To be a good leader, you first need to understand what leadership is. According to McKinsey, “leadership is about guiding and impacting outcomes, enabling groups of people to work together to accomplish what they couldn’t do working individually.” To become a better leader, you should understand the types of leaders, which one you are, and how you can improve your leadership style. In this article, we will discuss what it means to be a leader, common leadership styles, and how to become a better leader.
What Is Leadership?
Leadership is the act of guiding others towards success. Leadership encompasses all of the responsibilities leaders have. They not only are responsible for achieving the goals of the company, but they are also responsible for retaining talented employees by making them feel valued and helping them grow.
When you think of leadership, you may think of authority figures like Bill Gates, Martin Luther King Junior, or Mahatma Gandhi.
An effective leader can see and articulate big-picture goals, communicate with and motivate teams, adapt to the unique needs of each situation, and control their emotions under pressure. Leaders are authority figures who direct employees, set and track goals, and innovate processes. Read on to learn about five different leadership styles.
Types of Leaders
There are five common leadership styles. By being aware of the leadership style you lean towards, you can understand your strengths and weaknesses. You’ll be able to better understand how you make decisions, take in feedback from your employees, and implement strategies to make better decisions for the business.
Democratic Leadership
Also known as participative or facilitative, democratic leaders make decisions based on their team’s input.
Democratic leaders typically have the following characteristics.
- Inclusive. Democratic leaders make a specific effort to include everyone during team meetings.
- Collaborative. Democratic leaders value collaboration with diverse team members.
- Effective communication. Democratic leaders know how to communicate effectively.
- Empowering. Democratic leaders empower their team members to share their opinions.
- Supportive. Democratic leaders are supportive of ideas proposed by their reports.
- Empathetic. Democratic leaders have empathy for the needs of their subordinates.
- Emotionally intelligent. Democratic leaders build trust through relationships led by emotional intelligence.
Democratic leadership is one of the best leadership styles because it encourages everyone to participate and share their opinions. It can lead to innovative ideas, diverse thought, and strong teamwork. CEOs of some of the world’s biggest tech companies, including Google, Netflix, and Microsoft, are democratic leaders.
However, it also comes with challenges. Reaching consensus across a team takes a considerable amount of time, so that has to be accounted for. If you use a democratic leadership style, make sure you give ample time during team meetings to reach a unanimous decision.
Autocratic Leadership
Autocratic leadership, sometimes called authoritarian, is on the opposite side of the spectrum as democratic leadership. An autocratic leader decides without input from their reports.
This leadership style is characterized by centralized decision-making. Autocratic leaders use direct, top-down communication with minimal delegation and limited autonomy of team members. It’s effective in some cases, such as times of crisis when decisions need to be made quickly or if the team is too inexperienced to give valuable input. Emergency response teams and restaurant kitchen staff do well with autocratic leadership.
However, autocratic leaders face challenges. Their reports may feel undervalued, intimidated, or micromanaged. If you are an autocratic leader, you should make a special effort to make sure your team’s individual needs are recognized.
Laissez-Faire Leadership
Laissez-faire leadership, also known as delegative or hands-off, comes from the French for “let them be.” A laissez-faire leader gives all authority to their employees, only interjecting when the situation calls for it.
They give limited guidance, direction, and feedback to their team. They give their subordinates autonomy and freedom, which leads to empowerment and trust. The minimal interference makes employees accountable for their work, which makes them feel valued and gives them an incentive to do their best work. Successful businessman Warren Buffet is known for his laissez-faire leadership style.
As with all leadership styles, laissez-faire leaders face challenges, including the following.
- Limit team development. Since laissez-faire leaders aren’t very involved in the day-to-day, they may not see areas where their team could improve.
- Unclear roles. Laissez-faire leaders may not clearly define roles and responsibilities, leading to confusion, overlap, or missed opportunities.
- Overlooking opportunities. Lack of involvement may lead laissez-faire leaders to miss opportunities to enter new markets or improve their products and services.
While laissez-faire leadership may be effective for you, make sure you are involved enough that you don’t miss opportunities.
Transactional Leadership
Transactional leaders use a reward and punishment system to motivate their employees and direct their behavior. They set specific rules and standards for their employees to meet while closely monitoring their progress and performance. This leadership style is best for inexperienced teams as it focuses on results and commitment. In the early stages of Microsoft, Bill Gates used a transactional leadership style to set a clear hierarchy that focused on results.
Transactional leaders may lack strong relationships with their team since they focus more on rewards than relationship building, which may limit team engagement.
Transformational Leadership
Transformational leaders gain confidence and trust in their teams by encouraging and guiding them. They motivate employees to reach their goals and uplift them to reach their full potential. By focusing on employees, they’re able to drive success for their organization.
Their strong leadership and support inspires their team to think in new ways. Employees led by a transformational leader typically have higher satisfaction, morale, and motivation. A notable transformational leader is Oprah Winfrey. Through her journalism and philanthropy, she’s become a transformational leader known for her vision and values.
Even though transformational leaders are able to meet company goals, they may limit their team member’s professional development by focusing on company goals over individual needs.
Check Back Soon To Learn More
Next week, we’ll be sharing more information about how to become a better leader. Mythos Group specializes in empowering leaders to become a better version of themselves. With our advice, you can drive company success and engage your employees. Visit our articles page soon to learn more about transformational leadership and how to be a great leader.
