5 Ways to Be a Better Leader

Becoming a better leader isn’t just about improving your own skills; it’s about inspiring and empowering those around you. I want to offer 5 things that will help you be a better leader. Notice I didn’t say leadership qualities. This is because if we focus more on the qualities that we possess as a person, our leadership and influence will automatically be better because we are better.

1. Genuinely Value People  

John F. Kennedy famously said “ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” Have you ever considered not what you can get those that you lead to do for you, but what you could do for them? People trust and are loyal to those who truly care about them. Care about people not for what they can do, but for who they are. Genuinely value people.

2. Listen
Great leaders are great listeners. Just because you are the leader, it doesn’t mean you have to be the one to talk all the time. You learn more when you listen than when you talk. And when you genuinely listen and show interest in what the other person has to say, it makes them feel both valued and respected.

3. Be Humble
Power and position has a way of pumping you with pride. Just because you have a degree and can delegate, it doesn’t mean you can dream it, design it, build it, deliver it, or service it. And just because you can dream it, design it, build it, deliver it, or service it, it doesn’t mean delegate, facilitate, manage, maintain, or lead people. Humility knows it didn’t find success on its own and gives credit to the team. Humility allows you to walk alongside people even though you are leading them. Be humble, people are attracted to humility.

4. Say Thank You
Practice it with me… thank you. Some leaders believe thank you isn’t necessary because it’s the job of those you lead to do what they do. Some won’t say thank you because they think the paycheck is thanks enough. However, all over the country people fill places of employment and are doing the bare minimum.

Don’t take the hard work of others for granted. Don’t just assume they know that you appreciate it. Make it a practice that when you think something good about others, say it. Remember that what goes unspoken goes unknown. Do those you lead know you appreciate them? Say thank you.

5. Be Authentic
I’m a firm believer that the higher you climb up the ladder the more unstable it becomes. Suddenly, you feel pressure to look a certain way, talk a certain way, dress a certain way, drive a certain car, live in a certain neighborhood… you get the point. Somewhere on the climb from the bottom to the top you have forgotten who you are.

Maybe you can’t see it, but those that you lead certainly can. Be true to yourself. People will respect you for it. An authentic person is more relatable, trustworthy, and simply likable. Remember, being who you are is what brought you to where you are. And let me add this, if being someone else is what brought you where you are and you can’t figure out why you still aren't happy or fulfilled, that may be your reason.

Here is my challenge. Don’t just focus on being a better leader, focus on being a better person. The better you are as a person, the better leader you will become.

Brandon