Effective Leadership Really Means This One Thing

I talk about effective leadership a lot. But what does that mean? What does it take to be an effective leader?

Because I help leaders who are already effective become highly effective (and because I’ve been coaching executives for almost 40 years!), I can tell you the answer.

Effective leadership is dependent on self-awareness.

The number one key to effective leadership is high self-awareness.

As I have written many times over the years, high self-awareness is linked to high emotional intelligence (EI). If you are self-aware, you:

• Are tuned into your own emotions and understand what you are feeling and why 
• Know how others perceive you
• Can regulate your emotions in a high-stress situation 
• Consider others’ emotions before speaking or making a decision
• Can easily build relationships with others

How to increase self-awareness

High self-awareness doesn’t magically happen

The only way to understand where you are on the EI continuum is with a robust 360 assessment (you can read more about why a 360 assessment is so powerful here). You need to work with bosses, peers, and direct reports who are up front with you, and you need to learn about EI. You need all three things to have high self-awareness.

Just because you are an effective leader, it doesn’t mean you are able to identify what you really should spend your time and energy on. Once you go through a 360 assessment and debrief, it becomes crystal clear what you should be working on to become even more effective. 

I can’t encourage people enough to bring in an outside expert – me, one of the Winning Ways coaches, or another executive leadership coach. We will help you identify that ONE thing you should be working on.  

Leadership skills fall into two categories: Do-ers and Connectors

I recently started working with a leader. “Matt” did not know what to work on until we did a 360 assessment. (I got a lot of insight from his boss!)

Matt’s a typical leader – highly productive and strategic. I think of these leaders as the Do-ers. 

I also work with leaders who have strong relationships, close-knit teams, and psychologically safe work places. I call these leaders the Connectors.

Most leaders are very strong Do-ers or very strong Connectors. So when I ask them what they want to work on, they pick a skill on the side they are strong on. A 360 assessment usually says the opposite. 

When I got the results of Matt’s 360 assessment, he was shown to be very productive and highly strategic. The area he needed to work on was building rapport and connecting with people. During our debrief, he declared, “Whoa! This connects so many dots!”

To be a highly effective leader, you have to cross sides and work on the skills you are not naturally strong in. I am a believer in using your strengths as much as possible while also being aware of what skills would expand your effectiveness if you focused on it.

Examples of Do-er and Connector skills

This is not an exhaustive list, of course, but you will notice that the skills listed below are highly valuable for a leader.

Do-ers are:

• Strategic
• Visionary
• Decisive
• Productive
• Direct
• Organized
• Systems-thinkers
• Inspirational
• Optimistic
• Tenacious

Connectors are:

• Empowering
• Team player
• Motivating
• Easy to approach 
• Caring
• Vulnerable
• Empathetic
• Great listener
• Flexible
• Selfless

It’s probably clear from reading those lists, but I’ll say it anyway: The Connecting leaders I have worked with believe that their people are the organization. The Do-ers believe that the projects are what make the organization. 

When a leader embodies both the Do-er and Connector skill sets, they are the MOST effective leader you will find. They can get things done but they make time to bring their team with them.

I am working with a leadership team right now, and none of them appear to have strong Connector skills. For example, they are not aware of the unsustainable stress their people are under. A Connector would notice that, because they are so tuned into their people.

Are you a Do-er or Connector?

Pull out a sheet of paper right now and make a quick list of the top 10 things you do to connect with and support your people and the top 10 things you do to complete projects and meet your goals. 

I guarantee that you will jot down 10 items on one list very quickly, but struggle with the other. You might get to three or four and think, uh oh! 

In fact, that is not an “uh oh” moment but an “aha” moment. Your self-awareness just increased simply by knowing whether you are a Do-er or Connector. 

Go back to the list of skills above and pick one skill you want to work on – it must be from the side you are not as strong in. If you are not sure how to get started working on that skill, I (or one of other fantastic coaches here at Winning Ways) can help you. 

In just one coaching session, we will put together a plan so you can become stronger at that one skill. Even better, you will be on your way to becoming an even more effective leader! Reach out to schedule a session today at info@winningwaysinc.com.