Being a tuned-in leader is more important than ever before. Are you one?
A CEO I admire makes leading look easy. How does she lead? She holds people to account and genuinely values and cares about the team around her….… she embodies ‘enabling’ leadership. There are all sorts of leadership capabilities and models however it can be simplified to; “Can you lead in a way that means everyone is pointed in the same direction? Are you an authentic leader; your words are aligned with your actions even when the pressure is on? Can you enable people to be at their best and empower them to do their best work every day?” “Do you genuinely care about the people as human beings?”
It means embracing a very human approach to leadership rather than purely focusing on outcomes and deliverables. Placing importance on culture, doing what is right to create the optimal environment for people to thrive and lead by example creates a purposeful, engaging, high performance culture that takes care of desired outcomes for the customer and the business.
Enabling leaders don’t come with ready answers, they are curious about diverse perspectives, ask questions and really listen.
The kind of leadership that’s bringing companies through and beyond adversity to prosper are purposeful and grounded. They’re comfortable being that little bit vulnerable, connected and empathetic. They’re responsive to what’s happening immediately around them, can change gears with agility and know how to steady the ship when things are turbulent.
There’s nothing like a crisis to shine a spotlight on inadequate leadership. The one we’re coming out of flicked on the floodlights.
This archetype can be a big challenge for the outdated, but still operating (for now) style of leader who depends on a command-and-control style of authority. In today’s world, this is managing, not leading, often badly. They fear losing control and are not comfortable loosening the reins. Trust, or lack of, is a big factor of this mindset. I’ve seen the effects of leaders who overuse their power, who like things done ‘their way or the highway’. It’s detrimental to company culture and stunts growth.
Change or become irrelevant.
I strongly suspect there are leaders who are waiting for people to be physically back in the office so they can return to traditional ways of working. More than ever before, people are aware there are better ways and will quickly withdraw loyalty and choose an alternative rather than continuing to work in an unhealthy culture. A workplace where there is a lack of care and accountability, where it is clear people are not trusted and empowered is not good on any level; people, customers and profits all suffer.
Never before has there been more of a need to switch away from the parent/child style of leadership and embrace a more enabling, listening and responsive approach.
Great leaders help others find their greatness.
Learning how to bring out the best in others is a gift and an integral part of leadership. Enabling growth, helping your team to build self-confidence and capability is motivational in a very different way to the monthly pay packet.
Being a strong leader invariably means investing time in yourself. Once you have self-confidence and feel you’re on the road to being the person you want to be, it’s easy to bring out the best in others.
What is your preferred style of leadership?
Have leaders that rely on traditional methods realised it’s time for a change?
‘People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how they made you feel’ Maya Angelou
Astute Consulting is a boutique consultancy firm specialising in people and organization change. Our service offering includes:
- culture change
- leadership coaching
- connecting business and people strategy
- transformation and change
- organisation restructures
- optimising performance and getting the best from people