Main leadership skills for top managers. Continuation

In the previous section of this article, we’ve discussed only a portion of the leadership skills any competent senior manager should possess. This section is going to cover character traits such as a good sense of humour, curiosity, and the ability to negotiate and delegate authority. Let's begin.

The ability to negotiate

Initially, it seems that there is nothing difficult in negotiating and conducting business discussions. People meet, talk, drink coffee, show off, and sign piles of papers. This is how a typical negotiation is perceived by an average jealous employee. Few people know that conducting negotiations is one of the main leadership skills. The most important issues are discussed, multi-million-pound deals are signed, and the most crucial decisions are made during these discussions and business meetings. That’s why one must never underestimate the value of effective negotiation skills. Incidentally, there are plenty of books on the subject, with yearly and monthly meetings and training sessions dedicated to this essential skill. Don’t hesitate to attend these meetings and read a couple of books on the subject. Then, even the most demanding and hectic negotiation will go as smooth as butter.

Curiosity

Curiosity is another important leadership trait of a professional boss. If you want your company to grow, you have to be curious in the positive sense of the word. We’re not suggesting you should take an interest in the personal lives of your employees, be curious about who is dating whom and where someone spent their holiday. We’re talking about another type of curiosity, inquisitiveness even. It's important that when you become a director, you don’t lose your spark and curiosity. Be invested in learning about new technology in your industry, attend conferences, exchange experiences with colleagues, and keep advancing.

The ability to delegate authority

When working in a standard position, you become accustomed to doing all assignments by yourself. If you want to become the head of a company and learn how to manage personnel effectively, you must learn how to delegate authority. Not only will it save you time, but it will also allow you to adjust the company workflow so all employees have something to do, and they will feel valued and needed. Many people fear having to distribute tasks among employees or give important assignments to one of them. Understand that if you do this properly, a department or a business you run will operate like a well-oiled machine.

The ability to set goals and achieve them

Any experienced director knows that one has to properly formulate assignments and follow them through. If you aimlessly run a business and chaotically make illogical decisions, nothing good will come of it. A director with great leadership skills has to be balanced, calm and able to clearly formulate their own and the company’s goals. Then employees will see them as a leader and will also strive to achieve the common goal. Objectives have to be understandable, clear and properly formulated. For example, the goal of becoming the best in our industry sounds vague. It is also unclear why people should strive to achieve it. If you set a goal for your employees that sounds like In the coming year, our income should be double the income of the previous year, they will understand what they have to do and will strive towards achieving it. Still, when you set a financial goal for your employees, don’t forget to reward them once it is achieved.

A good sense of humour

A sense of humour is another valuable leadership trait that characterises a successful boss. However, this trait has one peculiarity – you can’t learn it. You are either born with a good sense of humour or you aren’t. On a more serious note, we would like to point out that finding a company director with a good sense of humour is rare. You are very fortunate if, in addition to all the aforementioned qualities, you are also able to make intelligent jokes and understand jokes told by others. We must admit that a sense of humour helps us in the most complicated and seemingly unsolvable situations, which you will inevitably encounter regardless of your position.

A positive outlook on life

Living in the modern world makes it challenging to maintain a positive outlook on life and the world in general. If you wish to become a truly successful company director, you absolutely must look at things in the most positive way possible. You have to understand that you are the head of a company and your mood, opinion or view on life influences the mood of all your employees. Each time you come to work, imagine that you are the captain of a huge ship. If you emit negativity, you will become tense and irritated, your ship will sink or all sailors and chief engineers will abandon ship, leaving you alone in the tumultuous business sea. If you don’t want this to happen, try finding happiness in the little things and see the best in the world and your work.

Inspiration skills

We’ve reserved the main leadership skill, without which there is no point agreeing to work in a senior position, for last. If you are uninspired by work you’ve devoted your daily life too, you won’t be able to inspire employees towards new victories. Any first-rate director must know how to inspire people, give them hope, motivate and uncover their potential. This skill can be easily mastered if you are truly in love with your work or are passionate about your business. If you are uninspired yourself, it is difficult to foster the opposite feeling in someone else. That's why we advise finding work you love or the one that irritates you the least and brings a good income.

Should you master all of these skills, the path to promotion will be an easy one. Strive, learn, dare and always improve yourself!