Leading Into 2021
Understanding Your Leadership Style
28/01/2021
2020 was rough. Let us not deny it. 2020 was probably a year we all want to forget. It was probably one of the most challenging years for any of us. And now, we are in the 21st year of the 21st century… a brand new year. But how are we defining it? Are we calling this year 202(won) because of the way it kicked our asses? Or are we going to say, this year, this new year, we will define it as 202I won.
People, January is almost done and we’re going into this year full steam ahead. Vaccine rollouts are underway, the world has fully adjusted to remote working and the USA has a new captain at the helm. And although this may seem positive and the best is yet to come, we cannot be too certain about that. We do not know what the future holds for us, and there is no way we can be insouciant. This battle we are fighting right now against COVID is testing the leaders of the world, and like any battle, we look to our leaders in times of need, but what if I say you can be your own leader. Be a leader to yourself and those around you. Raise your hands if you consider yourself a leader, in any regard.
Now if I had to ask you to describe yourself as a leader, what would you say? How would you define your leadership style? There are 8 distinct leadership styles, and none of us will ever be identified as a sole style, but rather some styles being more dominant than the others. But like everything in life, we can always adapt, learn and improve on the skills that will allow us to be the leaders I know we all are.
The first type of leader is the Bureaucratic leader, these are the rule enforces, whose decisions are absolute, motivates discipline, demands immediate compliance and engages in top-down interactions. This type of leader cannot lead highly skilled individuals or as we know them as high-performance teams. The bureaucrats are best when a decision must be made in a short time, one of the most well-known bureaucratic leaders is Sir Winston Churchill.
The next type of leader is the Authoritative leaders. These leaders give us long-term direction and keep us focused on the end goals, generally having more knowledge than those they lead, and motivates the team by making everyone more enthusiastic while setting standards and giving a clear direction. These authoritative leaders are most effective when a change of direction or vision is needed however they are not as effective when explicit guidance is required. Once again, under this style one name stands above all, Bill Gates.
Our third type is the Innovative leaders. These are the people sharing the vision of the future, always pursuing excellence, constantly encouraging innovation, promoting respect for creativity, and desiring collaborative conversations. Nevertheless, these leaders aren’t the risk takers and yet are those best for solving the complex problems. Without a doubt, the world’s richest man is an innovative leader, Mr Jeff Bezos.
The fourth type is the Pacesetting leaders, those who embrace new projects, and move with speed. Their focus is productivity, setting high standards of performance and doing so in true Thuma Mina fashion, by leading by example, however, these leaders don’t feel the need to communicate a lot of detailed instructions to their team, and over long-periods of time can become ineffective, but this team is made up of the self-motivated and highly skilled members. Virat Kohli is a prime example of a pacesetting leader evident with the introduction of his fitness revolution to the Indian Cricket Team.
The Democratic leaders are those who rely on the consensus decision-making, allowing others to occasionally take the lead, encouraging participation and collaboration. But, when time is limited, and the team may not have the right expertise, the democratic style of leadership hinders. Nonetheless, when the knowledge of the entire team is needed to solve a problem or find direction, the democrats succeed, such as Indra Nooyi, the CEO and chairman of PepsiCo.
The sixth type, the Affiliative leader has the goal of creating a harmonious team, focusing on emotional needs thus creating positive personal relationships and avoiding conflicts. This style is less effective in giving negative feedback however they are great in increasing morale, repairing broken trust and working through high stress situations. Joe Torre, the ex-manager of the New York Yankees was an affiliative leader, constantly spoken about today.
The penultimate type is the Coaching leader, who as you probably have guessed, prepares individuals for the future by skill building, finding the hidden potential by challenging the individual and constantly communicates with positive statements. Those fearful of change struggle with the coach, however the one[1]on-one setting will always thrive under the coaching style, as did Mahatma Gandhi.
The last type of leader is the Altruistic leader, who personalizes the approaches for individuals in the team, leading in order to serve others, motivating by empowering their team, and shows great empathy and commitment to building community. In the short run, an altruistic leader may be ineffective however, time permitting can create a positive culture and promote high morale such as Mother Theresa.
Now I can imagine that this bombardment of information is making you sit in your chair, wondering to yourself what is your most dominant leadership style. Maybe you’re democratic, maybe altruistic, hell I thought I was more authoritative than anything else, and yet that is my least dominant style. Apparently, my most dominant traits come from the innovative and pacesetting styles with my authoritative and democratic being my least dominant. Those who know me may well agree with that, or some may be shaking their heads saying, Kish you are nowhere near that.
Look at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what type of leader you are, which is your stronger suit and which is your weaker. We can all adapt, learn and improve to become the best leaders we can be, especially in these times of such uncertainty. I know that every single one of you sitting here is a powerful leader in your own right. In all honesty, in my opinion, to be a great leader, just don’t be a dick…tator.