Learning to lead

Basic leadership tips to improve team collaboration.

I enjoy learning about leadership and organizational behavior. I studied anthropology and journalism, and both helped me become a better listener, to be mindful of body language and cues, and develop better self-awareness. Developing self-awareness is a continual opportunity for growth. Many people underestimate the benefit of acknowledging their own feelings, motives, and desires, and how these can affect business relationships and team dynamics.

Over the years, I’ve learned that leadership isn’t about your ambition to get to the top, but rather about having clear vision, setting a positive tone, and inspiring people to accomplish a common goal. Having been both an employee and an employer, I’ve learned a few basic leadership lessons that go a long way in staff satisfaction. These seem obvious, but it’s astounding how many are completely ignored in today’s workplace.

Have clear goals and expectations

Unclear expectations are one of the biggest contributors to employee dissatisfaction. While staff and leaders need to be flexible enough to pivot to accommodate changing market forces or unforeseen circumstances (Covid-19 anyone?), unclear goals, poor planning, unrealistic expectations, and reactionary behavior create a negative environment, cause stress, and promote resentment.

Be transparent

Not everyone needs to know everything, but if information affecting your entire team is parsed out to only several staff, the remainder will try to fill in the gaps as they receive intermittent information - and they will. Team members talk. Remember the study that showed us why we are so annoyed by people on their cell phones? When we only hear one side of the conversation, our brains try to fill in what the other person is saying. We do the same thing when we are presented with only part of the information that affects us.

Yield to your subject matter experts

Respect all opinions but yield to the subject matter expert on their area of expertise. You hired them for a reason, right? Good leaders know they can’t do everything nor do they know how. They hire people that are a good fit for the team and know their stuff.

Parity

Yes, life isn’t fair, and a leader can’t spend all their time making sure everything is equal among staff. That’s a losing proposition, and what is fair is subjective anyway. But there are some basics you should adhere to. When celebrating staff birthdays, for instance, do the same thing for each employee, which might be doing nothing at all. 

Celebrate wins, big and small

All too often leaders take credit for a project or an idea that isn’t their own, as if by doing so they prove they are a great leader. On the contrary, great leaders help employees reach their goals. They take pride in the accomplishments of their team and are sure to acknowledge who did the work. If an employee wins a big award or client, celebrate! Also, a simple “great job” or “well done” goes a long way in making staff feel valued. It’s one of the easiest things to do.

Be aware of minimizing roles

Refrain from pointing out perceived disparities in employees’ jobs. While one job may seem easy and stress-free compared to another, individuals have different levels of ambition and stress tolerance. It’s better to have clear expectations for the role and get to know your employees’ personalities and work styles. Inspire, promote constant learning, and embrace trying new things, but refrain from expecting more from one staff member than another.

Promotions

Not everyone wants a promotion, but many people do. Again, have clear expectations, along with a road map about what your employees need to do to reach the next level. Maybe it’s taking on a new project or managing a small team, or a combination. Some companies will offer a title change without additional compensation, but I advise employees against accepting this compromise. Receiving a title change might look good on paper, but it reduces an employee’s chance to almost zero of ever getting a significant bump in salary at the same company. The employee will acquire all the extra work and expectation of the title, but none of the reward. If that’s your plan to get additional work and responsibility out of someone without it affecting your bottom line, that’s just lousy. If giving them a title change (one that is deserved) will get them to their next position elsewhere, and that is part of an agreed upon strategy with your employee, go for it. 

Positive feedback

Employees need to hear positive feedback to negative feedback at a ratio of 5 to 1 to have impact. Why? Because our brains are wired to recall negative feedback more clearly. This is called negativity bias. While it might feel that you’re constantly providing praise, remember that you likely need to be doing it 5 times more than you are now.

Inspire rather than shame

Sometimes things just don’t work out. A competitor gets the contract, you lose a big donor, a marketing campaign tanks. Use these losses as opportunities to learn. Bring staff together, create a forum to talk openly, and inspire them to think differently. Fear tactics, shaming, and blaming might create instant change, but rarely will they provide any long-term benefit. Instead, you’ll reduce motivation, and squelch creativity and innovation.