Everyone has the potential to become a leader. Some people have skills and traits that give them the upper hand in becoming great leaders. Others need to work hard at developing those abilities. The greatest leaders, however, are the ones who work hard to become better (whether they’re born with it or not). If you want to become a truly impactful leader, you must first discover your leadership strengths. After you’ve recognized them, direct your full effort and use those strengths to your advantage while also improving your weaker leadership traits.
How do you determine your leadership strengths?
Determining which of your strengths will benefit your leadership potential is fairly simple. Here are four characteristics we look for in great leadership:
Trustworthiness
We believe strong leaders to be effective at establishing mutual trust relationships. They know how to establish trust with you, and they can tell whether you are trustworthy or not. These leaders value trust to a high degree.
Communication
Impactful leaders are also efficient communicators. Clear, concise, and transparent communication is extremely important as a leader. After all, it’s better if everything is understood the first time around because confusion and misunderstandings spread quickly.
Example
If you’re looking for new leadership, perhaps someone to guide your next steps in life, take the examples set by your potential leaders into consideration. If they lead by example and can show that their method works, then they’re a good leader to learn from. So, if you want to build a future that looks a certain way, make sure that your leader’s current situation reflects that vision. If you want to become a better spouse, find a leader who has a strong marriage. Do you want to become an involved member of your community? Pick a leader who is involved in their own community.
Work Ethic
If you want to be a leader who truly stands out, emulate that in your work ethic. There are leaders who organize the work, then there are leaders who join the work. Be the latter. Work hard, harder than anyone else. Self-control and determination to get the job done at your own expense will inspire others to follow your lead. When you are exhausted and need a break, people won’t stop to think, “Hey, they didn’t do their fair share.” Instead, they’ll think, “Wow! Great leaders don’t just watch—they do.”
To hear more about what we think makes a great leader, watch our YouTube™ video.
What do you value in a leader?
Aside from the leadership strengths that we value, there are many other characteristics and abilities that true leaders exemplify.
- Empathy
- Sympathy
- Teaching ability
- Problem-solving
- Time management
- Organization
- Flexibility
If you embody any (or all) of these traits, you’re in luck! If you don’t … there’s still hope. Any of these abilities are accessible and attainable, even if you start at zero. This article features a few more leadership strengths and ways that you can begin to develop them.
What leadership strengths will you use?
Whether you decide to pursue a position of leadership for yourself or would rather take time to learn from other leaders’ examples, you now know what it takes to become a good leader. We highly encourage you to exercise your leadership strengths and do whatever it takes to improve your weaknesses. That way, when you step up to the podium or have the microphone, you can use your voice to positively impact and lead people who are just like you.
If you’re already in a leadership position, then you know how important it is to invest in your team. If you’re looking to use your leadership strengths to develop your team, read our blog all about exactly that.
