Looking up good leadership skills examples? Fantastic – this means you’re ready to take your leadership skills in the workplace to a new level, and that’s good news for everyone involved.
Things are changing rapidly on the professional front. Not only are there multiple generations working for the same companies, technology is also in the process of reshaping the way we work. Flexi hours and distance work is fast becoming the norm, and new careers are emerging while others are falling away ﹘ within the same businesses.
As such, today’s leaders need to be nimble and diverse in order to lead their teams through these changeable times.
Top 5 Leadership Skills
Here are a few important skills you can seek to develop if you want to become a better leader in the modern-day workplace:
1. Effective communication
The first, and most important skill that every leader requires is the ability to communicate clearly and effectively with their personnel. When communication is lacking in a work environment, things tend to go awry. Gossip mills flare up, resentment builds and it can affect a company’s corporate culture, as well as it’s employer brand.
This is why it’s imperative that leaders are able to communicate well with employees at various levels and skill sets within an enterprise, and are also able to determine what type of communication strategy works best within given departments, demographics, age brackets and more.
After all, the way you choose to communicate with a newly onboarded Gen Z employee who works in the IT department will naturally be different than the way you engage an elder-Millennial in marketing, or a Baby Boomer in finance. The trick lies in approaching each employee as an individual and meeting them where they are.
2. The skill of stepping back
Effective leadership skills allow an individual to look beyond themselves and act based on the greater good. It’s never supposed to be about power. Instead, true leadership is selfless and only seeks to pave the way for an inclusive and empowering work environment.
Self-aware leaders know that it’s important to manage their own emotions and reactions by setting boundaries and practising mindfulness as they interact with the employees who fall under their care. This calls for servant leadership, i.e. a leader seeking to help the team, instead of expecting the team to come to their aid.
3. Ease of adaptability
The workplace as we know it is changing in many ways, in an ongoing fashion. This is why adaptable leaders are in such high demand. When you are used to doing things a certain way, it can be challenging when the status quo changes. As such, forward-thinking leaders are continuously working to stay adaptable to ensure that their teams have the necessary support.
This may require upskilling in terms of certain systems, and ensuring that there are sufficient resources available to allow their team members to do the same. The key lies in leading by example, and leaning into change with ease so other employees can follow suit. After all, things only seem overly daunting until you see someone else trying and succeeding.
4. Holistic problem-solving
True leaders are able to take the top view and come up with creative and innovative problem-solving solutions. They also remain proactive instead of being reactive, which gives their teams a significant advantage above competitors who do not enjoy the same level of leadership.
This type of approach not only ensures employee engagement, but boosts profitability as well. When employees understand that they can look to their leaders for solutions, they feel safe and secure in their work environment, and are free to concentrate on the tasks at hand rather than worrying about situations outside of their control.
5. Digital proficiency
Fluent digital literacy is a prerequisite for any strong leader in this day and age. When leaders feature as early adopters of industry- & workplace-related technology, they create a data-literate culture within their teams. This makes it a lot easier to stay on top of tech developments and mitigates any adaptation friction that may arise otherwise.
Takeaway
Leadership skills like effective communication, selfless serving, adaptability, holistic problem-solving and digital proficiency will place you in good stead in the workplace in 2022 and beyond. Find out more about short courses in leadership and interpersonal skills here. Who knows, perhaps this is the ideal year to upskill.
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