How to become a better leader (5 Actionable Steps)

“Ego can’t sleep. It micro-manages. It disempowers. It reduces our capability. It excels in control.” – Robert K. Greenleaf

Why it works

Robert K. Greenleaf (pictured) was an American management expert and consultant. During his long career at AT&T, he noticed that top-down leadership often overlooked employees' growth and well-being. He proposed a new approach: leaders should focus on serving their people first to build a culture of collaboration. Inspired by its success at AT&T, Greenleaf left the company to champion what he would come to call Servant Leadership.

He subsequently shared his ideas in his essay The Servant as Leader, arguing that effective leadership builds on empathy and responsibility. His 1977 book Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power and Greatness expanded these ideas and inspired a global movement. The book became a leadership classic, and Greenleaf’s principles of putting people first continue to encourage leaders to focus on growth, empowerment, and responsibility.

Servant leaders differ from traditional, top-down leaders in many ways. Traditional leaders do most of the talking. They focus on personal success. They measure success by numbers, rely on authority to get results, and see leadership as a personal accomplishment. Servant leaders listen actively. They prioritize team needs. They measure success by team growth, empower and share responsibility, and view leadership as serving the team. Here are five actionable steps to help you become a better leader by doing the same.

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How to do it

1) Create a safe space
Build an environment where team members feel safe to express themselves. Create trust by offering regular check-ins, providing anonymous feedback options, and acknowledging all contributions. If you want to learn more about building high-trust teams, here are ten ways to get you started.

2) Promote work-life balance
Support practices that help balance personal and professional lives. Empower them to set clear boundaries around work hours, offer flexible schedules, and encourage them to timebox focused work and breaks throughout the day. If you want to explore this more deeply, read this article.

3) Provide resources
Ensure the team has all the tools and resources needed. Organize skill-building sessions, regularly review tools to minimize friction, and maintain a shared library of helpful resources so that everyone can learn continuously. To optimize learning in your team, consider recommending some of these proven techniques to remember the material at hand better.

4) Practice patience
Understand growth and change take time. Set realistic goals that consider individual learning curves, give constructive feedback, and celebrate small wins. A helpful metaphor for effective leadership is thinking of it like a farmer who tends to their crops – and would never blame, uproot or shout at them. To learn more, check out my LinkedIn post on the topic.

5) Lead by example
Make your team proud. Be the leader you want your team to follow. Share your own goals and challenges openly, showing that growth is a continuous journey. Commit to self-improvement by setting ambitious yet attainable targets. And last but not least, respect your boundaries to model a balanced approach to work. You’ll inspire others to follow suit.

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Focus your attention where it matters most: your team.

Become a leader who inspires, empowers, and models servant leadership.

Also, please share this post with one person who might benefit from doing the same.

Until next week,
Christian

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