3 Underrated Leadership Qualities You Want
Discover subtle characteristics that make a great leader.
How do you imagine a great leader?
Someone with a clear vision, honesty, communication skills, empathy, and adaptability. It is a person who can make decisions, hold others accountable, innovate, and be resilient in critical situations.
But not only that.
There are subtle attributes that will make you a terrific leader. And they have a significant impact on how you communicate and collaborate with others.
1. Patience
“Patience is a virtue.”
In our speedy world, patience has a little place. You get reminders every day to work faster. Clients and colleagues are chasing you in emails and via communication channels. Everything needs to be done quickly.
Meetings get shorter. The feedback feels like someone spit a piece of information on you. Every decision that hasn’t been made is already late.
Yet, leaders need loads of patience.
Patience helps you:
Become a better listener. When you listen, you understand others more. You have more quality interactions with them. Patience shows respect.
Be productive. Hurry up! Or rather not. Some things need time. You need time to think about vision, goals, solutions, skills, whom to delegate, etc. Without investing time, you won’t move the needle.
Navigate through changes. So much going on all the time. You may catch yourself presenting one change after the other. Your team needs time to digest and accept changes. If you rush it, they block themselves.
Improve your timing. Go, go, go. Now! Nah, slow down. Calm your fussy feelings. Excitement and a feeling of pressure can lead to bad decisions. Timing is everything. Use your experience and wisdom to explain and move on when it feels right.
Reach your goals. Grow to 100,000 customers now. Become a manager in 1 year. Get 10,000 followers in 1 month. The pressure is on. People can give you the impression your company can grow fast. Yet, it is an illusion. Reaching your goals and vision is all about applying purposeful pressure aka steps to get where you want to be. Don’t use the brute force of a sledgehammer. It will only cause you frustration and disappointment.
Are you patient? When working with others? When working on a task? When learning a new skill?
Jennifer L. Roberts, a professor of the history of art and architecture at Harvard, asks her students to do this exercise at the beginning of her course to practice patience:
Up for the challenge? Leave your phone behind and go to sit in front of one painting for 3 hours. You value your time much more afterward and get a sense of patience.
2. Optimism
What do you see?
Is the glass half-full or half-empty?
Years ago, I joined a new company. My manager was a bit of a drama queen. She could make a circus from every (unimportant) mistake. And gosh, I did make a lot of mistakes when learning new processes. She made me feel bad and eventually told me: “Look, everyone is replaceable.”
Then, reorganization happened, and I got into a new team. Within less than a year, I was promoted and grabbed the title of the fastest-growing employee. Why did it happen? I had an optimistic manager who encouraged me to make mistakes and learn.
Optimism is not just about being fun and smiling. Optimistic leaders are not blind to your skills. They don’t ignore facts or dismiss evidence.
Project confidence that your team will navigate challenges.
Recognize problems and potential issues and take early steps to address them with people. E.g., lack of knowledge, mistakes in reports, process gaps, etc.
You can do it together, and your team will respect you for that.
3. Appreciation
When was the last time someone tapped you on the shoulder and said: “Good job!”?
Being a manager, I realized I did not appreciate my team as much as I should have. They did a wonderful job, pulled together challenging tasks, and helped each other without complaining.
Many leaders take such things as automatic, but they are not. We simply do not appreciate each other enough. That is true at work and in our private relationships.
Everyone needs a kind word here and there. Your team, boss, clients, suppliers, etc. Appreciate how you work with others. And yes, your boss will be happy to get a positive appreciation from you, too.
It may feel weird at the beginning. But in the long term, you build a culture of appreciation and lead by example. After all, people look for appreciation at work. They need to hear they do a good job and are valued.
Appreciation = loyalty.
The task for you: Appreciate one person today. Maybe a colleague on the same project. Maybe your manager. Pick one who you appreciate.
TL;TR
You want to be a leader who is:
Patient: It helps you become a better listener, make more thoughtful decisions, navigate through changes, improve timing, and reach your long-term goals effectively.
Optimistic: Approach challenges positively and encourage teams to make mistakes to learn. This attitude fosters creativity, problem-solving, and a positive work environment.
Appreciative: Show appreciation to their team members by recognizing and acknowledging their efforts and achievements. Creating a culture of appreciation can lead to increased loyalty and job satisfaction.
Read also:
Monday Deep dive: how to deal with workplace conflicts
Thursday Challenge: The leadership challenge begins