The revised, realistic and slightly less fluffy rules of Leadership

o action!

We all know that giving others credit and being a good motivator are key to being a great leader. But what about the principal-shuffles that have muddied the success waters. Nowadays leadership isn’t all about the individual methods and tools; it’s about taking a moment to look at the entire recruitment / collaborative / business landscape and addressing it head on.

• Demand the big dogs get to know you.

Gone are the days when a manager’s relationship with the CEO only needed to go as far as memorising their profile blurb off by heart. Sometimes it’s the folks above a manager that can prevent leadership success. There’s a lot of old fashioned CEOs and presidents out there that don’t see managers or leaders as any different to their other ground floor employees. This lack of respect and definition means many leaders don’t get the tools or contact needs they need to do their job how they’d like.

This could require some structural changes and may mean the introduction of new onboarding and training opportunities, what sounds bad about that? Sell that to the big dogs upstairs and make this introduction and new partnership more about company culture and succession success as opposed to your personal wants/needs.

• Erm, actually lead!

That means not being afraid to make changes and accept the consequences of that. Too many leaders step into their predecessor's shoes and aim to do that job a little better. Why? Here is a real opportunity to lead not just a workforce but a company so don’t be afraid to shake things up. If you have solid data, cared for talent and supportive superiors this pro-active approach can be a breeze.

Employees respond to confident leadership that spans business and personal goals so be that change for yourself and ‘your people’. Empty incentives and handing out the odd reward isn’t enough to breed passion, yet alone motivation. Give them a new, strong style to champion and embrace, trust us it’ll be worth it.

• Opt out of big, rock solid plans.

Many managers sit stale in a position for so long that changing a plan can be simply too much work. And other newbie leaders can get a little too enthused about making a style statement and in turn waste their chance to make a real difference with a sustainable, considered leadership plan. Rather than signing up to a massive, business-wide leadership strategy get acquainted with what’s in place already.

The answer could be creating a series of smaller, agile-focused approaches that takes into account department issues etc. You need to represent this strategy and even get your workforce active in its implementation so why not involve them in its creation? Of course you need a strategy for your leadership approach but no ones says it has to take the conventional form.

• Know when it’s time to go.

As we all know, employees often cite their reason for leaving a company to be poor relationships with manager. If you’ve lost that loving feeling, don’t stick around to drag the team and company down. Bow out gracefully.

Your role as a leader has a knock on effect. If you stop caring, you let standards slip and alienate your team. Don’t damage retention efforts because you’re too settled to accept defeat and move on. It’s not always the ‘done thing’ to talk about the idea of willingly leaving a company the right way but jeez it should be. Who do leaders have to talk to about their role doubts? A good leader let’s employees come to them for advice, but who do they have?

Create an open culture with your fellow leaders and ensure that there’s a support system in place to help you stay motivated and passionate about your position and vision for the company.

• Keep your personality intact when you move up the chain.

How often do we see lovely team leaders become absolute monsters as they take on more responsibility. Status is but a job title so don’t forget where you came from. It’s this very thing that makes you a poor succession planner as you’re no longer in-tune with the challenges and merits of your entire workforce. Whether you’re a department manager or global CEO, likeability is the thing that ensures people want to work for you and the company.

Don’t lose the very thing that makes you human because of ego.Your effectiveness as a leader lays in the ability to relate and engage with your workforce.

Leadership is openness and the key element that can transform leaders into impact makers is the ability to remain both a human and business force. Many of our real world rules are rooted in the changes that the industry deals us over and over again. If you can stay in-tune and accepting of this flexible principal party, you can overcome and embrace the real things that can help or hinder your leadership success.

These are just my thoughts on leadership, agree or disagree, either way I’d love to connect with you. Find me here: Mark Bevans on Twitter or Mark Bevans on LinkedIn.