Whenever you look at a company, you should realize that someone is leading it. That person might be the owner, or the owner might put a manager or CEO in charge of the day-to-day operations. It could also be that there are a few people who make the major business decisions by committee.
For this article’s sake, let’s say that you’re both a company owner, and you also manage the day-to-day operations. That probably means you have lots of decisions to make all the time, and there might be many individuals relying on you.
You want to lead your company effectively. What you might also notice, though, if you’re around lots of company owners or CEOs, is that every one of their leadership styles might be a bit different.
There’s no overemphasizing how much your leadership style matters. Let’s talk about precisely why that is.
Your Leadership Style Can Dictate Whether Everyone Else Relaxes at Work
Different leadership styles can impact your company in the sense that if you seem tense all the time, your workers are probably going to pick up on that. Whether you’re running a startup or you’re in charge of a well-established business entity, your workplace will tend to reflect your personality.
If you ask everyone to wear casual clothing at work and you encourage lots of small talk between your employees, then everyone will learn to relax. That might be what you want if you don’t wish for your workers to be on edge every moment.
You have to be careful if you take this approach, though. You want your workers to like you and not to have nervous breakdowns all the time, but if you make things too casual, that could mean nobody gets any work done. You have to walk a fine line with this type of leadership style.
You Can Take a Mercenary Approach
In virtually every industry, you’ll have some competition. You have to devise ways to stay ahead of your competitors and get more clients or customers than them.
You can do that through marketing campaigns, excellent products, and superior customer service. However, you might also use some underhanded tactics to stay ahead of the other companies in your niche in any you can.
That can be an effective leadership style, but it can get you in trouble as well. You want to be ethical, or your company can potentially face legal action. You need dedication from your staff, but you should never break any laws or do anything overtly devious.
You Can Be Sincere
Sincerity can be a part of your leadership style. If you’re this type of leader, your workers should expect that you tell them the truth about anything at any time. You will also tell your customer base the truth and let your employees know that they should always do the same.
This approach often pays off. You’re projecting a leadership form that every employee can emulate. If you lie to the customers, and your workers know that you’re doing it, they might wonder if you’re lying to them about anything as well.
You Can Be Kind and Empathetic
Kind, empathetic leaders are relatively rare. That’s because of the axiom which states that if you want to succeed in the business world, you can’t be a nice person.
That’s not necessarily true, though. You can be serious about your work and making a profit, but you can still allow your workers to take time off if they have an emergency rather than forcing them to come in.
That empathy leads to loyalty. If your employees understand that you genuinely care about them and you treat them like family, they will stay with you for years instead of hunting for a new job the first chance they get.
You Can Be Flexible
Flexible leaders also tend to do well in the business world. You might have a particular company vision and try to stick with it. Sometimes, though, life is going to throw you a curveball, and you’ll need to change course or make some adjustments.
If you show your subordinates that you’re willing to do that, they will doubtless appreciate it. If they feel like you too rigidly stick to one predetermined path and you don’t make allowances for unexpected situations that come up, they won’t like working for you very much.
You’ll need to take some time to figure out which style works best for you.
