Characteristics of a Business Leader
If you are running your own business, or you intend to, ensuring that you are a great leader means you will get the best out of every situation and aid employees in making better choices. This also means that people are more likely to want to work with you and for you.
The American people don’t believe politicians. They don’t believe business leaders or Hollywood celebrities or athletes or other supposed role models. And they certainly don’t believe the news media. — John Yarmuth
With so many businesses out there, being a great leader means you are more likely to succeed and bring in the most talented employees.
Below given are the top 6 qualities of a great leader in business.
#1. Enthusiastic
You NEED to be enthusiastic about your own business, or how else can you expect anyone else to be? Seeing a leader that is enthusiastic about their product or their ideas will drive others to feel the same way and it can really cause new employees and customers to be excited about a product.
This also includes being enthusiastic about your employees’ work too and knowing when they deserve praise for all their hard work. You need to be truly enthusiastic if you want your business to work – passion is contagious after all.
#2. Loyal
Loyalty is a strong quality to have as a leader, as people will put their trust in you. This means being loyal to your product, your employees and your customers.
An employer is going to be much more willing to give their all to a boss that is loyal and treats them as they should be treated, rather than looking for the employees that will cost the least to hire.
This also means helping your team when they are dealing with any form of crisis.
#3. Decisive
No matter what, as a leader, you need to make decisions. Being able to be decisive does not come naturally to some, but it is a great quality to have to make a great leader in business.
This sometimes means taking a risk, but the more decisive you are, the more people will believe in your decisions.
Being too indecisive can lead to decisions taking too long to be made and this may have a negative effect on your business.
#4. Ability to Empower Others
As a leader, you should have the ability to develop and train your employees. Having the ability to empower your employees means you will get much more from them.
This means you must fully trust your employees and believe that they are up for any challenge that comes their way.
Training them to do so is a start, but empowering them to believe that you believe in them will make them feel much more confident in their own abilities.
To truly be able to train and empower your own employees, training yourself to be a good leader is important.
#5. Charismatic
Being charismatic goes a long way in business, and people tend to flock to leaders that are easy to get along with and are liked.
Although you will have to be decisive and sometimes you may make decisions that people will not like, being charismatic and having a good character can lead people to not turn against you.
You can never please everyone though, and being a leader is also about understanding this. The best leaders in business are friendly and approachable.
No matter how big your business gets, being down to earth and speaking to people as you would want to be treated goes a long way.
#6. Willing to Admit Errors
Everyone makes mistakes, even the best leaders in the world make mistakes from time to time. What makes them the best leaders in the world is that they can turn around with their hands up and take the blame.
Blaming others or circumstances for your errors will lead people to not trust you and shows that you are unwilling to take any blame for your actions.
“Even during a mid-life crisis do not deviate from your goal. History remembers only those who succeed.” ― Hockson Floin
It takes a big person to admit when they are wrong, especially when admitting this to employees. You will become a much more trusted and respected leader if you can admit your mistakes.
This also shows you are willing to learn from your mistakes and knowing where you went wrong can ensure that the same thing does not happen again.
This is not an exhaustive list, and a great leader in business may possess many other great qualities that allow them to excel in the corporate world.
Whether you are just starting out, or you have had your own business for years, improving your leadership qualities could aid you in increasing productivity and finding and retaining the best employees for your business.
