9 Tips on What You Need to Master as a Leader to Become a Better Leader
It’s important to have control over the framework, the team, and your own strengths. Get inspired to master a range of key elements in your leadership and be mindful of the factors that make you a better leader.
How to become a better leader:
Create the Optimal Framework
By establishing the right framework, you create the best possible conditions for your employees to excel and complete their tasks. The broader the framework you provide, the more room your employees have to be creative and come up with well-thought-out solutions. However, remember to set deadlines, so there is a clear timeline for when tasks need to be completed.
Know Your Team
When you know your team and the individual strengths of its members, you can trust them to handle the tasks you assign. This might mean that you need to do some initial headhunting, but you should also be aware of the talents your organization already possesses. In this way, you can assemble the perfect team.
Give the Team a Voice in Decision-Making
Giving the team influence and a say in decisions will boost productivity. However, remember that you are the leader and must ensure that the team stays on course. Otherwise, you risk creating a state of anarchy, which is detrimental to the company’s progress. It is crucial that the team feels comfortable sharing their opinions; otherwise, potentially important ideas may remain just that—ideas in an employee’s mind—without ever being expressed.
Coach Your Employees
By coaching and guiding your employees, you can steer them in the direction you want. This benefits the company, fosters employee development, and creates a sense of collective effort.
Encourage Creativity
By giving your employees space to be creative, unique solutions will emerge—solutions that none of your competitors have discovered or are working on. This way, you can create a market where there previously was none.
You Need to Develop Your Strategic Skills
Our partnership with INSEAD allows us to offer high-quality education for both top executives and board members. If you want to develop your strategic skills, we recommend pursuing further education. With us and INSEAD as partners, you’ll receive the best training in the field.
Have a Plan and Lead by Example
As a top executive, you are the role model. You are the one everyone in the company looks up to and turns to for guidance. You need to lead and set the example when necessary, but don’t be afraid to recognize that your employees are experts in their respective fields. After all, that’s why you hired them.
Be Willing to Take Risks
Generally, it’s important for top executives to be willing to take risks. If you always choose the safe path, the company may persist for many years, but it won’t evolve. Therefore, it’s crucial to trust your instincts and experiences when making major decisions.
Prioritize Your Time
As a leader, everyone will want to talk to you. The board will seek discussions, and both managers and employees will want your input on various topics and tasks. Therefore, it’s crucial that you are able to set boundaries and prioritize your tasks. An inexperienced leader might focus on tasks such as managing emails and phone calls first, while an experienced leader will address the tasks that have the greatest impact on the company. Being busy is perfectly fine, but busyness itself is not the goal. The goal is to meet expectations, achieve objectives, and advance the business.
You can read more about the programs offered by Scandinavian Executive Institute here. All programs are provided in collaboration with INSEAD in France, and we place great emphasis on top-quality education and expertise, ensuring that our content is always up-to-date.
