Effective Team Leadership

Is it true that leaders are simply born and not created? Maybe it is. Some people have the innate talent of being great leaders while others just don't. But that is not to say that one cannot garner qualities of a true leader and learn effective team leadership. If one understands what makes a good leader, then it might just be possible to become one. Why is it so important to learn effective leadership characteristics though? Because in today's competitive and professional world, possessing leadership skills is one of the most important skills to display. In the article that follows, we shall look at some of the leadership qualities and learn how to garner them.

Effective Leadership Skills

In the remainder of this article we shall look at some of the leadership strengths that make a great leader. These should help you learn the basics of what a good leader should possess and provide a direction of how to get there.

Guide and Motivate
The main leadership role of a good leader is to be a guiding force. His position as a leader supplies him the power to influence others in a positive way and motivate them further to work as a team. It therefore, becomes imperative that he has the knowledge and expertise on the subject on hand so that he can guide the team members better so that together they can reach their goal. It is also expected that he motivate his teammates in whichever manner possible so that the best of their abilities are brought to the core. This not only helps in their personal growth but also in the overall goal.

Communicate
Another important leadership trait is that his communication skills have to be exemplary. He needs to influence a lot of people and for that to happen, he has to be able to have the skills of getting his point across and making a mark. A good leader is essentially always a good communicator.

Listen
He is a leader, not a task master. And for his teammates to respect him and thereby listen to what he has to say, he needs to listen to the point of views of all his teammates as well. Listening to their points of view and taking cognizance of their theories will not only allow a different dimension to the problem solving process but will also earn him the respect of his teammates.

Be Flexible
A good leader has to be flexible in all that he does. He has to realize that there will be several problems in executing a plan and that very rarely will a plan be executed in exactly the same way that it was planned. When something like that happens, he has to be flexible enough to not sit with the decided plan and change it according to the need of the hour.

Evaluate Team Members
He has to understand his team members such that he is well aware of both, their strengths and weaknesses. This allows him the discretion to allot certain responsibilities to people based on what they can handle best. This works out well for the good of the project at hand.

Quick Decisions
Many times there are problems in the planned process and a plan cannot be executed as planned. In such a case, a leader has to be able to understand what the situation needs and take quick decisions so that the project at hand does not suffer.

Positive Criticism
Along with guiding, effective leadership also means that a leader has to be able to provide his teammates with positive criticism with a view to help them grow and get better at their jobs.

Allow Freedom of Expression
A good leader has to allow his teammates the freedom of expression and speech. This will mean that he does not dictate and order but allows equal opportunity and chance for his team members to interact and reach a decision together. That way, it's a team project.

And that is what effective team leadership development is all about. One can try and garner good leadership skills with these skills that are mentioned in this article. Hope this article will help you become a better leader.