Being a good leader

Small business owners know the importance of being a good leader and hiring good leaders. If you operate a small business, but you are not in the office everyday, you need a good leader for your staff members to rally behind. This person must be able to step-in while you are out and fulfill your position, while still doing their job. A good leader will establish trust, comfort, respect, and courage.

For several businesses, the employees are actually fearful of their leaders. They feel that they cannot come to them with their concerns because they fear the repercussions that may happen. A good leader should have an open-door policy with their staff members and they need to encourage them to voice their opinions. When people lack the courage to speak up, employee morale will drop. Employees will start to gather in corners of the office and speak poorly about the leader or the company. Sometimes there is one person that will have enough courage to speak for the group. Either way, you need to avoid stifling your employee's courage by creating a comfortable working environment.

A good leader will take responsibility for bad situations. For example, if another staff member failed to ship out a product and they are having a break-down, the leader should step-in and help them. They may be the person that speaks to the customer directly to smooth things over and they will usually accept responsibility for the situation. Of course, they also need to talk to their employee to find out what happened and how this can be prevented in the future.

People look at a leader as someone they respect. Some employees may even look-up to this person and desire to be like them. If you have a powerful leader like this, make sure they are compensated well and that they know how much you respect and care for their hard work.

One of the best skills a good leader will possess is the ability to listen. This sounds easy, but it is hard for some people that have high titles, ownership positions, and experience. Some people feel they have come too far to sit in an office and listen to their employees vent their frustrations. Do not let this feeling overtake you. A good leader knows that employees need an open-door policy and they need someone to talk to once and awhile. It may not be work-related concerns that they need to talk about. Listening to their personal concerns also shows this person you respect and truly care about them.

Active listening is one of the most-important things you will do as a leader. Turn off your computer and your phone, shut your office door, and truly listen to the employee that is expressing their concerns. You may want to make some notes during the meeting or you can write down everything after the employee leaves. Whatever way you choose, make sure you maintain eye contact with your employee and that you repeat a few things they have told you. Before the employee leaves your office, you need to be sure that they are satisfied with the decision you have made. They need to leave your office feeling relieved and eager to get back to work.

A good leader keeps an open mind. They listen to the opinions of their staff members and they encourage them in staff meetings. A closed-minded leader will quickly disagree with their staff members and they force their staff members to stop expressing their opinions. This causes people to lose hope in their leader and in their job. They won't enjoy coming to work because of their leader.