A leader is someone that consciously or unconsciously demands respect from their peers. Leaders come in many different forms and in my many different situations but the common variable among all leaders are the core values which they base their behavior off of and their values. In this blog I will elaborate on the key ideals and beliefs that make a true leader.
Honesty/Trust
Honesty is a prerequisite of respect and vital to the loyalty of your followers. I believe to be a successful and well liked leader you must form a bond with your group. This bond starts the first day with being honest. Good ways to gain trust right off the bat is being very clear with your policies, strengths and weaknesses, and what your goal is for the team is which relates to what we learned in class regarding policies and goals. As a leader you are constantly forced to make tough decisions that have your group split in two but if you form a bond of trust with your employees or peers they will trust you to make the best possible choice to further advance the the group with the team's best interest in mind.
Respect
Respect towards others and yourself is vital to becoming an effective leader. You cannot lead a group that doesn't respect you as a leader, they will not take you seriously and be more prone to disobey and engage in their own plans or ideas. An effective way to gain respect is to act in a proactive manner in all aspects of life, if people see the way you always keep a level head and problem solve efficiently without dragging down others in the process, they will regard you as a good person to model behavior after and follow in your footsteps. This is a good way to lead with action, this does not require elaborate speeches or fantastic management tactics, only good morals, positive behavior and quick problem solving. Then others will follow and model themselves after you without having to take charge and verbally declare leadership.
Confidence
To be followed you must exude confidence, you will get a much better response out of people if you do everything with no doubt. Confidence has been found in many studies to be a key contributor to how you perceive someone and if they seem confident with everything they do you will interpret them as more trustworthy. As a leader you will run into times of crisis and in those times you must take assertive action and lead the group out of the situation with good crisis management tactics, however, you are less likely to be respected and followed if you are unsure about your actions. You must be unwavering in making decisions and never hesitate, second guessing yourself only fills yourself with doubt and distracts you from the task at hand.
Positive Attitude
Attitude is contagious, that is why it is crucial to project the best possible image and be a figure that you want people to look up to and model their behavior after. Smiles are the same as yawns in terms of contagiousness, when in a formal setting it is very common for people, especially the more timid, to match the intensity of the leader. Bringing a positive, upbeat attitude into your workplace everyday is an effective way to quickly boost morale and increase worker satisfaction. A good way to think about keeping things light and positive is always looking for a win-win and trying to make the most out of everything.
To conclude, the aspects that I believe are key core values that must be possessed in order to be a successful and respected leader are: honesty and trust, respect, confidence and a positive attitude. These traits can help you be the best leader you can be on almost any team, workplace or situation.
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