Disclaimer: My background is in the military so I am unable to fully translate leadership tips to the financial world. That being said, I think that being a good leader incorporates key traits that can be applied to all fields.
These points are strictly my opinion and are based on my own personal experiences.
1. Maximize output by setting the example.
When I began my first leadership assignment I found that some of the most important attributes for being a good leader were not very difficult to discover and yet seem to be under utilized by leaders.
The best way to maximize output from subordinates is to set the example. Many of the ways to do this are well known by people and yet tend to be neglected. For instance, showing up well prepared and at the proper times before meetings are small ways to gain subordinates trust.
Leadership is a two way street in which trust must be built both ways.
When gaining positions of seniority, it can be easy to take advantage of the perks the lifestyle may offer. The best leaders are the ones that don't take advantage of their position and hold themselves to the same standards that their subordinates are held to.
2. Strive to be an expert in fields relative to your position.
In the military there are many ways a leader could gain the respect of their troops that are different from other industries. For instance by striving to be the best at running, lifting, combatives and tactics one can establish a very strong reputation.
While these specific areas are different from working as a leader in the financial industry, the same concept stands. It is important to at least strive to be an expert in the fields relative to your job as a leader.
I have found that it is far more important to simply show a continuous desire to improve rather then simply be the best at everything. In showing this determination, it can cause a contagious effect throughout your organization encouraging it to build as well.
3. Communication is key - both upwards and downwards.
In terms of running a organization, communication can be continually referenced as a key reason for it being a success or failure. Communication downward tends to be the most understood quality to be improved by leaders, but communication upward is just as important.
Working to improve communication flow with the person managing you can allow your organization access to many resources. When conflict emerges it is easy to simply shut out your manager and focus your attention downward. However, there are many resources that you may be shutting your organization off from in doing so. For instance, your manager may be able to coordinate with other divisions that you don't have access to.
Many relationships that are detrimental to an organization can be solved simply through the establishment and improvement of communication.
4. Show an interest in your subordinates career progression.
Showing an interest in subordinates career progression can be one of the most important things you do that helps them develop during their time under you. While it may seem straight forward to support your subordinates advancement, conflict of interests have the potential to emerge along the way.
When a subordinate begins to pursue a different job instead of remaining on the glide path you would like, what do you do as a leader? The true answer is that you should support what is in the best interest of your subordinate. While the subordinate leaving your firm may be negative, it may be all but inevitable. However, maintaining a good working relationship on the way out may pay dividends in the long run.
What do you believe makes a good leader? What are the common pit falls that cause leaders with good intentions to fail?
Lol. There are very very few good or even decent leaders in the military. Mostly capricious, tyrannical and otherwise flawed personalities.
I appreciate the input and while I have seen leaders like you describe, in my MOS I don't think that is the majority. I would rather discuss what parts of my own analysis that you disagree with rather than discrediting everything I say based off your general views of leaders from the military.
The leaders that I found were much like the ones you described were that way partially due to lack of feedback. Therefore any insight you could provide on leadership would be highly beneficial for myself and others looking to improve. Thank you!
As a veteran, I can draw on my own experiences and know exactly what you're talking about but let's think about a few of your ideas and decide what that means about the "leadership" in the military:
"For instance, showing up well prepared and at the proper times before meetings are small ways to gain subordinates trust."
Showing up on time and prepared to a meeting YOU called for? That would be called basic competence and decency, not good leadership.
Point #2 -- Why would you make someone a leader who wasn't already good at the work their subordinates do? Additionally, wanting to improve and grow are good traits and qualities....but what's the alternative? Stagnate into mediocrity?
If I understand your point #3, talking to subordinates merely from a position of authority (where they aren't allowed to respond), is detrimental.... Doing the opposite isn't being a good leader, it's how to not be a shitty human being.
Point #4, no one signs on people for 4-6 years at a time. It's not really applicable. Fostering your employees development is good leadership.
Five Roles of Prime Leadership (Originally Posted: 01/21/2015)
Leadership is one of the truly hot topics in the corporate world. Can you believe that there are more than 17,000 books on leadership available on Amazon? That statistic tells me that there are no clear answers on the best way to lead a company, organization, or team. Given that I work extensively in both the corporate and sports world, where effective leadership is essential, I wanted to share my perspective on what makes a great leader.
Let’s start with where I stand on leadership. First, what is a leader? Your answer may include inspiring employees, having a strategic vision and plan, or knowing how to hire or delegate. All of these are necessary, but not sufficient, conditions for being a leader. But the purest definition of a leader I can offer is: someone with followers. Without them, there is no leader.
I also want to add a rather heretical view of leadership: I don’t believe in leadership styles. We certainly hear plenty from all sorts of business gurus that this style or that is ideal. You hear about autocratic, democratic, collaborative, visionary, transactional, transformational, participative, laissez-faire, servant, the list goes on. I would argue, however, that talking about styles has little value because we are incapable of leading in a way that is inconsistent with who we are as people. However you lead, there are certain roles you must fulfill to be a successful leader of your team and to achieve the goals you have established for your business. I believe that leaders have five essential roles to fulfill to be effective.
Leader as person
The key question to ask in this role is: “How can I lead from a position of respect, trust, and loyalty?” The answer to this question, and the foundation for gaining the respect, trust, and loyalty of your team, is not in how you lead, but rather in the kind of person you are and the relationships you build with your team. Are you likable, calm, and supportive? Or are you angry, critical, and demanding? Understanding who you are will help you figure out how you can best lead.
Leader as performer
The key question to ask in this role is: “How do I show my team how to be high performers individually and collectively?” For you to get your team to perform its best, you must know how to perform your best. You must possess the psychological, emotional, and interpersonal skills necessary perform at a high level consistently. With these tools, you can both role model and educate your team about maintaining a high level of performance.
Leader as team builder
The key question to ask in this role is: “How do I build an inspired, aligned, and productive team capable of meeting our biggest goals?” These days, in particular, one “player” can’t carry a team. Rather, everyone has to work not only fulfill their individual responsibilities, but also collaborate effectively to get the necessary results. Your ability to create a team, in the purest sense of the word, is vital for your organization’s success.
Leader as decision maker
The key question to ask in this role is: “How do I ensure that I’m making the best possible decisions for my team and the company?” Is there any more important skill for a leader to have for the success of their organization than knowing how to make good decisions? Yet, bad decisions are rampant in running a business for many reasons. Your goal is to create a framework and process that will maximize the chances of your team making good decisions.
Leader as change agent
The key question to ask in this role is: “How do I transform our company into an agile, collaborative, and purpose-driven force that is prepared for the challenges that lie ahead?” Here’s a simple reality in the business world: If you don’t evolve, you die. You must create a culture that has the ability to adapt to a marketplace and economy that are constantly changing. However you fulfill these leadership roles, there are certain things you must do to ensure that your organization does what it needs to do to be successful. The heart of this mission is for you to engage in what I call Prime Leadership:
• Create, inspire, prepare, and direct: Prime Leaders nurture their teams from birth to maturity; • Perform at its highest level consistently: Prime Leaders train their teams to function their best day-to-day and during “crunch time”; • Individually and collective: Prime Leaders focus on the contributions of each team member and the group as a whole; • Under the most challenging conditions: Prime Leaders prepare their teams to perform their best during times of uncertainty, instability, and crisis; • In pursuit of a value goal: Prime Leaders establish objectives that are meaningful to the team and the organization as a whole.
Want to Boost Your Career? Be a Leader - Not a Boss (Originally Posted: 11/12/2015)
Mod Note (Andy): Throwback Thursday - this originally went up 8/21/13. If you haven't read Nefarious' other posts make sure to check them out, he did a good series of 3-4 posts around this time (see on his tracker page by clicking his username)
Keeping with the theme of my article from two weeks ago (regarding cold emails and helping/mentoring the younger crowd, link here) I wanted to take some time to discuss the difference between a boss and a leader and how having one or the other can drastically change your future and career over the other.
Chances are a lot of you have bosses – and chances are a lot of you will have bosses your entire life. It is the unfortunate majority of the business world.
In my opinion, bosses are expendable, there just happens to be more of them out there than leaders. Seeing as how we are the next wave of business professionals and experts, I would like to lay some groundwork and get it in your heads what the difference is, so even if you never get to experience working for a leader, you can at least become one. Employee Development One of the key differences between a boss and a leader is the development of their employees. Leaders want their employees to succeed whereas bosses just want the work done. There are three key items to pay attention to in this category:
1 – Using People v. Developing People.
Bosses tend to view employees as a means to an end. You are simply a tool to reach the end goal. Leaders develop your skills to not only get the work done but to get it done better. With leaders, the status quo is never acceptable and they actually take the time to develop your skills to produce better results, ultimately leading to personal career development, which opens more doors. One of the key things to look for here is if the guy in charge only knows how something is done or if he will show you how something is done. The difference is if he simply tells you something is wrong versus showing you why it is wrong and how to go about fixing it.
2 – Driving v. Coaching.
Does your superior crack the whip on a day to day basis or does he carry pom-poms around to help you and your team reach goals? Meeting deadlines in a timely and accurate manner is a necessity of business, but there are two ways to get there. Having your superior take the position of the leader to blaze the trail instead of checking in from time to time to remind you of the deadline is a key difference between a boss and a leader. While it may not be his immediate responsibility to do the physical work, it is still his name on it, and a true leader will take the time to check in on projects or tasks, answer questions and provide guidance.
3 – Generates Enthusiasm v. Generates Fear.
This is one of the biggest misfortunes in today’s business world. Due to the poor economy, most people do their job out of fear of losing it. Does your superior encourage the team to do the best job they can do or are you and your team simply skating by because you don’t want to get fired? I know I have definitely been a part of teams with a leader that actually makes you excited to get something done, work as a team and produce an incredible, value added, end result. This is a great habit to get in because eventually you stop viewing work as work and begin viewing it as a challenge, a way you can help the company. I have also been a part of shit teams headed by a boss where we slap together the bare minimum and it is acceptable simply because it was completed by the deadline. A leader seeks results and tries to achieve those results by encouraging his team. A boss just hits deadlines.
Teamwork In addition to the above, be sure to keep a watchful eye as to how he treats his team. Here are a few things to look for:
1 – The I v. We mentality.
When addressing groups in conference calls or meetings, does he refer to his group simply in the singular, meaning he is taking full credit for everything, or does he include the group? “I finished the report” v “We finished the report” – there is a clear difference between the credit of the work here. This mentality leads into the next two points.
2 – Takes credit v. Gives credit.
A true leader is constantly doling out credit, or at the very least, includes himself in the team when accepting accolades. He will never simply take all of the credit because at the end of the day he knows it was his team that got it done, all he did was guide them to the proper end goal. A boss will take the credit and act as if he doesn’t even have a team.
3 – Takes blame v. Gives Blame.
The opposite of the point listed above, a true leader should eat the shit sandwich whenever it is served up. At the end of the day, it is his team and he is in charge of it. If there is a mistake or something isn’t adding up, it is his fault because he is the last line of defense before a submittal or presentation. A boss will completely separate himself from the situation and blame it on his team, or worse, on a specific person. This is the worst type of boss. I actually had the misfortunate of sitting in a client meeting where my boss at the time did this to one of my co-workers. Not only was it awkward and unprofessional, it made the whole company look like shit and made him look like a moron that had no clue what was going on in his own department.
So there you have it, just some things to keep in mind. I would suggest using these to help form your own leadership skills as you grow professionally as well as use them as warning signs for current/potential superiors.
Mod Note (Andy): If you haven't already, check out Nefarious's great two-part interview series, part 1, part 2