity might be more straightforward!  Check out the blog here to learn more about micro goals.  Procrastination is one of the significant productivity killers that managers and teams struggle with. Yet, it often goes unnoticed as its blame is shared by the assumed laziness of the people fighting it off. Nonetheless, there are ways out of these time-consuming loops, with micro goals just one of them! 

Persuasion Mastery: How Managers Can Convince Anyone, Anytime

Persuasion Mastery: How Managers Can Convince Anyone, Anytime

As a manager, you spend considerable time getting people on board, right? Remember the last plan you made, whether to schedule a team-building activity or get your team started on the next set of strategic moves toward success. Of course, all of it takes good persuasion skills from #managers and leaders. However, the quality of being persuasive is often an underrated one!  Managers and team leaders need to be persuasive to be successful professionally. While it seems easy enough that the authority associated with the position should give your decisions and ideas substantial weight for people to back them, it might not be so simple always! Consider the difference between a manager who just announces decisions. The team complies, no matter what they might think of them.  On the other hand, a persuasive manager enables the team to see things their way. As a result, the team members truly understand and buy into the reason put forth by the manager. Consequently, they are not simply complying with the orders but also bring in motivation and ownership over the tasks assigned to them. Now, think thoroughly. Which scenario seems better?
Persuasion refers to the ability of an individual to convince others of their views and ideas. It can include generating support for plans and changing the beliefs or opinions of others. It is a critical skill because it can be used anywhere and everywhere – from simple projects to elaborate designs impacting the entire team. Influencing #decisions and building motivation is just one of the many ways persuasion skills help managers become effective with teams. It takes them out of troubling situations such as conflicts and helps them escape roadblocks on the negotiation table when the stakeholders do not see eye to eye. Most importantly, a manager must be persuasive because they have to take the baton for their team. A leader needs to rally support from their team to ensure that their plans do not fail mid-way due to a lack of support. Building consensus and gathering support for initiatives is the most crucial thing persuasive leaders can do.  Persuasion is among the critical conceptual skills for leaders, thanks to the reasons above. Therefore, building this skill set is imperative for every manager who desires to succeed. How can you do that? Let’s find out. 
Persuasive people are identified by their confidence and clarity in their goals. They know what they want to achieve, figure out a creative way to get it done, and ensure that doubt does not cross anyone’s mind. It is backed by research, knowledge, and experience. This charisma binds everyone together. In addition, their flexibility and empathy toward the concerns of others make them a favorite for the team.  This eclectic mix of emotional intelligence, excellent #communication skills, and clarity helps persuasive people stand apart as the victors. Are you one of those? You can find out now in just a few minutes with Risely’s free Persuasion Skills Assessment for managers. The free self-assessment checks your ability to persuade others and informs you about the challenges you need to overcome. Make it the first step to your successful managerial journey now. The journey to becoming persuasive is not a straightforward one, though. For every manager, it can be unique. In some cases, making logical arguments can work best. For example, dealing with a rational bunch of people starts by presenting your case and adding reasonable explanations to strengthen it. 
In some other scenarios, the solution might lie in appealing to the emotions of the other party. Maintaining a balance and identifying what each situation needs is the key to being persuasive across various people and situations. Beyond all these, you must be sure of your ideas and plans. Combining this with good faith among people that lets them trust you freely makes you a great persuasive communicator. #Persuasion is one of the most effective skills in combating #peoplemanagement challenges that any typical manager can face. From conflicts arising out of different perspectives of stakeholders in a meeting to getting your peeved colleague on board for the latest plan, persuasion can win you the best. With this, we leave you here to grow more until the next edition of The Top newsletter.  #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment

Unrealistic Goals vs. Stretch Goals: The Fine Line

Unrealistic Goals vs. Stretch Goals: The Fine Line

An incredible journey starts with a goal. As the new year is slowly ebbing towards the end of its first phase, it sets an excellent opportunity to review your goals and performance. Unfortunately, goal fatigue and low rates of achieving objectives are too common for us, whether in the workplace or in personal goals. In today’s edition of The Top newsletter, we will see what managers can do to stay ahead of their goals for the rest of the year!  One of the most common problems in goal-setting lies in the nature of the goals themselves. Achieving a goal takes many things. For instance, you need resources to get the job done, a healthy environment to free your mind, and supportive team members to pull you out of traps when trouble strikes. But before all of these, are your goals designed to be achievable? 
Let’s sit back for a minute and look at the world running on. There’s speed, and there’s great competition. No one wants to be left behind, so the goals keep climbing new heights – until they are straight-up unreasonable! Unrealistic goals seem like a good way to motivate teams to push harder than ever, but they cause substantial damage too. The constant feeling of falling short overwhelms the mind while the chase tires down the body. All of it creates a straight route to burnout in professionals. So, before anything else, take a moment to free yourself from the trap of unrealistically high goals.  Check out more information about unrealistic goals and how to not set them here.  While unrealistic goals are definitely a no-no, your goals should certainly offer challenges and build motivation to do more. The caveat lies in setting challenging goals that fuel your ambition but are still guided by pragmatism. For managers and working professionals, these fall under the category of stretch goals. 
Stretch goals exist over the main objectives set by the team. The primary goals are set to achieve a reasonable increase or to sustain performance levels, and the stretch goals are placed above and beyond those limits. They are great motivators to do more than the bare minimum and exceed limits set by our minds. It presents an excellent opportunity for team managers to boost motivation and create a sense of purpose. Attaching them to additional rewards and learning opportunities makes it furthermore exciting. Sounds interesting right? You can read more here to know all you need about stretch goals.  Stretch goals are just one way of designing your goals to excel. Beyond that, to keep goals working over a more extended period, you will need a goal-setting framework to keep the process moving. Goal-setting frameworks are structures that make goal-setting and tracking more accessible for managers. In addition, it helps replicate efficient practices and inculcates a team culture over time. Some of the most popular goal-setting frameworks are Smart goals and OKRs. Smart goals set criteria for managers who are in the process of defining goals. Whether the goals are for yourself or your team, they are more likely to succeed when they are more innovative yet transparent. On the other hand, OKRs reverse the view. The process starts by defining the objectives the team wants to achieve and returns while describing the actions and results needed regularly to make them true. 
These are not the only goal-setting frameworks loved by managers globally. You can check out the top 9 goal-setting frameworks managers use here to learn more about them.  Apart from looking into goal-setting frameworks, there are many ways to ensure you achieve your goals. Involving the team in the process of identifying goals is one such way. It helps them connect and builds accountability. Similarly, you can look into the best practices followed by renowned leaders to get more insights. Combining these inputs would lead you to a unique goal-setting strategy that suits you and your team.  Goal-setting tools and frameworks make the process easier by generalizing tried and tested learnings of all managers and team leaders globally. Some might fit your deck precisely, while some may not. With trial and error, you can find the most suitable goals for you and your team. 

Beyond Gut Instincts: How Managers Make Tough Decisions Every Day!

Beyond Gut Instincts: How Managers Make Tough Decisions Every Day!

Every manager spends the day making a number of decisions. These decisions can impact not only their personal and professional lives but also their teams’ trajectories. Yet, not every decision is the same! While some call for speed, others invite thought. Nonetheless, all are critical to determining success for a team. In this week’s edition of The Top newsletter, let’s look at the various decisions that managers take to navigate day after day.  Let’s start our day with Jake, a product lead at a SaaS startup. The morning arrives with a pertinent question – should their team diversify toward a new product? So, to tackle this problem, Jake begins by looking at the market. Then, after thoroughly understanding their environment, Jake is aware of the costs involved in launching and developing a new product. Next, they used data and quantitative analysis to assess the risks and benefits of the investment and weighed it against other investment opportunities or team priorities.  Ultimately, they concluded that diversifying would be the right step for their team. This analytical approach helped Jake make an informed decision based on data and analysis rather than gut instincts or emotions. In managerial parlance, this is known as analytical decision-making. You can read more about it here. 
While this is great as it involves analysis of facts and figures, it is not the only way to decide. Jake’s teammate Jessie addressed this question quite differently. She invested in some thinking to determine whether the new product line aligns with the team’s overall vision and goals. As her team values sustainability significantly, she looked specifically at those metrics in closer detail. In this process, the team asked themselves several questions, such as  “would it contribute to the team’s overall sustainability goals?”  By engaging in values-based #decisionmaking, Jessie ensured that the analytical decision to invest in a new product line aligns with the team’s broader mission and goals and will contribute to its long-term success and sustainability. Values-based decision-making processes best consider the core values that pivot a team. Find out more about values-based decision-making for managers here.  Jake and Jessie invited some team members to comment as the matter progressed. One team member suggested that moving ahead with the product would be a good decision, as it puts them in a better position in the long term. 
As the industry is shifting to adopt modern tech, it is in the team’s best interest to move along too. However, the product would need some changes in its design, as the team has a greater commitment to sustainability, and the present version creates a substantial amount of waste. In addition, they questioned whether the new product line was consistent with the team’s brand identity and whether it would enhance or dilute the brand’s value. By engaging in #conceptual decision-making, the team assessed the potential risks and benefits of the new product line beyond just its financial impact by using critical thinking. They considered the decision’s broader implications on the team’s identity, culture, and reputation and made a decision consistent with its values and goals. This brainstorming session provided Jake with some much-needed insights into the product. Before moving forward with the plan, a few changes were decided. Such a style of decision-making that invites multiple perspectives to create a bigger picture extending into the future is called the conceptual decision-making style. You can read more about it here. Finally, with expert opinions included and multiple aspects covered, our manager, Jake, decided to proceed with the plan. For some managers, this whole process sounds too much! By consulting multiple stakeholders and going through various perspectives, a lot of time is spent before any action is taken. Such managers prefer a directive decision-making style, which looks quite contrary to the path adopted by Jake above. 
A directive decision made by Jake would have led to the development of a new product line based on their experience and expertise without engaging in extensive analysis or consultation with others. They could have speedily finalized the matter based on their experiential or experimental inputs.  While it saves them from the time and effort needed to build a consensus, it can also land them in trouble. Personal #biases and subjectivity can come into play big time. Nonetheless, it can work well for fast-paced teams that rely on one source of direction. Directive decision-making is the way to go in critical situations that call for quick and confident responses. You can read more about the directive decision-making style here. All decision-making styles come with their sets of pros and cons. While none is the best, one always comes on top, depending on the situation where you are standing. Knowing the different ways you can approach situations is excellent for managers to navigate the complex and constantly evolving environment where teams thrive.  #leadership #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment

How are you communicating with your team?

How are you communicating with your team?

The skills of a successful manager are many. But how does the world find them until the manager communicates? A manager’s communication skills become the bedrock of their professional success. With this idea providing ample guidance, there is a lot of talk about communication skills. But what exactly are communication skills, and why do managers need them? Communication skills refer to the ability of a person to share their ideas and information with another person accurately. It also includes considering the role of their background, existing knowledge, and biases in interpreting the message. Effective communication is not just about sharing information but involves precisely understanding the inherent message and emotions surrounding it. It shows that communication carries a broad definition, with multiple aspects that rarely get noticed.  One such aspect of communication that often lacks significant attention is nonverbal communication. Nonverbal communication uses expressions and gestures to share and emphasize messages. As much as words, our expressions add meaning to conversations. For example, a manager frowning while listening to a proposal from their team member immediately shows that they are disappointed and will likely not approve of the idea. On the other hand, another manager maintaining eye contact and nodding while listening will gain the confidence of their team member – by communicating their attention and trust to the member.  Read more about why every manager should focus on nonverbal communication.
Effective communication is one of the most critical soft skills that a manager needs to have. Hard skills can help you bring breakthroughs in demanding arenas, but only communication skills can help you lead your team from the front. A manager with strong communication skills can elaborate and explain their squad’s roadmap. By answering questions, providing feedback, and listening actively to team members, managers build a collaborative spirit based on mutual trust. On the other hand, the weak communication skills of a manager can throw teams into the menace of miscommunication.  We realize the importance of communication best when miscommunication prevails. In the absence of effective communication, be it the lack of appropriate channels or barriers, teams fail to achieve their goals. Poor communication habits manifest in misunderstandings. A manager that constantly avoids direct answers and eye contact does not listen to their team very often and interrupts them repeatedly, causing the spread of bad communication habits, which results in a poor workplace environment populated by distrust and conflict. 
Such problems can occur even more frequently with remote teams, as the opportunities for informal interaction are limited. When getting immediate feedback face-to-face is not an option; conflicts can go unaddressed for longer while distrust simmers in the team. Managers of remote teams need to understand some unique challenges that can come from a lack of familiarity with the medium and barriers arising from diverse settings.  In all of these scenarios, the manager can help their teams by becoming a facilitator of effective communication. Being a facilitator is about laying down the pathway for your team members to get things done. A manager acting as a facilitator of communication ensures that the team environment is designed to make communicating easier for everyone. For instance, the manager can ensure that their entire team uses the same communication tools. They can also go further by helping some members build proficiency with those tools. On the other side, becoming a facilitator can also ensure that the team members have access to adequate and equal information, eliminating the scope for grapevines to run amok.  Read more here to learn how to become facilitate communication in your team.
A manager frequently becomes the pivot of a team’s communication, as all information is shared, and they answer questions. In addition, they can allocate team members to work together on shared projects. Hence, it is critical for good managers to be aware of any communication-related issues that could prevent their team from collaborating smoothly. For example, a manager can note if gossip is negatively impacting the team and take steps to cut it out.  In totality, a manager’s communication skills need to be top-notch to design resilient teams. Communication skills include understanding and overcoming communication barriers, identifying and creating the proper communication channels, and controlling the flow of information across the team. Moreover, it also focuses on two-way feedback that incorporates the views of team members, not just the managers.  Are your communication skills prepared to handle all of this? Test now with Risely’s free Communication skills self-assessment for managers. The free assessment minutely analyzes your communication habits to provide feedback that helps you grow.  Growth is a constant for every manager set to accomplish great goals with their teams. The new year 2023 comes with a precise focus on the soft skills of managers and leaders. As teams go global, managers must rapidly adapt to a world of hybrid work with diverse groups. Wondering what else is going to happen? Check the top leadership development trends of 2023 to stay on top of the game! 

Performance Reviews are around the corner. Are you ready?

Performance Reviews are around the corner. Are you ready?

Keeping a tab on the #performance of teams is an integral part of a manager’s job. Nevertheless, many things create problems in this. One such trouble is bias. While biases exist all around us, we often fail to recognize them. As a result, we act on intuition instead of rationality. It is a dangerous prospect for any manager as it keeps them from being productive at work. Meanwhile, the quality of their team suffers too. Let’s take the example of a Sales manager, Andrew, who has 150 people working with them. While Andrew ensures their judgment is fair across all metrics in varying situations, they hear in external feedback sessions that some employees are unhappy. What could be the reason? Let’s find out with them!  In order to understand this issue, Andrew went back to their last performance review and tried to look for trends. They noticed that they had given average scores to many of their team members. Upon further thought along this line, Andrew could gather that they were providing such scores to the team members unfamiliar with them and, thus, unable to rate their work effectively. Many employees who were not reaching their goals were getting average scores too. It was a problem, so Andrew began reading about central tendency bias. 
Further, as Andrew continued to analyze trends, they noticed that people whose work was unfamiliar to them were getting higher scores in general too. Specifically, people working on new sales methodology had consistently high averages. It was an area where Andrew did not have extensive expertise. Resultantly, Andrew could not accurately measure the causal success of their efforts and results and ended up giving a higher score.  On the other hand, team members focusing on their manager’s area of expertise were receiving lower ratings. It clearly points out that the manager used themselves as a point of reference for evaluating their teammates. In managerial parlance, this is the idiosyncratic rater bias. Another trend hinted that there was a vast difference in the performance of their on-site and remote workers. While in-office workers received good evaluations, workers predominantly adopting the remote mode failed to make a mark. However, this put our manager Andrew in a confusing situation, as they were sure of the ability of their remote team too. Not only do they perform well, they often cross targets. So, what could be happening here? 
Andrew realized they were acknowledging the workers’ efforts they could actually see working. On the other hand, remote workers had to make efforts to get noticed. The proximity bias was clouding the view of the manager. Do you feel that the same happens with your team? Read more to check if the proximity bias limits your hybrid team’s success.  Another fascinating discovery in this study was that an employee often raised the bar for everyone. Their success meant that others had to reach bigger goals. As a result, the charts often showed an over-achiever and several employees clustered around them. It was happening due to the contrast bias.  Without knowing so, the performance of the first employee was generally treated as the yardstick to measure the performance of other workers. And accidentally, the first worker happened to be the team’s star performer. The other employees did not receive an accurate performance evaluation because they were tested in comparison, not on merit. The bias made the manager contrast the workers and their performance instead of permitting an objective assessment. 
This study of performance reviews revealed a lot to Andrew, who then decided to study more about these biases and looked for solutions to overcome them. Not only were the biases limiting their potential, but they were also affecting their team’s success. In the absence of adequate feedback, they could not understand where and how to improve their performance. Therefore, every manager needs to understand and overcome biases, not limit their teams.  While some habits might remain, #managers can ensure that they are primarily objective in their assessments. The key is to remember that you are evaluating the one employee who works with their goals and environment independently of others. With the help of technology, you can make your job easier too. You can use assessments designed for yourself and your team on platforms like Risely. They help you overcome human limitations like subjectivity and hesitation. Sign up today without the wait! #proximitybias #contrastbias #centraltenencybias #idiosyncraticraterbias #leadershipdevelopment #managerdevelopment #leadership

An employee’s perspective on what is it like to work for a great manager

An employee’s perspective on what is it like to work for a great manager

In the last edition of The Top newsletter, we brought light to the difference between a good and a great manager. As you can see, it is largely a question of the degree of certain behaviors that great managers go to. Largely, the impact of working for a good or great manager is extremely rewarding. Being a good or a great manager to your team members is not about making them happy by being soft on them. It is also not about compromising on performance. Instead, it is much deeper than that. It is about the experiences you give to your team members daily that make you a good manager to them. These experiences are like signals that anyone can feel and perceive. Not an exhaustive list, but this is what it looks like:
  • Employees feel appreciated, valued, and respected
  • They might feel like they can be themselves and let their work speak for them
  • They might feel like their work is essential and that the manager cares about their success
  • There is a feeling of calmness, order, and productivity in the workplace
Dilbert Comics characters
What do managers do that make employees feel like this? Is there anything they consciously don’t do also? Yes, a lot. Here is an employee’s perspective on working for a good or great manager. Often, managers think that likeability, i.e. how much will their team like them, is the key to success as a manager. There is some truth to it. People are generally more likely to respect, trust, and work with someone they like. And as we all know, people are usually more likely to be successful when they have positive relationships with those around them. In essence, if your team likes you as a manager, you are more likely to succeed in your role. And so will your team. Likeability is a quality that is difficult to define but easy to spot. It is intangible, but it has a significant impact on success. So what is likeability? Likeability is simply the ability to make others feel good about themselves. You do this by being positive, friendly, and interested in others. To be likable, you need to be genuine. You can’t pretend to be someone you’re not. People can see through fake personalities, and they won’t like you if you try to be someone you’re not. Be yourself, and people will appreciate that. Read more about likeability and its impact on managerial success here. The success of a manager is often measured in their ability to keep their teams productive and stick around. Managers who struggle to keep their teams productive and tight-knit, often think about what is blocking them. To answer that you need to go deeper into what causes an employee to be unproductive or quit the company. You will notice that there is a lot that can be controlled by the manager themselves. There are a few common mistakes that managers make in their journey of people management. These mistakes often result from a lack of understanding of the nuances of people management or blind spots that managers have. Two-thirds of employees feel that their bosses lack proper managerial training as per one research.  There are 8 proven manager mistakes that can make the team members quit their job. Read here to know more. Bonus read: Top 11 Reasons Why Humble Leaders Are More Successful.
Dilbert Comics
To conclude, a good manager knows how to motivate and lead his team in the right direction. They also set reasonable expectations and behave professionally. They have the unique ability to see the potential in their team and use this to their advantage. On the other hand, a bad manager can be toxic and destructive, leading to low morale and a lack of productivity on an organizational level. It is a journey that is arduous yet rewarding.

Transition To Becoming A Good Leader: Simple Steps for Managers

Transition To Becoming A Good Leader: 8 Simple Steps for Managers

As a manager, you take charge of the team and set priorities, provide guidance to each one of them, and keep hold of the team’s respect. As a leader, you have the same duties, but your main focus is putting forth your vision and ensuring that it becomes beyond everyone’s reach. No wonder most organizations have a say when it comes to choosing leaders! But, to become a good leader with distinct skills and abilities is not a coincidence. Many factors contribute to this big picture. Here are some ways in which managers can transition toward becoming brilliant leaders.
Table of Contents

What is leadership?

A typical definition of leadership Is “To create an environment in which people can perform their best and achieve the goals that have been set for them.” Leadership is a process of social influence that maximizes the efforts of others to achieve a goal. A leadership position is all about being able to set the right vision, following that through with enthusiasm, and being a service provider apart from garnering respect. Leadership at the workplace refers to the process of developing individual, group, and organizational effectiveness. Leadership at the workplace is a set of skills developed through emotional intelligence and social awareness. It enables effective processes for various functions such as: creating a vision, putting the plan into action, and achieving goals (business objectives). It builds upon one’s strengths and qualities to create excellence in achievement. But, being a leader is not enough, one needs to be a good leader for it to be effective. Good leadership proves effective in motivating people and encouraging creativity and innovation. It defines the actions of creating a better future instead of achieving immediate results by exhibiting values that fundamentally adapt to movements active in different ways at each stage. Good and strong leadership can be defined as “Seeing what is possible, so your staff members maximize their potential for achievement.” A good leader is also an effective leader as he/ she can choose to relate differently with the people who may have commonly felt but differ in approach.

Why becoming a good leader is important for a manager?

A manager is a person in charge of managing a team or an organization. It involves following up on projects’ performance and leading them to their optimal levels. This means that managers not only follow but also manage employees’ tasks. They cannot fully control their subordinates but can make sure they do not fall behind targets by becoming a good leader of them. Therefore a transition of a manager into a good leader is important for the betterment of the team. A manager who is good at leading their team will have an easier time achieving their business objectives. They have a better chance of effectively motivating their employees to work towards common goals. Additionally, a manager who is a good leader will be able to delegate tasks appropriately and provide feedback that is both constructive and timely. Further, by being a good leader, a manager can ensure that their team feels an understanding of the company culture. With a better grasp of what it means to be part of the organization, employees will also feel comfortable making contributions to its success. All these points show the need for the transition of a manager to a good leader. But, the question is how to start. The answer to that is as follows-

How to start your transition from a manager to a good leader

There are several steps that a manager should take to become a good leader. Those steps include

1) Visualize what kind of a leader you want to be.

To start with your transition from a manager to a good leader, you should first visualize what kind of a leader you want to be. For that, you should first have a role model in mind whom you admire. To pursue the task of becoming a leader like that role model, you should first find answers to these questions:
  • How has that person served as a good leader for their team?
  • What do the employees love most about this individual?
  • What makes that person stand out from the rest?
  • How does this individual go about encouraging their team members to grow and excel in their careers?
  • What makes them good leaders?
Once you have answered all these questions, you can try to incorporate all the gained information into forming your leadership style. Further, you can confirm with your team members if they like the changes to be sure that you are on the right path.

2) Assess your strengths and improvement areas

Once you know what kind of leader is supposed to be, it is time for the second step, i.e., assessing your strengths and improvement areas. Before trying to become a good leader, the manager should evaluate his or her strengths and improvement areas. By getting this self-awareness, managers can carve their strengths to fit the image of a good leader. They can also start working on their improvement areas to be completely prepared for becoming a good leader.

3) Adopt a good communication style in dealing with employees and clients

To become a good leader, you have to adhere to some best practices in communicating with employees, clients, and other stakeholders. To become a good leader, you should learn to communicate effectively. A strong communication style greatly increases your noticeability as well as influence on others. It also has a positive impact on employee engagement. A good communication style can also eliminate the risks of miscommunication which can lead to conflict. Furthermore, a good communication style also makes it easier for you to negotiate and influence other people as well as benefit from their skill sets. All these points together make adopting a good communication style a very crucial step for a manager towards becoming a good leader.

4) Design a leadership development plan

Along with a good communication style, managers should also design a plan to cover the main areas in which they need improvements. By having a plan in hand, they can be clear about what exactly they should go ahead with, which will make the transition easy and effective. By having a plan in hand, managers can also be saved from distractions from their goal of becoming great leaders.

5) Implement the plan and track results

Managers can now start implementing the plan they have designed in the previous step. By doing so, managers can start their journey towards their goal of becoming good leaders day by day. They should also strictly track the results of implementing this plan to figure out if the plan is taking them in the right direction. The best way to do that is to maintain a checklist in which you do update daily progress towards the plan.

6) Remain committed to your leadership plan

Managers should never go back on the path after having a leadership development plan in place. Doing so can be counterproductive and meaningless from the very start of their career. It will not allow them to get recognition as true leaders at work. Therefore, once you have designed and implemented a plan, you should stay focused and committed to the same.

7) Continuously improve yourself and your team

Managers always need to constantly improve and keep on bringing their teams up for them to become good leaders. They should identify the points or areas where they and their team can improve. Managers can use the same as an opportunity to make changes within themselves. That will allow them to stay committed to leadership development. Through continuous improvement, managers can also find new ways of doing things that may bring more efficiency to tasks.

8) Practice, practice, and practice

Managers should never stop practicing leadership. The practice of achieving goals and helping team members improve will allow them to become the best leader one day. This can be done through mediating and identifying the weak spots in themselves and their teams. It also includes applying strategies, especially when it comes to maintaining cohesion within various departments at work. Teamwork is what people who are good leaders understand very well. Through the continuous practice of leadership, a manager can not only become a good leader but can also become a better leader than that eventually. Other than these steps, there are also some core skills and traits that a manager should develop to become a good leader. those are as follows-

Core skills and traits to work on in your transition from manager to a good leader.

There are some core skills and traits which are necessary for managers to develop to become good leaders. Those are as follows-

1) Building a vision for yourself and the team

Good leaders can build a good vision for the team and build their brand. Developing this shape can ensure that they have something that people admire and always look forward to. Good leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision and drive it to completion at all times. Therefore, to become a good leader, the manager should have this trait.

2) Basic traits of good leaders such as integrity, coaching, being democratic, empathy, and mutual respect

Good leaders are always honest with the people around them. Good leaders also can coach and guide their employees when needed. They allow and entertain ideas from all of their team employees or team members. They also always show empathy towards their team and maintain mutual respect. These traits will allow them to be seen as a great leader by the people they manage. Also, by having these traits, they can achieve greater efficiency in their team.

3) Develop big picture thinking

A good leader is someone that can see the big picture for any problems. They intend this ability to lead them into a role of competitive advantage in particular work and future market developments. They challenge not only out of their realm but that of competitive boundaries.

4) Building trust and collaboration

Good leaders can build trust in the first place by being approachable, trustworthy, and good listeners. They make sure that the employees can trust them with their ideas, thoughts, and feedback. They also make sure that employees do trust in their way of doing things and making decisions. This trust further makes it easy to build collaboration between you and your team. This collaboration is also important for becoming a good leader.

5) Making tough decisions

Good leaders will not only make sure good employees and team members but also win the trust of their professional competencies. They can lead by having the necessary leadership qualities. These include leadership qualities such as assertiveness ability, courage, resilience, commitment, etc. A manager who cannot take tough decisions can never be a good leader.

6) Dealing with conflict

Good leaders can deal well with conflict because they understand it and manage it correctly. They only maintain a functional organization. They do not allow their employees’ feelings of dislike or resentment in the corporate atmosphere. A manager who doesn’t know how to deal with conflicts can never become a good leader, and dealing with conflicts is an integral part of leadership.

7) Setting boundaries and managing expectations

A good leader ensures that there are clear boundaries that are not crossed. They know how to manage expectations and should avoid major surprises, which can lead to confusion in the workplace. They must also learn to say no, which is critical for being a strong leader so that you can focus on what is most important to your success.

8) Being a role model for the team in terms of skill and behavior

A good leader sets a great example for their team. They use her skills and experience to help their employees in any possible way. They do have their skills and behavior so right in the place that every individual looks up to them for inspiration. Therefore to become a good leader, you must first become the change you want to see in your team. To have a better understanding of what leadership skills and leadership qualities are important for managers, you should visit our blog Effective Leadership Skills: 10 Tips for Managers. The understanding of important steps, required core skills, and required traits will not be enough for managers to be successful in this transition. They will have to avoid several common pitfalls which may deviate them from becoming a good leader. We’ll cover these pitfalls in our next section.
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What are the common pitfalls that impact most managers in this transition

The journey to transition from being a manager to being a leader is not a simple one. Often managers fall into several pitfalls. Most often, these pitfalls are simple and can be avoided by being self-aware.
One of the most common pitfalls that managers fall into is assuming too much authority or not delegating enough.
Many managers assume that they can lead their team by doing all the work. So, instead of being more effective at teaching, planning, or motivating their employees, they assume too much authority and try to do everything by themselves. They do not delegate enough tasks to those who have the appropriate skill set. This will not just exhaust them but will also badly affect the efficiency of the tasks. It can also reflect that they do not trust their employees or team members with these tasks. That can badly affect their motivation.
Another common pitfall that managers fall for is failing to build team morale and motivation.
Poor morale and motivation decrease the productivity of your teams. Even such small things as not being able to participate in certain team activities will impact the majority of employees and lower their motivation level. Managers should always look for different ways of building team morale and motivation. They should come up with different and innovative ideas which make their team motivated to work effectively. Managers who cannot motivate their team members can never become good leaders.
Sometimes, managers are not being able to set priorities or manage resources effectively
Transitioning to becoming good leaders becomes difficult when managers cannot prioritize their team’s tasks effectively. If the priorities of the teams are not set properly and if the resources are not managed properly, it can make the teams lose coordination within. This lack of coordination would create confusion in Team Management, thus causing many repercussions inside the organization as well. By mismanagement of resources, managers can also come out to be biased, and a biased manager can never be a good leader.
Becoming inflexible or unable to change course when needed
Being unable to change course can be a roadblock for any leader. If managers are not flexible enough, they can miss many opportunities which could have helped them towards their goals. They also may face multiple problems or mishappenings which could have been avoided with some flexibility or slight changes in the course of action. An inflexible or rigid manager can never become a good leader.
Failing to take feedback constructively
When managers fail to take feedback constructively from their employees, they are also unable to become good leaders. Failing on the aspect of taking feedback proves extreme failure in one method of becoming a good leader. This can become a greater source of a roadblock than any other incompetence or biases shown by them towards their team. There may be many unpredictable problems that can emerge if the managers fail to accept constructive criticism provided by their team.

Conclusion

If you are a manager, there is no question that you have to be a good leader. The difference between being a good leader and a bad one is often determined by your skills and traits. We believe that if all managers can follow the listed steps and can develop the listed skills and traits together with avoiding the common pitfalls, nothing can be a roadblock to their transition from a manager to a good and successful leaders.

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The 7 Essential Leadership Qualities You Need To Grow

The 7 Essential Leadership Qualities You Need To Grow

Leadership qualities are the hard-wired behaviors that help us achieve leadership. There is a whole lot of talk about leadership qualities, but what are they? What does it take to be a leader? Are leadership qualities innate, or can we develop them by practicing certain skills and getting better at our jobs daily? Leaders must have the core leadership qualities to be successful. These qualities are often aided by skills and abilities that leaders develop through proper training, coaching, and mentoring. A leader who has a democratic style is one who respects others and treats them with dignity and respect, listens to their concerns, values their input, and allows them to have an equal voice in decision-making. On the other hand, leaders with an autocratic style tend to lack empathy and have too much control over their groups. They also tend to be self-serving, neglect others’ needs or feelings, are insensitive to others’ needs or feelings, favor themselves at the expense of other people’s happiness, and take unnecessary risks since they don’t care about how an action affects anyone as long as it gets them what they want. Moreover, to be a good leader, one must understand the role of leadership qualities and the skills that make up a leader’s ability to influence others. For example, leaders need to build rapport with their team members while allowing them to be creative. On the other hand, leaders who are know-it-all may see things differently than those on their team and influence group opinions in a controlling manner rather than through open dialogue.
Table of Contents

What is leadership?

Leadership is a process of influencing others for a common goal. It requires an individual to be more aware of the people and situations around him, can influence others to work in unison towards a common goal, and inspire them to follow and do what is required to achieve the goal. In turn, this process causes changes in how others behave both intra-personally and inter-personally (between two or more people), leading some to question if leadership exists at all, especially when one considers parallel structures like mass movements as a replacement for leadership. However, the noun “leader” and the adjective “leadership” refer to specific attributes of that person’s behavior or positioning within a culture. Generally, leadership is a set of leader behaviors that results in increased loyalty by followers and enhanced productivity through the perception of motivation among subordinates. Moreover, most professional leaders define what they do as “leadership.” This stems from their own self-imposed or organizational norms – otherwise known as doctrine or dogma; however, these are being changed with greater awareness to trends outside organizational policies and practices within specific cultural contexts.

What makes a good leader?

Most people who have implemented a single system of control (physical or psychological management) tend not to realize after the fact that it can trigger resentment and disdain from individuals. When in this situation where one is both the “upper hand” and simultaneously responsible for disciplining others, stress on those methods increases and eventually could lead to secondary situations of abuse within workplace settings. People will defy direct leadership when there is no means by which to argue against it.

So, the question remains. What makes a good leader? What are the most essential Leadership Qualities?

In essence,
  1. Leadership is not a position, it is a mindset.
  2. A good leader is patient and has a positive attitude.
  3. They take time to listen to others and understand their concerns.
  4. A good leader leads by example and sets the right example for their team members.
  5. Leaders will always listen to the feedback of their team.

7 Leadership Qualities that you should know:

1. Integrity

It’s amazing how often integrity comes up as one of the top things people think makes a good leader. Trust, trustworthiness, and honesty are certainly important as well. It guides leaders to be truthful and avoid deception, which makes honesty a necessity for good communication in organizations.
Integrity means doing the right thing and turning in good work even if everybody else is telling you to do something different. Many times, it will mean staying true to your values long after they become questionable or even unpopular. — Charles T. Goodhart (Godliman)

2. Humility

A real leader is willing to admit when she’s wrong and willing to teach. The biggest mistake that people make as leaders is to think they know it all and can do no wrong. This self-centered attitude in leadership begins to destroy their effectiveness quickly if you have high expectations of your staff or even yourself.
A leader’s concern for his people grows out of respect and love. A person who is not able to be humble will never be a great leader. – Warren Bennis

3. Resilience

Resilience is the ability to recover quickly from adversity. Resilient leaders are those who can bounce back after setbacks and failures. They can focus on what needs to be done instead of being too worried about what has happened in the past. Resilient leaders accept responsibility for their actions, apologize where appropriate, etc.
Quite often resilience is a sign of profound self-confidence and personal fortitude. Leaders who exhibit it simply have other characteristics to fall back on, whatever the circumstances. – Warren Bennis

4. Self Awareness

Being a good leader is about managing yourself and your team to make sure all of you are working at optimal levels. Leaders need to be self-aware. They need to know what motivates them, how they are perceived by others, and how they can improve their skills. All this because they don’t just want to be great leaders; they want to be the best leaders they can be. Self-awareness helps us become more aware of our strengths as well as our weaknesses. This knowledge enables us to remain grounded in reality – it gives rise to unwavering self-confidence
– Abraham Lincoln

5. Empathy

Being an empathetic leader is one of the key leadership qualities. Empathy is a quality that requires a deep understanding of the emotions and feelings of others, and it enables leaders to understand people’s needs and aspirations. Empathetic leaders can explore visions, values, goals, and the meaning of working with others. Empathy also enables them to manage diversity while maintaining group cohesion.
Empathy is not merely tolerance; it is arguably one of the central ingredients for any successful organization. – Howard Schultz, Chief Executive Officer, Starbucks Corporation

6. Speaking up when it’s needed

Leaders need to let people know what actions will enhance the results. When people are not on the same page, it becomes very difficult to accomplish anything. Leaders need to have clear expectations of people when they are leading them.
I don’t care how much you know until you can get someone else to care as much as you do. – Richard Bach

7. Making decisions

Leaders must make the right decision for the good of their teams and organizations. If they’re not good at making tough calls, it can be a huge source of stress and tension. A good leader takes the time to make informed decisions and asks for input from others. This is an important quality because it shows employees that their boss has confidence in them and cares about what they think.
Genius is not so much a matter of being able to do things as it is in knowing what not to do. – Leonardo da Vinci
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Do leadership qualities come naturally, or do they need to be developed?

Some are born leaders with the inherent qualities of moving the masses. But does it mean that someone can’t develop leadership qualities? No! Leadership qualities can be acquired through structured work towards it. There are no shortcuts to becoming a great leader. You can’t just wake up one day and be the next Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. But there are things you can do to improve your leadership skills and become a better leader:

Fact check on your Leadership qualities

Take a look at your leadership style and ask yourself these questions:
  • How do I give feedback?
  • How do I set goals for my team?
  • What kind of information do I need to make good decisions?
  • How do I manage conflict?
  • How do I motivate a team to achieve the goals we set for them?
  • Are there certain skills I’m lacking because of my past experiences?
  • How do I ensure that others are treated fairly and equally?
  • Who was a leader in the workplace previously where they joined me or came to work with me, etc.?

Set targets of Leadership Qualities for yourself

When you know what your strengths and weaknesses are, it’s time to set goals. Think about the qualities that make you a great leader. Then identify how those qualities can be improved. For example, if you want to improve the management of conflict, ask yourself these questions:
  • What am I good at in regard to dealing with difficult situations?
  • Where do I often fall short when it comes to managing conflicts or resolving disagreements?
  • Am I willing to recognize my flaws and learn from them so that they don’t happen again in the future? How do I deal with conflicts?
  • Do I take into consideration previous experiences in dealing with situations and other people on a day-to-day basis?

Try it out

Once you have a goal in mind, you can start seeking out opportunities to practice. For example, if you want to develop your leadership skills in a particular area, try setting aside time each week to work on that skill. Try doing something like videoing yourself and interacting with your peers regularly. For example, record a video of you listening to people talk about aspirations, attitudes, and work ethics that are important to you as an employee. Go through the videos later and use them for reference. Then ask other people in leadership roles how they would have run certain situations differently had they been present at the time of recording or in their absence. Having these ‘warts and all’ recordings can be a great thing because it goes against the grain of our natural tendency to imagine ourselves perfect in every situation, and this helps us gauge our behavior objectively. This also means that you can start finding creative ways to remediate your weaknesses as well as improve on your strengths – which will make you even better at being an effective manager overall!

Seek help over enhancing these leadership qualities when required

You may not be able to achieve all of your goals on your own. For example, you might want to learn a new skill, but you don’t have the time or resources to do so. That’s okay! You can use what you have to build on and strengthen the areas of your life that are in need. It’s important to get help from others when you’re trying to develop your leadership skills. You can seek out a mentor or attend a leadership development program. One of the best ways to get help is by reading books. Reading a book can give you new ideas that will help move your leadership skills up to the next level.

Conclusion

All in all, leadership qualities are important because they are required to be a leader. If you do not have the qualities of a leader, then you will not be able to lead others. Without leadership qualities, there is no way that one can lead others effectively. Moreover, leadership is a process. There are no shortcuts to being a good leader. Leaders need to be good listeners, learn from mistakes and make decisions quickly. Some leaders may consider themselves great because they have the skills of delegation, mentoring, and delegating authority, but they lack the ability to lead others. Every company is looking for someone who can at least possess some of the qualities that are essential to be a really good leader: charisma, technical skills, a business mind, and a good manager. Some people are born for leadership others have to learn it, and that is something we all can do with effort. A great leader will compliment you as well as complement your personhood because he or she desires that you be around longer than just working in the office. All you need is the right handholding support to take you through this journey of becoming a better leader.

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FAQs

What are the 5 qualities of an ideal leadership?

The five qualities of an ideal leadership are:
– Vision
– Integrity
– Accountability
– Empathy
– Decisiveness

What makes a successful leader?

A successful leader has a clear vision, is passionate and dedicated to achieving their goals, communicates effectively with their team, leads by example, is adaptable and open to change, and fosters a positive work culture.

What do good leaders do?

Good leaders set clear goals and expectations, communicate effectively with their team, provide support and guidance, inspire and motivate their team, lead by example, listen to feedback and ideas, and continually strive to improve themselves and their team.

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