The 4 Principles of Effective Leadership
"I've told you a hundred f*cking times already Tom, that's not how you shovel bitumen!"
When I landed my first job in New Zealand, this was a common retort I had to deal with each day.
Working in construction is hard. It's even harder when the guy you're working for belittles you time and time again.
No matter how well we worked or how much we got done, he always found something to criticise. A tool out of place, talking too much, or our attitude.
As bad as this experience was, it taught me a lot about the art of leadership. Conversely, I learnt more in these weeks than I did working for bosses I liked.
Being a leader is never easy. But there are certain principles you need to follow if you want to excel in the role.
Here are four any aspiring leader should adopt:
Take responsibility - Leaders take responsibility for their actions. They hold their hands up when they get it wrong and don't shy away from uncomfortable decisions.
Lead by example - If you want to enforce certain standards, you need to personify them. People take their cue from the top. If your standards are sloppy, everyone else's will be too.
Treat people with respect - Treat people the way you'd want to be treated. If my old boss had treated me fairly, I would have had no issue with him. Yet his constant belittlement meant I didn't respect him. Respect should never be expected, it has to be earnt.
Coach don't dictate - Give people the flexibility and the space to perform to their best. Nobody likes to be micro-managed. The best leaders coach rather impose one size fits all solutions.
Follow these four principles and you can’t go wrong