You know how there are shirts that say one-size-fits-all? Well I don’t believe them. I don’t think I’ve ever bought a piece of clothing that was one-size-fits-all. There are few things in life that truly fall into this category in my opinion. This includes leadership. New leaders often ask me what their leadership style should be or how to develop a way of leading. They’ve often seen all the books and articles that try to distill leadership down into one way of being that is Right (that’s right–with a capital R). What these authors often point to is a very stereotypical way of leading. Usually having to do with being an Alpha or by using command and control. The reality is that there are a vast variety of ways to successfully lead a company or organization.
Leadership isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s right. There isn’t ONE right way to be a leader. It really depends on a number of different things: Who you are–your personality traits and values. What talents and experiences you bring. What the company needs at this particular phase of business. These are just some of the factors that go into determining your leadership style. The key is to have a style that is true to who you are and produces results for the company or organization you are leading. So…
What’s your leadership style?
How do you know when you’re being effective…and when you’re not?
Who is the most effective leader you’ve experienced and why?
Leadership style:
I have a few different ones. Lead by example, lead by encouragement, lead by task management… it all depends on what my circumstances are. And honestly, I’m still figuring out what works and when. It’s hard!
Effective:
I guess when you get results is an obvious answer. But what if everyone hates you and won’t work with you again? I’ve had a leader like that. Then, it’s not effective, obviously. So a balance between the two concepts?
Most effective leader:
The most effective I’ve seen is now a great friend of mine and someone I go to regularly. He had a way about him- we would have followed him anywhere. He is now retired and traveling the world, but if he turned up at another high-tech company he’d have dozens of people ready to quit their jobs and work for him in a second. Why? He respected us, he enabled us, he fought for us, he had experience that he willingly shared, and when he didn’t have the experience he would tell us “I don’t know if this will work or not, but we’re going to do it together and see” and he stood by us!
Thanks for your thoughts Betsy! Developing an effective leadership style often takes time to truly hone. As far as being effective–you’re right. There’s more than one way to look at effectiveness. Here’s a question to help. What do you want to accomplish as a leader? This will help you think more about what kind of leader you want to be and what effectiveness might look like.
You most effective leader sounds powerful (and effective) indeed. A style like his can often work really well–especially in situations where collaboration is key to the success of the project or company.