Being a leader is sometimes a thankless job, and it’s only becoming more difficult. A leader is not the one who passes orders, but the one who understands the real problem, its victims, and proceeds to find solutions. There is often no training, and executives who don’t have available coaching at their disposal are often left on their own to source mentors, books or conferences to build skills.
But as this Forbes article by Robert W. Bache points out, there’s a simple way to become a better leader, though unfortunately simple is not the same as easy. “Becoming A Better Leader Starts By Listening To Your Employees.”
Image source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesfinancecouncil/2022/03/08/becoming-a-better-leader-starts-by-listening-to-your-employees/?sh=264464ef6688
In the first of 3 tips to follow “good leaders stay connected” he acknowledges that it can be difficult to maintain close-knit relationships with your teams, and this has only amplified since the pandemic shifted more teams to a remote environment. But all the more reason to have frequent check-ins, either collectively or one-on-one.
His second piece of advice “make it personal” makes it easy to talk about business AND personal. “How are you, how was your weekend” is just as important as “what are you working on and how can I help.”
And in his last piece of advice “good leaders walk the walk” he acknowledges that employees trust leaders that exemplify the qualities they are seeking to build in others. They demonstrate their knowledge, they prove that they care, and they support a culture of growth and learning.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jody Ordioni is the author of “The Talent Brand.” In her role as Founder and Chief Brand Officer of Brandemix, she leads the firm in creating brand-aligned talent communications that connect employees to cultures, companies, and business goals. She engages with HR professionals and corporate teams on how to build and promote talent brands, and implement best-practice talent acquisition and engagement strategies across all media and platforms. She has been named a "recruitment thought leader to follow" and her mission is to integrate marketing, human resources, internal communications, and social media to foster a seamless brand experience through the employee lifecycle.
