Leadership Skills We can All Master

Some leadership skills are natural. When you see someone who is a naturally great speaker, or is charming, smooth or charismatic, these are skills that cannot be taught and can only be refined. But there are many other skills that are required for leadership that can be taught, and these are invaluable for being a great leader. Haris Ahmed Chicago based business management coach teaches business executives leadership skills and these are some of the business skills that are at the top of his list and anyone can learn.

Being Open to Criticism

A big part of leadership is the requirement that you take the blame when things do not go well. We are all ready for the praise when there is a victory, but it is the defeats that separate the leaders from those who should not wear the title. A real leader is always prepared to stand in the way of anything that is coming and to take it head on. When what is coming is a defeat, a real leader knows that what will follow is criticism of his actions and lots of second guessing about what the course of action should have been. So leaders learn to not take things personal and take the important things from the criticism that can be used to do better next time. If there is nothing in the criticism that can be used and it is just venting by someone who is unhappy, the leader takes this to heart, and when the criticism is over, he shrugs it off and goes back to leading.

Being Inspirational

A common quality of the very best business leaders is that they have the ability to inspire and keep motivated, those around them. Getting the most out of people is necessary when you launch any initiative or campaign, so inspiring them consistently to reach their potential and go farther than they thought possible is critical. A leader understands that the way you make this happen is to give people their own reasons for wanting the success of the project. This could be for financial, ego, personal or a number of other reasons or for many reasons combined. The leader must dig deep to discover the reasons for each team member and then institute a plan to position the project so that it delivers the benefit sought, to each team member.

Showing Respect

Being the one that everyone looks up to has its advantages, but it also comes with great responsibilities as well. Leaders have to always remember that everyone on the team deserves an equal amount of respect and dignity. This means everyone from the VP to the janitor whose services provide a clean workspace in which the team works. It is true that everyone on the team including the leader must earn respect, but it should be given until there is a good reason why it should not be given anymore. The leader sets the tone for this in an organization and how he or she operates will put boundaries on the behavior of others and set the tone for the organization. When you have an organization that is built on respect for everyone in it, everything works more smoothly and everyone enjoys their work more.

Anyone can master these leadership skills and become a better leader. Getting great at them will take time and patience, but the result will be that you are a better leader and person too.