You have three main assets that have helped you become a leader:your track record, your deep industry knowledge, and your years of experience working with your customer base.
That's the good news.
The bad news? None of these three traits will help you answer the question of how to be a great leader.
And that's really, really bad news, because organizations with the highest quality leaders are 13 times more likely to outperform competitors in key outcome measures such as financial performance, customer engagement and customer satisfaction, according to a survey by Development Dimensions International.
Related: 5 Exemplary Leadership Practices
So what will take you from lousy leader to team hero? In my 25 years of mentoring and teaching the greatest teams in the world, I've discovered five consistent flaws that all lousy leaders have in common. Here's what they are and how to avoid them:
1. Lack of trust in leadership
Effective leadership requires trust at all levels. Most leaders haven't created what I call "high trust" with their teams. Trust is the number one currency in business, and it becomes more important every day. Your main goal as a leader is to create an environment of the highest possible trust.
From you, a ripple effect of trust reaches the limits of your organization and its impact. Assess the level of trust in your business by asking these questions:
Do you trust your team?
Does your team trust you?
Does your team trust each other?
Do your customers trust your team?
Does your team trust your customers?
Do your customers' customers trust you?
Unfortunately, most leaders lack this confidence-building aspect of effective leadership. In fact, a survey conducted by Age Wave with Harris Interactive found that only 36% of employees believe their leaders act with honesty and integrity. And the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer found trust in CEOs fell to an all-time low of 37%.
How will you know if your team trusts you? They will trust your business vision. Leadership helps your people believe in something before you tell them to do something. This type of direct leadership requires trust. Identify holes in your organization's level of trust and fix them.
2. Authority over leadership skill
One of the key traits of successful leaders is simply leadership skill. Not industry knowledge or tenure, but actual skill in leading people.
Most ineffective leaders “lead” from a position of authority, not competence. How do you know if it's you? There are a few signs.
First, rotten leaders don't have a mentor or leadership development plan. When you use a headline to get people to follow you, your potential to demotivate people, derail a project, kill an initiative, and ultimately hurt the business is much higher. It's time to invest time in learning how to be a great leader.
Second, you might be afraid to admit your weakness. Insecure leaders pretend and pose, but confident leaders are transparent and vulnerable. We all have weaknesses. Your weaknesses are someone else's job description. The moment you stray from your core competency, your effectiveness is marginalized and the whole organization suffers. When you tell your team what you are weakest in, your weakness will no longer be reflected in the organization. Focusing on your talent and staying in that sweet spot is where the biggest impact happens.
Companies with low levels of employee engagement have a 33 percent annual drop in bottom line. and an 11 percent annual decline in growth, according to the 2007 Global Workforce Study .
You can't always rely on your company to provide the leadership development you need. In fact, 83% of organizations say it is important to develop leaders at all levels, yet only 5% have fully implemented development at all levels. Create a leadership development plan for yourself or with the help of a mentor that will build on your strengths and bring out your best leadership qualities.
3. No emotional connection to your team
Too often I see a lack of emotional connection to teams blamed on leadership style. If you're not deeply emotionally connected with your followers, you're missing a vital leadership quality.
Moving someone into physical action requires an emotional connection. Connection impacts adoption, usage, and success outcomes. You can't afford to ignore it in favor of a disconnected or aloof management style.
Your number one job as a leader is impact. The impact you have on your team is vital to their ability to perform at the highest level.
In a 2017 research study, Gallup found that 70% of the difference between lousy and good and great cultures lie in the knowledge, skills and talent of the team leader.
Make no mistake:your impact on your team is either driving your business forward or holding it back.
The first step is to understand what motivates and inspires your team. What drives them to perform and what drives them to stay consistent? What is the reason for what they are doing? What is their Why ?
Connect with your team. Lower the promotion and raise the emotion. You can tell people all day what to do, but if you don't make the connection between what's there for them and what the outcome will be, they won't do it for very long.
Related: 10 habits of ultra-likeable leaders
4. No leadership investment in people
Building a high performing team requires an investment of resources, time and attention. The most important brand decision you will make will be to help others win.
At one of our executive leadership training events this year, I asked a room full of senior executives to raise their hands if they had a plan to help their staff achieve their long-term career goals. Less than 3% of the coin raised their hand.
Remember the first trait we talked about? It's trust. People only follow you if they trust that by doing so they will likely have a better future. Invest in the emotional, physical, intellectual and professional well-being of your team.
To do this effectively, you need to identify what each person wants to accomplish. Be clear about where someone wants to go, what their goals are, and why they want to get there. When you understand what motivates them, work with them to create a personal development plan for them.
If you're afraid of losing people by helping them achieve their career aspirations, you're wrong. A study by Career Builder found that 37% of employees leave due to poor leadership. In fact, a Globoforce survey found that 38% are actively looking for a new job.
Stop the brain drain by making business planning a worthwhile activity, then invest in the results. Collaborate regularly on best practices and make continuous learning a way of life.
5. Leadership Doesn't Celebrate Wins
Most of us fondly remember a time when a team leader recognized our performance and made us feel good. It may have been your first achievement, or your fiftieth. But lousy leaders don't celebrate the victories of their people.
This trait of effective leadership is one of the most overlooked steps you can take to not only improve morale but also improve performance. A 2015 Harvard business review The survey showed that 77% of workers would work harder with more recognition and 39% feel underappreciated at work.
Help your team feel good about themselves. Increase their self-esteem and you will increase their numbers. Whether you're introducing a "win" tradition or offering prizes for milestones, showcase your team's wins often and loudly.
Even if you struggle in one or more of these areas, you can learn to be a great leader. Start now by identifying the most urgent areas for improvement.
