7 Traits of Great Leaders: Master These To Get Results

Whether you’re in a leadership role now or are working of becoming a manager, know that great leaders aren’t born. Instead, it takes time to learn the skills you need to be effective. Yes, some people naturally possess some of those abilities and are drawn to leadership roles. However, most leaders will master the skills they need to be successful through formal learning and experience. Below are the seven traits of great leaders and the ones every leader should work on mastering. 

1. Communicates a Vision or Strategy

Great leaders know what they want their teams to accomplish and why. Employees don’t know what they should work toward without an overall vision or strategy. Whether someone’s a frontline manager or an executive, they need to say what the company’s goals are. 

Employees should also know the purpose behind those objectives for them to hold any water. A disorganized manager or one who doesn’t provide teams with strategies is setting them up to fail. Knowing what tasks to complete is fine, but employees need to see how they connect to the overall vision.

2. Displays Empathy

Empathy is perhaps the most crucial of the seven traits of great leaders. No one wants to work for someone they can’t relate to or respect. Nor do employees want to work for a leader who doesn’t appear to have compassion or understanding.

Empathy is the ability to see things from another’s perspective. While it’s often equated with being too soft or a pushover, this couldn’t be further from the truth. To inspire teams, you need to understand what drives them as humans and individuals.

3. Practices Effective Communication

Good communication is at the heart of great leadership. Without it, your employees go about their days with little direction. They may become confused about how and when to complete tasks. Or, they might grow hesitant to approach you with questions or setbacks.

Effective communication builds trust and makes employees feel safe and empowered. Besides regular meetings and check-ins that have a clear purpose, make sure you’re providing enough context for all your messages. 

4. Walks the Talk

Leaders are responsible for communicating expectations and ensuring they’re carried out. However, nothing is more demotivating to a team than to see their manager breaking their own rules. To be a great leader, you need to walk the talk. 

In other words, practice what you say and what you expect from others. Employees are more likely to follow what you do if it doesn’t match what you preach. Make an effort to align your actions with your words. 

5. Delegates Appropriate Tasks

An overburdened manager doesn’t have time to lead or address their team’s needs. But leaders can get this way by refusing or failing to delegate. Instead, they try to control or micromanage too many tasks instead of trusting their teams. 

Yet, a manager who delegates assignments to their direct reports according to skill sets gives them room to breathe. They can concentrate on leading and mentoring their teams. Furthermore, employees develop and fine-tune their abilities and become confident that their manager believes in them.

6. Remains Flexible

Flexibility comes into play in several aspects of leadership. For instance, your natural leadership style may be more hands-off and democratic. However, you might discover some of your team members appreciate a hands-on style more. 

While neither approach is necessarily wrong, leaders do need to remain flexible and adaptable. That could mean adjusting your leadership style to individual team members’ needs. Flexibility is also the ability to change gears when things get off course or don’t go as expected. Admitting mistakes and remaining positive while learning from them sets the right example for the team.

7. Displays Enthusiasm 

Great leaders inspire their teams and motivate them to take action. Someone who appears disconnected or unenthusiastic about their work will have a more difficult time inspiring others. Nonetheless, displaying enthusiasm or passion for what you do doesn’t mean you have to act like Bozo the Clown.

Instead, it means showing that you’re committed to your job and you can stay positive. You may notice things that go wrong, but you find ways to overcome obstacles with passion and drive. 

Conclusion

Developing the seven traits of great leaders isn’t something that’s going to happen overnight. Good leaders also know they need help from others to reach their goals. Leadership coaching can help you develop all the traits of a good leader. Schedule a complimentary 30-minute call today with a certified Bonfire Leadership Coach to start maximizing your leadership potential and become more effective with your teams.