Leadership styles

Using the right one for your situation

From Mahatma Gandhi to Jack Welch, and Martin Luther King to Rudolph Giuliani, there are as many leadership styles as there are leaders. Fortunately, business people and psychologists have developed useful, shorthand ways of describing the main leadership styles. This can help aspiring leaders to understand and adapt their own styles, so that they can improve their own leadership.

Whether you are managing a team at work, captaining your sports team or leading a major corporation, your leadership style is crucial to your success. Consciously, or subconsciously, you will no doubt use some of the leadership styles featured, at least some of the time. By understanding these leadership styles and their impact, you can become a more flexible, better leader.

This article helps you understand 10 of the most frequently talked-about leadership styles, some good, some bad.

Tip: This article focuses on "popular" leadership styles, not necessarily those that fit within a particular system. For a systematic approach, see Mind Tools' leadership course "How To Lead: Discover the Leader Within You."

Understanding Leadership Styles

The leadership styles we look at here are:

• Autocratic leadership.
• Bureaucratic leadership.
• Charismatic leadership.
• Democratic leadership/participative leadership.
• Laissez-faire leadership.
• People-oriented leadership/relations-oriented leadership.
• Servant leadership.
• Task-oriented leadership.
• Transactional leadership.
• Transformational leadership.

Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic leadership is an extreme form of transactional leadership, where a leader exerts high levels of power over his or her employees or team members. People within the team are given few opportunities for making suggestions, even if these would be in the team's or organization's interest.

Most people tend to resent being treated like this. Because of this, autocratic leadership usually leads to high levels of absenteeism and staff turnover. Also, the team's output does not benefit from the creativity and experience of all team members, so many of the benefits of teamwork are lost.

For some routine and unskilled jobs, however, this style can remain effective where the advantages of control outweigh the disadvantages.

Bureaucratic Leadership

Bureaucratic leaders work "by the book", ensuring that their staff follow procedures exactly. This is a very appropriate style for work involving serious safety risks (such as working with machinery, with toxic substances or at heights) or where large sums of money are involved (such as cash-handling).

In other situations, the inflexibility and high levels of control exerted can demoralize staff, and can diminish the organizations ability to react to changing external circumstances.

Charismatic Leadership

A charismatic leadership style can appear similar to a transformationalleadership style, in that the leader injects huge doses of enthusiasm into his or her team, and is very energetic in driving others forward.

However, a charismatic leader can tend to believe more in him or herself than in their team. This can create a risk that a project, or even an entire organization, might collapse if the leader were to leave: In the eyes of their followers, success is tied up with the presence of the charismatic leader. As such, charismatic leadership carries great responsibility, and needs long-term commitment from the leader.

Democratic Leadership or Participative Leadership

Although a democratic leader will make the final decision, he or she invites other members of the team to contribute to the decision-making process. This not only increases job satisfaction by involving employees or team members in what's going on, but it also helps to develop people's skills. Employees and team members feel in control of their own destiny, and so are motivated to work hard by more than just a financial reward.

As participation takes time, this style can lead to things happening more slowly than an autocratic approach, but often the end result is better. It can be most suitable where team working is essential, and quality is more important than speed to market or productivity.

Laissez-Faire Leadership

This French phrase means "leave it be" and is used to describe a leader who leaves his or her colleagues to get on with their work. It can be effective if the leader monitors what is being achieved and communicates this back to his or her team regularly. Most often, laissez-faire leadership works for teams in which the individuals are very experienced and skilled self-starters. Unfortunately, it can also refer to situations where managers are not exerting sufficient control.

People-Oriented Leadership or Relations-Oriented Leadership

This style of leadership is the opposite of task-oriented leadership: the leader is totally focused on organizing, supporting and developing the people in the leader's team. A participative style, it tends to lead to good teamwork and creative collaboration. However, taken to extremes, it can lead to failure to achieve the team's goals.

In practice, most leaders use both task-oriented and people-oriented styles of leadership. 

Servant Leadership

This term, coined by Robert Greenleaf in the 1970s, describes a leader who is often not formally recognized as such. When someone, at any level within an organization, leads simply by virtue of meeting the needs of his or her team, he or she is described as a "servant leader".

In many ways, servant leadership is a form of democratic leadership, as the whole team tends to be involved in decision-making.

Supporters of the servant leadership model suggest it is an important way ahead in a world where values are increasingly important, in which servant leaders achieve power on the basis of their values and ideals. Others believe that in competitive leadership situations, people practicing servant leadership will often find themselves left behind by leaders using other leadership styles.

Task-Oriented Leadership

A highly task-oriented leader focuses only on getting the job done, and can be quite autocratic. He or she will actively define the work and the roles required, put structures in place, plan, organize and monitor. However, as task-oriented leaders spare little thought for the well-being of their teams, this approach can suffer many of the flaws of autocratic leadership, with difficulties in motivating and retaining staff. Task-oriented leaders can benefit from an understanding of the Blake-Mouton Managerial Grid, which can help them identify specific areas for development that will help them involve people more.

Transactional Leadership

This style of leadership starts with the premise that team members agree to obey their leader totally when they take a job on: the "transaction" is (usually) that the organization pays the team members, in return for their effort and compliance. As such, the leader has the right to "punish" team members if their work doesn't meet the pre-determined standard.

Team members can do little to improve their job satisfaction under transactional leadership. The leader could give team members some control of their income/reward by using incentives that encourage even higher standards or greater productivity. Alternatively a transactional leader could practice "management by exception", whereby, rather than rewarding better work, he or she would take corrective action if the required standards were not met.

Transactional leadership is really just a way of managing rather a true leadership style, as the focus is on short-term tasks. It has serious limitations for knowledge-based or creative work, but remains a common style in many organizations.

Transformational Leadership

A person with this leadership style is a true leader who inspires his or her team with a shared vision of the future. Transformational leaders are highly visible, and spend a lot of time communicating. They don't necessarily lead from the front, as they tend to delegate responsibility amongst their teams. While their enthusiasm is often infectious, they can need to be supported by "detail people".

In many organizations, both transactional and transformational leadership are needed. The transactional leaders (or managers) ensure that routine work is done reliably, while the transformational leaders look after initiatives that add value.

The transformational leadership style is the dominant leadership style taught in the "How to Lead: Discover the Leader Within You" leadership program, although we do recommend that other styles are brought as the situation demands.

Using the Right Style – Situational Leadership

While the Transformation Leadership approach is often highly effective, there is no one "right" way to lead or manage that suits all situations. To choose the most effective approach for you, you must consider:

• The skill levels and experience of the members of your team.


• The work involved (routine or new and creative).


• The organizational environment (stable or radically changing, conservative or adventurous).


• You own preferred or natural style.

A good leader will find him or herself switching instinctively between styles according to the people and work they are dealing with. This is often referred to as "situational leadership".

For example, the manager of a small factory trains new machine operatives using a bureaucratic style to ensure operatives know the procedures that achieve the right standards of product quality and workplace safety. The same manager may adopt a more participative style of leadership when working on production line improvement with his or her team of supervisors

Do the Right Thing

Do the Right Thing
10 Rules for Leading Ethically

It's been all too easy to criticize the unethical behaviors of business and political leaders these days. But if your company isn't among those generating scandal and scorn, consider yourself warned. CCL's Cresencio Torres reminds us that lapses in ethical judgment occur every day in our organizations and, likely, in our private lives.

"Ethical leadership isn't about avoiding the worst behaviors. It isn't about technically following laws and regulations," says Torres. "Ethics determines fair and honest behavior and establishes boundaries about how we relate to each other. In that sense, the only way for people to work well together, and to have good professional and personal relationships, is to think and act in an ethical way."

To reclaim ethical leadership for yourself and your organization, Torres offers these 10 Rules for Ethical Leadership:

1. The rule of mindfulness. Pay attention! Mindfulness means being attuned to what is going on and then reflecting (without judgment) on the impact your decisions have on others. Organizational mindfulness requires connecting mindful people together to help others in the organization achieve greater congruence between their intentions and outcomes.
2. The rule of respecting others. Recognize and reward the positive intent of others in their actions. It helps create a culture of appreciation and encourages support. But don't leave out self-respect. It is true that you must respect yourself before others can respect you.
3. The rule of engagement. Take the high ground. Understand the limitations, strengths and circumstances under which you initiate and manage your interactions with others. Engage others by being prepared, polite and positive.
4. The rule of wisdom. Let your wisdom govern your actions and decisions. Wisdom is the ability to discern or judge what is true, right or lasting. Sometimes, it is merely common sense and good judgment, blended with a smart plan and clear course of action. Wisdom is usually considered to be a trait that can be developed through experience but not taught.
5. The rule of action. Respond in a timely way to any unethical behavior you observe or receive information about. Stop any inappropriate activity and rectify the situation immediately. Action requires clear intention. Knowing why you are taking action is a considered response rather than a reaction.
6. The rule of power. Know your power and use it well. Power is a person's ability to influence others. Through influence, you spread ideas, set direction, make choices and guide outcomes. All these require accountability and honesty.
7. The rule of dialogue. Talk about ethics and keep the conversation going. Encourage people to understand the full meaning of ethics by talking about it in staff meetings and other work-related areas. Create ongoing communication, rather than attempting to reach some conclusion or express personal viewpoints.
8. The rule of acting without self-interest. Place high value on the fact that other people are actual or potential co-workers, peers, bosses, customers and neighbors. When we act with the best interest of others in mind, we enjoy less conflict, easier problem solving and a greater sense of trust.
9. The rule of listening. Learn to listen. Most of us take listening for granted, so we don't work very hard at improving it. But effective listening doesn't just happen; it takes a great deal of purpose. It's hard work and requires your complete attention.
10. The rule of safety. Protect others. Safety is the condition of being protected against physical harm - socially, spiritually, financially, politically and emotionally. Strive to do no harm and make certain that people around you have a safe harbor to do what is right.

Emotional Balance Is Essential For Healthy Living

Emotional Balance Is Essential For Healthy Living By Darlene Siddons   Emotional balance is considered mastered when our mind, body and spirit are in line with each other and we are in a space where we have done our inner work and we feel at peace. We need to pay attention that all situations and life issues are resolved, or at least aired, and pay attention to the feelings that emerge from within us. Many times our emotional balance is ignored and passed off as stress, discomfort, boredom and distraction; and we try and fix it by all sorts of ways that really just don't work. Some of those fix-it methods are eating, eating comfort foods, shopping, sex, gambling, drinking, over working, and the list can go one, and we never get to the core of why we just can't feel better. Emotional balance is as important as any other health aspect and some times even more, as it can accelerate our other health issues, in fact it can actually be the cause of other health issues. It is one of the most important aspects to the whole body balance. When you are out of balance it creates stress and conflict in your relationships; and that is all of your relationships, which include family, employment, road rage, marital, friendships and right down to the shopping clerk. So you can see how emotional balance is as important as physical health, in fact even more so as it effects your physical health. You truly can't improve your physical health with out balancing your emotional. A regular spiritual practice can greatly assist in centering you and maintaining clarity about those aspects of your life, which are truly important. This can be any kind of spiritual practice including yoga, meditation, qi gong, prayer, EFT; it is something good to practice on a daily basis and preferably in the morning and the evening. Feng sui is great for peace and tranquility in the home and work space, as with the proper placement of objects and de-clutter, it creates a calm soothing energy in your space. If you feel your emotional balance is off, improving your diet is one positive step you can take, your mind, body and spirit can work much closer together if your food intake is in balance, that means eliminating items such as caffeine, sugar, processed foods, soda, alcohol, cigarettes and eating whole, organic foods. Work on creating a positive outlook and attitude on life, always look for the good in everything and start being grateful, especially when you feel there isn't anything to be grateful for; you can always find something. When you do this it shifts your energy into balance. You will feel lighter, brighter and much more healthy.

The Power of Leadership

The Power of Leadership 
     Today's Vision  
    is  
Tomorrow's Reality 

The Power Game 
 

• Getting ahead without stepping on toes
• Gaining respect, not position
• Real and perceived power - Overt and Covert Power

Using Power to Gain Credibility 
 

• Pass information "up" in written form
• Keep reports and progress continually reported to anyone and everyone needing the information]
• Try to have a solution to the problem on your agenda

Give up 

• The illusion that there is "only one right answer"
• Win-lose mentality
• Distrust of political process (learn how it works and effect change through it)

  

Develop 
 

• A trust in the political process
• An awareness of what is best for the organization or the majority
• The understanding that value judgments can't be made rationally
• The ability to give people options
• An appreciation for people who defend the system
• An open mind 

• The ability to recognize what I can influence and those I cannot 

• The realization that I can like and disagree with a person at the same time 

• The talent for attacking the problem, not the individual

quote 

    Personal power is not charisma, but the ability to create respect and admiration for the things you say, the things you do and the goals you want to achieve.

  

Understanding the diversity of power 

Learn how to use power to

influence others today to

create strong leaders for

tomorrow. 

HOW TO USE POWER QUIZ  
 

1. Sometimes I have to chew people out – even if they don't deserve it – just to show who is boss. 

2. It gives me a boost when I get others to do small favors for me. 

3. An executive in my position should never have to open mail, type letters, or answer the phone. 

4. I wouldn't accept a position with less prestige than my own even if I like everything else about the job. 

5. When someone at work upstages me, I get depressed or furious. 

6. I'll consider myself a failure if I'm never recognized as on of the leaders in my field. 

7. I secretly like to keep people waiting so they must conform to my schedule. 

HOW TO USE POWER QUIZ 

8. I never let my guard down in front of others – it implies a lack of control. 

9. It irritates me when a family vacation starts without a detailed itinerary. 

10. I expect others to live up to my personal standards. 

11. When I entertain, it's important to have everything go as planned. 

12. Unexpected interruptions often spoil the productivity of my day and the momentum I've built up. 

13. When I give a worker directions for a project, I don't expect him or her to ask permission to try a different approach. 

14. I would rather manage a staff of intelligent, methodical workers, than a group of brilliant, highly creative ones. 

results 

• Questions 1-7 relate strictly to how appropriately you use power. If your total score for them is 4 or below, you're probably content with your current status and are not power-hungry. Ask: Do I pay enough attention to widening my power base.

 

• If your total score is between 5 and 8, you make a premeditated effort now and then to display your power or acquire more authority. This is probably not unhealthy – you are an executive who values power and uses it as a primary tool of interfacing with others.

results 

• People who score above 9 may be suffering from an overactive power drive. How does a compulsion for power affect a person's thoughts and behavior? First, power – compulsive people get a charge out of pulling rank in public. Second, they spend too much time thinking of ways to manipulate others. Together, these can undermine anyone's image and credibility.

 

• Questions 8 – 14 relate to your desire for control and order. Executives who thrive on power often insist on having everything their own way. Such methodical managers regulate every detail of their lives as well as those of co-workers. Afraid of tarnishing their image of self-control, they routinely conceal emotions and inner thoughts.

results 

• A score of 4 or below for these statements suggests that you have few hang-ups in this area. If you score higher, however, chances are that you're somewhat compulsive about order and control. The higher you score, the less likely you are to express yourself spontaneously. This rigidity is probably having a negative affect on your relationships with others.

 

• Observation: Keep in mind that his quiz is meant as a superficial indicator of how the need for power may be controlling you. A high score in both sections; however, should alert you to a problem. It's time for some self-observation. Seeing yourself in action will more than likely make you cancel plans for your next power trip.

--
Regards!

NEERAJ BHARDWAJ
9374025383

Leadership: 10 tips for becoming a Leader..!

Everyone wants to lead, but at what cost? A careless approach to leadership can result in major losses for everyone. Most of us can recall a leader who just wasn't cut out for the job. Being a leader is demanding; becoming a great leader is uncommon. Followers aren't particularly merciful to those who lead incompetently. Instead, they can respond with insubordination, decreased productivity, or a generalized attitude of confusion or frustration. If you are a business leader or thinking about becoming one, here are some mistakes to avoid:   1. Don't lord it over your staff. No one likes a know-it-all. Assuming a cocky stance or a bullying attitude will strike a similar flint in the hearts of your subordinates.   2. Don't be a softie. Just as a sharp edge can have a cutting effect, a marshmallow can quickly lose its shape. Being a people pleaser means that you will inevitably let someone down, so don't even try. Instead, focus on the job and make it work with everyone's interests as best you can without bending over backwards until you break.   3. Don't put on a over-confident front. If you need information, ask for it rather than pretend you have all the answers. There's nothing wrong with an honest question, but there's plenty wrong with someone who is afraid to ask.   4. Don't misjudge employees' abilities. Take time to read files, interview people, and observe performance before making staffing decisions. Put competent, trustworthy people in charge of important projects so that neither you nor the company will regret it.   5. Don't play favorites. Owing a favor or liking a person are two poor reasons for handing out raises and promotions. Feeling sorry for someone is just as bad. Use good judgment and fair play to make staff decisions.   6. Don't hold a grudge. If you don't get along with someone, stay away from the person; don't try to get even. Leaders who use their position of authority to take punitive action based on personal vendettas are likely to find themselves in trouble.   7. Don't take a casual approach to the budget. Get to know it thoroughly. Understand company growth patterns and long-term projections, as well as how your leadership can play a role. Being careless with money is dangerous and potentially costly in the business world. Careless mistakes take time to fix, and in business, time is money.   8. Don't overlook company shifts, goals, or problems. Study the "big picture" with a view to finding your place in it and growing with the company.   9. Keep an eye on industry trends. Know what's "hot" and what's not; that's how leaders keep leading. Otherwise, someone who is more knowledgeable than you may take your place.   10. Stay human. When mistakes happen, forgive others and yourself. Laugh and be friendly, but don't look foolish doing it. Avoid mechanical responses and a 24/7 mentality toward your job. Do your best, but then leave the rest of your job at work until the next day. It'll be there when you return. At night and on weekends, enjoy your family and have fun. You've earned it.   Becoming a leader is challenging. Follow these suggestions to avoid problems and help your company and your career reach their potential.   Source Unknown . __,_._,___

The Influencers: Change How You Change Minds

To improve results and solve the most pervasive, persistent and resistant problems, leaders must influence others to behave differently. In most cases, to get people to do things differently leaders must get them to think differently. Consequently, changing minds is one of the most important leadership challenges. The challenge is not a difficult task if the change of mind is minor or not a strongly held belief. To change people's minds around some issues, you only need a clever advertisement or a clearly worded e-mail. However, other changes of mind are very difficult indeed—like convincing the union leader that cutting jobs is the best course to follow or getting a hardened criminal to choose a different lifestyle. When it comes to the toughest problems, there are three methods employed by leaders to change minds. No. 1: Verbal Persuasion. This is the method used by most leaders most of the time. And, ironically, it's also the least effective method. Verbal persuasion is using reason, logic, data and information to tell people why they should want to care. This tactic works when the change of mind is unimportant or insignificant. But when the change is profound, difficult or important, this approach doesn't perform. In fact, it usually creates boredom and indifference or worse, distance and defensiveness. It seldom changes minds. No. 2: Actual Experience. This is by far the most effective way to change minds. Let people learn for themselves the value of the change you are advocating. If you want to create a high-performance empowered change, send each person to work for a month on a high-performance empowered team. Let them see how an effective team works. Let them feel the excitement of achievement. Let them experience support and teamwork from their motivated co-workers. When they return, their minds will be changed about what's possible and what they desire. But the challenge with actual experience is the cost, the time and the difficulty of arranging these experiences for everyone who should have them. For example, the best way to change the minds of healthcare workers about patient service is to put them in a hospital bed for two weeks and experience the world of a patient. They return to their job with a complete understanding of common patient frustrations and a desire to provide much better service. Of course, logistically it's just not possible to give every hospital worker that two-week experience. No. 3: Vicarious Experience. Sometimes you can't give folks an actual experience and you don't want to default to verbal persuasion. Can you choose an in-between strategy that's still effective? Sure. Let them have an experience with the change or the need to change vicariously through someone else. There is a wide range of possibilities for creating vicarious experiences. Send several union leaders to visit a company using self-managing teams (Actual Experience) and have them return and report to their peers about what they learned (Vicarious Experience). Bring a customer to the manufacturing team meeting to talk about how they experienced benefit or difficulty by using the product manufactured by the team. Or, instead of dumping data and reports on your employees, share a well-told story about someone's experience to illustrate the point you're trying to make and to connect to human consequences and the personal values of the participants. Consider a final example of the power of experience. The daughter of a close and personal friend of mine was diagnosed with Juvenile Diabetes. The disease required her to take four finger pricks a day to monitor and modify her condition. The parents and the doctor explained to her the importance of these tests in managing her disease (Verbal Persuasion). After two weeks of four needle pricks a day, her fingers were covered with band-aids and she found it very difficult to play the piano, a favorite activity. The parents assumed everything was going fine when six months into the routine, their daughter's friend confided that the daughter had quit doing the tests. What are the parent's options? They could sit her on a kitchen stool and lecture her on the necessity of the four-a-day needle pricks (Verbal Persuasion). They could not give her an actual experience with the effects of the unmanaged disease, which would not manifest themselves until 40 years down the road. However, they could design a vicarious experience to help change her mind. One Saturday morning, the parents woke their daughter and announced, "We volunteered you to be a nurse's aid today." Over her mild protests they drove her to a dialysis center. She spent the day helping the nurses treat patients in the advanced stages of diabetes. She saw patients with wounds that would not heal. She saw patients who had become blind. She saw the pain and discomfort of dialysis. She talked to patients who expressed their regret that they had not managed their disease earlier. On the long ride home the daughter said nothing. But that evening she recommitted to the regimen of four blood tests a day and has seldom missed one since. The Persuasion of Experience Changing minds is one of the most important leadership challenges. Where possible, give people an actual experience with the advocated change or with the negative consequences of not making that change. When actual experience is not practical or possible, use vicarious experiences to help people understand the importance of changing behavior through the experiences of others. And above all else, never resort to the old, tired, ineffective strategy of verbal persuasion. By Ron McMillan __._,_.___   Regards! NEERAJ BHARDWAJ GM TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT DOSHION VEOLIA WATER SOLUTIONS 9374025383  http://neerajnis.blogspot.com www.neeraj-bhardwaj.blogspot.com

Stories that coaches- LEADERSHIP

Leadership cannot really be taught. It can only be learned    The story goes that sometime, close to a battlefield over 200 years ago, a man in civilian clothes rode past a small group of exhausted battle-weary soldiers digging an obviously important defensive position. The section leader, making no effort to help, was shouting orders, threatening punishment if the work was not completed within the hour.   "Why are you are not helping?" asked the stranger on horseback. "I am in charge. The men do as I tell them," said the section leader, adding, "Help them yourself if you feel strongly about it." To the section leader's surprise the stranger dismounted and helped the men until the job was finished.   Before leaving the stranger congratulated the men for their work, and approached the puzzled section leader.   "You should notify top command next time your rank prevents you from supporting your men - and I will provide a more permanent solution," said the stranger.   Up close, the section leader now recognized the great leader and also the lesson he'd just been taught.   All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership    A great leader's courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.   leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.

Emotional Intelligence

Developing Strong "People Skills"

We probably all know people, either at work or in our personal lives, who are really good listeners. No matter what kind of situation we're in, they always seem to know just what to say - and how to say it - so that we're not offended or upset. They're caring and considerate, and even if we don't find a solution to our problem, we usually leave feeling more hopeful and optimistic.

We probably also know people who are masters at managing their emotions. They don't get angry in stressful situations. Instead, they have the ability to look at a problem and calmly find a solution. They're excellent decision makers, and they know when to trust their intuition. Regardless of their strengths, however, they're usually willing to look at themselves honestly. They take criticism well, and they know when to use it to improve their performance.

People like this have a high degree of emotional intelligence, or EI. They know themselves very well, and they're also able to sense the emotional needs of others.

Would you like to be more like this?

As more and more people accept that emotional intelligence is just as important to professional success as technical ability, organizations are increasingly using EI when they hire and promote.

For example, one large cosmetics company recently revised their hiring process for salespeople to choose candidates based on emotional intelligence. The result? Salespeople hired with the new system have sold, on average, $91,000 more than salespeople selected under the old system. There has also been significantly lower staff turnover among the group chosen for their emotional intelligence.

So, what exactly is emotional intelligence, and what can you do to improve yours?

What Is Emotional Intelligence?

We all have different personalities, different wants and needs, and different ways of showing our emotions. Navigating through this all takes tact and cleverness - especially if we hope to succeed in life. This is where emotional intelligence becomes important.

Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize your emotions, understand what they're telling you, and realize how your emotions affect people around you. Emotional intelligence also involves your perception of others: when you understand how they feel, this allows you to manage relationships more effectively.

People with high emotional intelligence are usually successful in most things they do. Why? Because they're the ones that others want on their team. When people with high EI send an email, it gets answered. When they need help, they get it. Because they make others feel good, they go through life much more easily than people who are easily angered or upset.

Characteristics of Emotional Intelligence

Daniel Goleman, an American psychologist, developed a framework of five elements that define emotional intelligence:

1. Self-Awareness: People with high emotional intelligence are usually very self-aware. They understand their emotions, and because of this, they don't let their feelings rule them. They're confident – because they trust their intuition and don't let their emotions get out of control.
   
   They're also willing to take an honest look at themselves. They know their strengths and weaknesses, and they work on these areas so they can perform better. Many people believe that this self-awareness is the most important part of emotional intelligence.
   
   
2. Self-Regulation: This is the ability to control emotions and impulses. People who self-regulate typically don't allow themselves to become too angry or jealous, and they don't make impulsive, careless decisions. They think before they act. Characteristics of self-regulation are thoughtfulness, comfort with change, integrity, and the ability to say no.
   
   
3. Motivation: People with a high degree of emotional intelligence are usually motivated. They're willing to defer immediate results for long-term success. They're highly productive, love a challenge, and are very effective in whatever they do.
   
   
4. Empathy: This is perhaps the second-most important element of emotional intelligence. Empathy is the ability to identify with and understand the wants, needs, and viewpoints of those around you. People with empathy are good at recognizing the feelings of others, even when those feelings may not be obvious. As a result, empathetic people are usually excellent at managing relationships, listening, and relating to others. They avoid stereotyping and judging too quickly, and they live their lives in a very open, honest way.
   
   
5. Social Skills: It's usually easy to talk to and like people with good social skills, another sign of high emotional intelligence. Those with strong social skills are typically team players. Rather than focus on their own success first, they help others develop and shine. They can manage disputes, are excellent communicators, and are masters at building and maintaining relationships.

As you've probably determined, emotional intelligence can be a key to success in your life – especially in your career. The ability to manage people and relationships is very important in all leaders, so developing and using youremotional intelligence can be a good way to show others the leader inside of you.

How to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence

The good news is that emotional intelligence CAN be taught and developed. Many books and tests are available to help you determine your current EI, and identify where you may need to do some work. You can also use these tips:

• Observe how you react to people. Do you rush to judgment before you know all of the facts? Do you stereotype? Look honestly at how you think and interact with other people. Try to put yourself in their place, and be more open and accepting of their perspectives and needs.
  
  
• Look at your work environment. Do you seek attention for your accomplishments? Humility can be a wonderful quality, and it doesn't mean that you're shy or lack self-confidence. When you practice humility, you say that you know what you did, and you can be quietly confident about it. Give others a chance to shine - put the focus on them, and don't worry too much about getting praise for yourself.
  
  
• Do a self-evaluation. What are your weaknesses? Are you willing to accept that you're not perfect and that you could work on some areas to make yourself a better person? Have the courage to look at yourself honestly - it can change your life.
  
  
• Examine how you react to stressful situations. Do you become upset every time there's a delay or something doesn't happen the way you want? Do you blame others or become angry at them, even when it's not their fault? The ability to stay calm and in control in difficult situations is highly valued - in the business world and outside it. Keep your emotions under control when things go wrong.
  
  
• Take responsibility for your actions. If you hurt someone's feelings, apologize directly – don't ignore what you did or avoid the person. People are usually more willing to forgive and forget if you make an honest attempt to make things right.
  
  
• Examine how your actions will affect others – before you take those actions. If your decision will impact others, put yourself in their place. How will they feel if you do this? Would you want that experience? If you must take the action, how can you help others deal with the effects?

Key Points

Although "regular" intelligence is important to success in life, emotional intelligence is key to relating well to others and achieving your goals. Many people believe that emotional intelligence is at least as important as regular intelligence, and many companies now use EI testing to hire new staff.

Emotional intelligence is an awareness of your actions and feelings – and how they affect those around you. It also means that you value others, listen to their wants and needs, and are able to empathize or identify with them on many different levels.

Expert Power - Lead From the Front

Expert Power
Lead From the Front

There are many different power bases that a leader can use.

These include problematic ones such as the power of position, the power to give rewards, the power to punish and the power to control information. While these types of power do have some strength, they can put the person being led in an unhealthy position of weakness, and can leave leaders using these power bases looking autocratic and out of touch.

More than this, society has changed hugely over the last 50 years. Citizens are individually more powerful, and employees are more able to change jobs. Few of us enjoy having power exerted over us, and many will do what they can to undermine people who use these sorts of power.

However, there are three types of positive power that effective leaders can use: charismatic power, expert power and referent power.

This article teaches the technique of building expert power.

Using the Tool:

Expert power is essential because, as a leader, your team looks to you for direction and guidance. Team members need to believe in your ability to lead in a worthwhile direction, give sound advice, and co-ordinate a good result.

If members of your team see you as a true expert, they will be much more receptive when you try to persuade them to do something, and when you want to inspire them to make more of an effort.

And if they see you as an expert, you'll find it much easier to motivate them:

• If team members respect your expertise, they'll trust you to show them how to work effectively.
  
  
• If team members respect your judgment, they'll trust you to guide their efforts in such a way that you'll make the most of their hard work.
  
  
• If they can see your expertise, they'll believe that you have the wisdom to direct their efforts towards a goal that is genuinely worthwhile.

Taken together, if your team sees you as an expert, you'll find it much easier to motivate your people to perform at their best.

So how do you build expert power?

• Gain expertise: The first step is fairly obvious (if time consuming) - gain expertise. And, if you are already using tools like information gathering, the chances are that you have already progressed well ahead in this direction.

But just being an expert isn't enough, it is also necessary that your people recognize your expertise and see you as a credible source of information and advice. Gary A. Yukl, in his book "Leadership in Organizations," details some steps to build expert power. These are:

• Promote an image of expertise: Since perceived expertise in many occupations is associated with a person's education and experience, a leader should (subtly) make sure that subordinates, peers, and superiors are aware of his or her formal education, relevant work experience, and significant accomplishments.
  
  One common way of doing this is to display diplomas, licenses, awards, and other evidence of expertise in a prominent location in your office - after all, if you've worked hard to gain knowledge, it's fair that you get credit for it. Another tactic is to make subtle references to prior education or experience (for example, "When I was chief engineer at GE, we had a problem similar to this one"). Beware, however: this can easily be overdone.
  
  
• Maintain credibility: Once established, you should carefully protect your image of expertise. Avoid making careless comments about subjects on which you are poorly informed, and avoid being associated with projects with a low likelihood of success.
  
  
• Act confidently and decisively in a crisis: In a crisis or emergency, subordinates prefer a "take charge" leader who appears to know how to direct the group in coping with the problem. In this kind of situation, your people will associate confident, firm leadership with expert knowledge. Even if you're not sure how to deal with a crisis, you'll lose influence with members of your team if you appear confused.
  
  
• Keep informed: Expert power is exercised through rational persuasion and demonstration of expertise. Rational persuasion depends on a firm grasp of up-to-date facts. It is therefore essential that you keep well-informed of developments within your team, within your organization, and in the outside world.
  
  
• Recognize team member concerns: Use of rational persuasion should not be seen as a form of one-way communication from the leader to members of his or her team. Listen carefully to the concerns and uncertainties of your team members, and make sure that you address these.
  
  
• Avoid threatening the self-esteem of subordinates: Expert power is based on a knowledge differential between the leader and team members. Unfortunately, the very existence of this differential can cause problems if you're not careful about the way in which you exercise expert power.
  
  Team members can dislike unfavorable status comparisons where the gap is very large and obvious. And they are likely to be upset by a leader who acts in a superior way, and arrogantly flaunts his greater expertise.
  
  In the process of arguing for what they want, some leaders lecture their team members in a condescending manner and convey the impression that the other team members are "ignorant." Guard against this.

Top 7 Leadership Mistakes

Top 7 Leadership Mistakes - Kristine Geimure

Leadership and management skills are something that rarely come naturally for most people. But if you follow some basic rules and are willing to learn how to work with people you will have things running much more smoothly in the workplace in no time. Here's a list of some the things you should NOT be doing. Neglecting workers Your workers ARE your business and they have to be treated that way. Failing to send this message to workers can be a financial and productivity drag for any business. Our workers are people with feelings and emotions and have to be told in many ways how important they are to the company. Not being able to handle criticism Just because you're in a leadership position does not mean that you suddenly become immune to making the wrong decisions. As a leader you have to listen to constructive criticism and make the changes necessary. If a worker cares enough to share criticism, the least you can do is listen. Unable to delegate responsibilities This is often a problem for small business owner / managers. We have to trust that our workers can do the things we have done for so long. If they really can't do the job because a particular skill is needed, then get them the training required or hire someone that can. A big part of leadership and management is about making sure that things run smoothly and efficiently, and that does not mean running from job to job doing everything ourselves! Knowing everything Many of the world's greatest leaders are people of average intelligence that don't know all there is to know in their industry. They understand that they can't possibly know everything and they hire people that do know everything! The success of any business is in the hands of its workers and the leading managers and entrepreneurs of the world all strive to hire the best in their field. Procrastination Putting something off till tomorrow that should be done today! Often procrastination is a result of having no plan or list of priorities. Look into time management and goal setting for more ideas on how to overcome procrastination. Lack of focus Obviously there will be things come up during the day that require immediate action that will distract us from our work, but we have to have a clear set of priorities to follow. Doing a little bit of everything gets nothing finished, causing stress and feelings of being overwhelmed. Afraid to change The ability to change in business is essential. Changes in technology, the way we deal with people, the way we present the business, and in every other aspect of running and operating the company. Holding on to old ways of doing things just because they've always been done that way is a sure way to lose business. If any aspect of the business can be improved then there has to be change, even if this means getting rid of a poor performing worker or product range that is no longer profitable. As a manager or leader you have to treat your business like a garden. Continue to water, fertilize and weed your garden and it will continue to reap a quality harvest year after year.