Cornerstone Leadership Solutions: 5 Qualities of an Effective Leader

We all have worked for managers, but how many of us have worked for great leaders? Why do I ask this question? Managers operate in a realm of accountability instead of ownership. They are concerned more with job descriptions and tasks than mission and people. In my experience there are six key components of an effective leader.

1. An effective leader has the ability to see people's strengths and use them effectively. We've all had tests, reviews, and evaluations which have revealed what we've got and what we lack. It's time to stop trying to correcting our weaknesses and playing towards strengths. Identify the strengths of those on your team. Encourage their use. Put them in teams and tasks that use those strengths. If you are working with your strengths, work is fun and energizing!

2. An effective leader has the ability to teach. Mentoring seems to be dead in most fields, with the exception of trades where apprenticeships are used. Teaching is so much more than telling others what to do. They lead the way. They watch and assist others. In medical residency there is the motto "See one. Do one. Teach one." It is the reciprocal process of learning and teaching so the next wave of physicians have been groomed with hands on and hands in learning.

3. An effective leader uses success for reward as well as learning opportunities. There is the story of an IBM employee who made a multimillion dollar mistake. When the CEO called the employee in, the employee was ready to be fired. "I suppose I'm being let go?" he asked. The CEO told the man he just received a multimillion dollar education. He's was too expensive to let go! Hewlett-Packard has a yearly award for the biggest failure in innovation. What a great idea to support new ideas and risk. You probably don't want to make it a habit tho!

4. An effective leader communicates effectively. Zappos is a great example of this. The upper management is available at all times. How do they do this? They sit in cubicles with the rest of the employees. No corner suites. The door is always open because there is no door! Effective communication takes attention, empathy, and a willingness to connect. This created trust and a leader you can trust is a leader you won't abandon.

5. An effective leader casts a hopeful vision while keeping a health sense of ignorance. A leader needs to be continually visualizing to cast a hopeful and inspiring vision. This must be coupled with an awareness of the current environment and obstacles ahead. But don't spend too much time looking at the difficulties. If you do this you may be overwhelmed and won't have an inspiring vision. Most entrepreneurs will tell you their journey was worth all the difficulties, and they will tell you they wouldn't have started if they'd known how hard it would have been.

The good news is each of these traits can be developed. It starts with connecting to our values. The things in life that make us authentic and draw our lines in the sand. Once these are in place, we can create a culture of success. Once you're values are in place the effective leader is developed.

What are other traits you've seen in effective leaders?