What does it take to become a leader who is respected by their peers? If it is your desire to inspire people to follow your lead, you must master the principles of earning the respect of others.
John Bradberry has inspired countless people for more than a generation as he has managed to grasp the concepts behind what it takes to become a great leader.
By exceeding expectations without surrendering the moral high ground, many revere him as an authority that can provide the input they need to push their businesses to the next level.
Not in John’s personal network? These tips will help improve your leadership chops, but only if you commit them to memory and apply them.
1) Be the person you want them to be
Leading by example is one of the most powerful ways to inspire others to hold themselves to a higher standard. If you live by the philosophy, “do as I say, not as I do”, most folks will tune you out in short order.
Would you run through the proverbial wall for an executive who unwinds in their office after telling you and your co-workers to put your nose to the grindstone? Probably not.
Those who live by their own creed garner tons of respect these days; Want a workplace that gets stuff done efficiently? Show your charges how you get it done, and they will be inspired to do the same.
2) Stay on top of your company’s field
If you want your enterprise to be healthy 20 years down the road, you have to cultivate the ability to peer into the future.
By keeping abreast of what is going on in your space, you’ll have the information to project what is coming down the pike. This way, it will be easier to craft strategy that will keep the business strong going forward into the future.
In these exponentially-changing times, your employees and investors are depending on you more than ever to keep them prosperous, so do not neglect this responsibility.
3) Be responsible for your actions
It’s a matter of time before something goes wrong at your company, and with everyone hyper-sensitive about every slight these days, you need to be ready to own whatever controversy embroils your company.
When that day does come, take responsibility, do everything you can to fix the problem, and if necessary, compensate the affected parties fairly.
Ignoring the problem won’t help, as the current media environment latches onto a juicy story relentlessly, and the internet has an elephant-like memory. Until the problem is resolved, your brand will sustain damage that could ultimately sink it.
Once the issue is fixed, you can then begin the shift to resuming normal operations.
4) Be as transparent with employees as possible
Authenticity is one of the most valued attributes by Millennials and Generation Z, as they were raised with the internet. Used to being transparent with each other, they expect the same from their political representatives, the stores they shop at, and the companies that employ them.
While transparency has its limits, don’t be afraid to be open in ways that would make Boomers uncomfortable.
Posting metrics related to performance will encourage employees to perform better, as they will know where they need to get better in the quarter that lies ahead.
If you do this, the company will perform better overall, as top performers will have the info they need to excel at their jobs.
