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What qualities do great leaders have to motivate their employees? In this article we will review the qualities treasured by great leaders who have led their companies to success, such as Elon Musk, Richard Branson, or Jeff Bezos.
We will focus on basic and main elements, especially those that inspire others to do a better job as employees. Of course, we will start with a trait that is underappreciated, but of essential importance:
Great leaders are humble
Someone who “thinks too highly of themselves” is not someone who tends to make a good impression if their position is one of leadership. Leaders who like to put on a show or show off their capabilities tend to generate rejection. In fact, employees feel much more inspired when they see in their leader a humble person, but one who is capable of performing his or her job.
It’s a question of attitude: arrogance can work in very hierarchical environments, such as the military. But in the corporate world the exact opposite is needed: a strong yet humble leader.
Open-mindedness is essential
Leaders who inspire their employees are always open to listening to them and to changing their position and their thinking. When we say “open-minded,” we mean someone who is able to listen to different opinions and, above all, able to change his or her own position for a better option.
A great leader does not rely on past experience
Sometimes a bad leader may rely on his or her resume and past experiences when addressing a problem. However, every problem is new and every situation has its own unique characteristics.
That is why great leaders are able to deal with problems that arise without the need to say how great they were in the past.
They simply demonstrate it in practice.
Has free time and enjoys family
Great leaders work hard. But they are also able to develop their empathetic skills and enjoy life. A leader who spends 90 hours a week working and neglects the family will certainly not be as able to motivate their employees as much as someone who is more relaxed and “fun-loving”.
Moreover, it is taken for granted that great leaders always surround themselves with a brilliant team to rely on and “relax” a little bit with.
A good leader gives up his or her leadership
A leader is not always able to take on all responsibilities. Especially when leading a large team. In these cases, a good way to increase the team’s enthusiasm and motivation can be to relinquish leadership in concrete actions.
If one of your employees has a great idea for improving the business, he or she can be assigned as the person in charge (always with supervision). This will test both their leadership skills and their ability to move in a pressurized environment.
Great leaders enjoy the success of their employees
This is a key point: a great leader maximizes success and involves theiremployees. He or she does not take all the glory, but is able to congratulate their team and enjoy the personal successes of each team member.
Meetings are not everything to a great leader
Another important characteristic is the ability to improvise. Great leaders are able to take a worker by the hand and talk to him or her without scheduling a meeting. Naturalness is essential to generate a sense of organicity and harmony in group work.
This is also where the listening and attentiveness of great leaders come into play. If you want to be good at leadership, you have to be able to listen and empathize.
They don’t break contact with you if you leave the team
Something that tends to happen a lot in the tech world: job change. If you notice, great leaders create such a close and personal environment that when the working relationship ends, the relationship itself doesn’t end. As the masters that they are, they stay in touch with their employees long after the employees have left.
Employees who have had a great leader always remember him or her as a role model (teacher) and probably stay in touch with him or her.
As you can see, the essence of every great leader is based on the development of the most human qualities, in addition to the practical elements of leadership. Empathy, humility, knowing how to delegate, are great milestones that every self-respecting leader must learn to master.
