The topic of leadership is complex, and one that many of us struggle to understand, and more importantly struggle to become effective leaders. I have been a team leader for more than thirty years, in addition to a franchise owner for the past sixteen years. As I have evolved in my career, I have come to understand there are a few key components to good leadership.
- The right person, in the right seat: this is a concept you can read more about in the book, Good to Great written by Jim Collins. It is essential that you have the right person in the right job within your company or your team. You may have a great hire, but they lack the skill or passion for the job functions, however there is a different seat they can be moved to that is a better fit. A DISC assessment will help you determine if their natural abilities and traits are right for the job. Keeping someone in a position that isn’t rewarding for them, will bring your whole organization down. Be quick to fire, but slow to hire. A good leader will make the tough decisions, when no one else will because it is what is in the best interest of the whole company.
- Trust: if you don’t trust the person on your payroll, then you need to take a closer look as to why. Sometimes trust is a matter of additional training, better systems or learning to let go of the need to be in control. In order to leverage your team, those people working for you, have to believe that you trust them, and that they can trust you to be the leader they need you to be.
- Delegation: I used to believe that I was the best at installing a yard sign – no one else could do it like me – and I was right, but I also learned that installing a sign was not the highest and best use of my time. I had to delegate the task, and let go of the need to do it my way. Empowering your people to make decisions, and think outside the box is a part of effective leadership. With the right training, and trust in the person to do the job, delegation is easy.
- Lead by example: the most important and quickest way to leverage leadership, is to lead by example. You must intentionally and consistently walk your talk if you want those around you to respect you as a good leader.
By Nate Martinez
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