How to be a good leader?: the main fundamentals of leadership

The concept of leadership is one of the main points when we talk about business and .

Nowadays, the idea of an authoritarian and centralizing boss has been losing more and more space against that of a participatory, humane and understanding leader, who can get the best out of his team.

However, being a good leader is not an easy task, since it requires a series of specific characteristics that must be resolved together.

Thinking about this, we bring you 9 fundamentals that teach you how to be a good leader. Notice!

1. Professional ability

The first of the key foundations of leadership is professional ability and competence.

This is one of the most obvious aspects when we talk about jobs, since this person will be directly responsible for the work of a team made up of several professionals.

Knowing how the company works and the activities carried out by each of the collaborators under their guidance is the least that a good leader should do.

In addition, it is essential that the professional demonstrate mastery of their own duties and be an example to be followed by the entire team.

2. Interpersonal relationship

Being a good leader is managing many different personalities and abilities that work together. Therefore, this professional must be able to relate to people in an attentive and understanding manner, understand the conflicts that may arise and find the best ways to exploit the potential of each collaborator.

This type of relationship with a work team requires that the leader not only have good communication skills, but also the necessary understanding to listen to comments, criticisms and suggestions in the same way that he speaks with his team.

3. Empathy

One of the most cited terms of recent times, empathy, is also part of the arsenal of skills that a good leader must have.

It consists of the ability to put yourself in the place of another person and to feel what they are feeling.

In the corporate world, an empathetic leader manages to understand the side of his employees, their pains and obstacles and put himself in a position to offer help.

This characteristic is one of the main differences between a true leader and an authoritarian and obsolete boss who, at the first sign of difficulty in his team, already thinks of dismissals and substitutions.

4. Vision

It is impossible to explain how to be a good leader without mentioning the ability to predict the directions you are taking.

Therefore, leadership is a position that requires the ability to see beyond the obvious and detect the positive and negative impacts that certain actions can cause.

A good leader sees these impacts and, in addition, can shape the actions of his entire team to more easily achieve a certain objective.

5. Delegate responsibilities

Old-fashioned bosses demand, demand, keep all the authority to themselves and outsource all the responsibility.

They already know how to delegate functions and share responsibilities, thus generating a much stronger feeling of teamwork.

Delegating authority to the members of your team conveys a message of trust from the leader to the work of his collaborators, so that they can become more deeply involved in his activities.

Therefore, more than a task to accomplish, the team is responsible for the success of the company, sharing the laurels with its leader.

6. Power of decision

At the same time that the leader can delegate tasks and share responsibilities with his team, he must understand that some decisions are completely up to him.

This means that, at certain times, a good leader must unite his power of vision and the knowledge he has of his team’s work, to make decisions that benefit the business and achieve the objectives described above.

It is crucial that the leader does not waver in these moments, thus demonstrating confidence in his own actions and a good ability to foresee the possible consequences of his choice.

7. Educational leadership

A good leader does not demand certain things from his team, but works with the idea that, more than anyone else, he must always set a positive example.

This educational attitude is one of the main foundations for learning how to be a good leader, because with it, the team can be shaped according to the ideals of the business.

It is inconsistent for a leader to ask, for example, that his team work to avoid wasting paper and energy when he himself does not.

Therefore, before demanding anything from their collaborators, a good leader must be a good example.

8. Feedback Management

As the idea of being a good leader implies open and two-way communication, the role of the leader is to manage the feedback that may reach his desk.

Therefore, he must be responsible for directly giving feedback to his professionals so that they feel motivated to improve when they make mistakes and rewarded and recognized when they have a good initiative.

Furthermore, an essential role of any leader is knowing how to receive feedback as well as give it.

Being open to hearing opinions and suggestions is always the best way to maintain honest communication, based on the mutual growth of the entire team.

9. Communication

Because they view the team horizontally and collaboratively, it’s natural for good leaders to know how to communicate first.

This communication must always be done in an open and clear manner, so that no misunderstandings occur.

This helps the team, since the leader makes himself understood perfectly, in addition to opening a two-way street so that questions can be asked and doubts resolved without any kind of embarrassment or problem.