Want to Be a Better Leader? You Might Need to Change Your Mindset.

Some bosses are just “supervisors.”  Others are “leaders.”

Naturally, it’s the second group that gets the most from their team – and it’s the second group every boss aspires to join.  But how do you get there?  Instead of changing your team or your approach, it might be time to change the way you think.

Here’s how:

Instead of: Impersonal
Think: Compassionate

Attempting to treat your team “equally” or “professionally” leads many bosses to adopt an impersonal, even cold approach.  But neither equality nor professionalism demand that you act like a robot.

Instead, focus on listening to your team, putting yourself in their shoes, and making recommendations that get the work done while accommodating employees’ personalities and needs.  Employees who know you’ll listen and take their concerns seriously are more likely to communicate before a small problem becomes a big crisis.

Instead of: Managing
Think: Delegating

Delegating does two crucial things for your team.  It creates a sense of ownership in the work, prompting employees to do more thorough and accurate jobs – as anyone will when it’s their name on the bottom line.  And it frees up your time to focus on the tasks you can’t delegate to your team.

Instead of giving instructions and watching to ensure things are done “right,” spend more time explaining how to do the job and where to look for information.  Then, stand back and trust your team members to come to you with questions.

Instead of: Using
Think: Developing

When you hire new staff, you need people with certain skills who can “hit the ground running.”  But if the end of your planning is to find the new cog for the current machine, you’re supervising, not leading.  Worse, you may be losing your best people, as they look for jobs that feel less like a dead-end and more like a stepping stone.

Instead, focus on finding people with good skills who can also grow into good leaders – and learn how to develop those skills and abilities in others.  Classes on teaching and leadership development can help.   

At FootBridge Energy Services, our staffing partners help clients find the talent with today’s skills and tomorrow’s leadership potential.  Contact us today to learn more about our recruiting solutions in the energy sector.