"5 Dynamic Leadership Characteristics"

What Effective Leaders Have

What leadership characteristics make an effective leader?

Is it charisma? Is it charm? Or could it be something else?

The value of being a good leader is sometimes misinterpreted. Effective leadership traits have dynamic qualities that can make real change which works for group members. These leadership qualities can make the difference in how successful a group will be.

The saying "leaders are created not born" is true because anyone like you, whatever your abilities are can become an effective leader if you have the right mind set and will. You should learn these dynamic leadership characteristics which can save you lots of time and trouble from mistakes that can happen.

1. Authority in Leadership Characteristics

An important part of effective leadership characteristics is having authority that other people respect. This doesn’t mean you should just "boss" and command team members around.

But instead, people should recognize you as someone who deserves recognition and as someone who is deserving to be followed like a "role model" at the same time being strong in leading members.

People will look up to you as you lead the group. Leadership characteristics should include an initiative in taking action. The way you behave is observed by other people. Do you have strong character or not?

Here are some things that can determine your reputation as a leader:

• Strength of personality. How firm and committed are you with your decisions. When there are conflicts and problems, do you get shaken easily and change your direction or do you stay on course and try to make things work out.

• Word of honor. How honest and reliable are you with what you say. Do you just say what other people want to hear or are you a doer of what you say. Remember "action speaks louder than words."

• Capability and will. Do you have the means to do it – the knowledge, the ability, etc. or do you strive to make it happen at least? Will you make a way to do it better and improve things?

2. A Vision that Moves

Do you have a vision of great things to come that you expect? You should know your objectives and goals to meet. It all starts with a great ambition.

You should know that dynamic leadership characteristics require a powerful vision which is not only great but can influence and move people towards the objective and goal of what needs to be achieved.

Here are some factors that team members expect:

• What will they accomplish with what they’re doing?

• What rewards and benefits will they get when the goal is met and completed?

• Will they get recognition and joy upon accomplishment of what they’re doing?

When you’re trying to accomplish something like a big project, there must be a clear purpose and something to look forward to. An important task is definitely not easy so something that gives motivation is important. This will also improve the personal productivity of each member with their work.

3. Communication that Connects

One of the leadership traits that can be seen on effective leaders is that they are good at connecting with their team members through communication. Effective leadership characteristics show how good and sufficient communication can determine the performance of a team.

You do not need to be a great speaker or an "orator," you just need to communicate always and make a stable connection with all team members in situations such as:

• When there are problems from each member needed to be solved which can affect the team and its performance

• When updates and corrections are needed to be given

• In guiding and monitoring the works of the team, you should show them that you’re close to them ready to help, give direction and advice

Leadership characteristics need "sufficient involvement" with the activities of your team. You should not only delegate and command tasks to members, yes they have their responsibilities to do and they should not fully rely on you. 

But it’s important for them to know that you’re always there watching them, giving them a form of security so they’re always confident with what they’re working at. This would also prevent much anxiety that team members might experience as they work.

You can avoid a lot of mischief or trouble between group members if you’re having a close watch on each member and talking with them regularly. Mistakes and errors with a task can be checked and corrected quickly before it becomes a big problem.

Somehow, you should also participate on a few tasks of your group so you can give a good example to them and guide them directly how it’s done through your examples. You should be able to make a bond with your team members and build camaraderie so the group becomes closer and more cooperative with each other.

When there is tension within group members, you can use icebreakers to help remove the negative atmosphere which makes them uncomfortable with each other. This should be done especially when they’re still new with each other but it would also be helpful from time to time for building good team cohesion.

Celebrate once in a while when a big task is finished. You can go to the beach for a day or dine outside together, you can have some party. You can do this on spare time. Refreshing activities can release stress and make the team closer with each other.

4. Sound Judgement

Making a sound judgement in any needed situation is vital in leadership characteristics. A good judgement is reasonable, ethical and should be unbiased. How a leader makes judgement determines the welfare of the group and the results of the task or project being worked on.

Some leaders may make their judgement based on their emotion or preferences however this way of thinking can’t be fully reliable because the events that can happen can be anything at anytime.

How good a judgement is can depend on the following:

• How experienced is the person and what experiences have been handled

• The passion, knowledge, wisdom and principles of a person

• The objectives, priorities and goals needed to fulfill

As part of leadership traits, judgment should be made based on how effective it will work at the same time it should not invite more trouble and make the situation more complicated. A good judgment would greatly reduce the stress a group handles.

5. Open Mindedness

Another important part of dynamic leadership characteristics which is often not thought of and applied is "open mindedness." This is simply the ability to have unbiased opinion and the willingness to consider other kinds of ideas and alternatives.

Not all leaders are open minded and they’re locked with their own ideas and preferences but what if there’s a better way to make things easier and produce better results, an idea which comes from a team member.

Usually, a leader cannot accept it because of "pride." However, an effective leader is someone who should be able to make good results for both the team and the task being done. Leadership traits should have flexibility and adjustments.

Some situations when open mindedness is important:

1. When managing the situation of the team, there can be times when the team is not properly working together because one member has an attitude problem which is affecting the whole group. You can ask for other members’ opinions on how to deal with that person and you might create the best solution.

2. When your team is stuck with a problem that is hard to solve, you can consult other people who have knowledge and ideas. Look for other resources such as books and reference materials on problems similar to what you have or even try a new method of doing the task.

3. In order to know what really motivates team members so they can work better. There should be work-life balance so that over-stress and anxiety symptoms can be prevented.

4. When making strategies to make the task or project faster to finish such as scheduling, task delegation and making timesavers. Having an open mind as part of your leadership characteristics can prevent you and your team from having lots of procrastination because obstacles become easier to solve.

Learning and applying these dynamic leadership characteristics would definitely make your team function better. You can also engage in personal development activities in order to help you develop these traits.

As a leader, you could save a lot of stress and frustration from problems with your team members as you apply these effective leadership ways. You can also expect better results and productivity when your team members are having good harmony with you as the leader and with each other as fellow team members.

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