3 Management Practices For New Business Leaders

There is the saying that leaders are born great. However, that is not necessarily true. Legendary football coach Vince Lombardi says otherwise. "Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile."

Embrace Your Limitations

Play to the situation, not to your reputation or ego, and see the strengths of others complement your weaknesses. Understanding that you are not and will not be an expert of everything is arguably the most important first mindset paradigm when stepping into a leadership role. Do not complain about something that is outside your scope. There is nothing productive about that. It is best to be hyperaware of your own shortcomings and think comprehensively in order to lead your team successfully. Admitting your limitations even to yourself may seem like a weakness. However, without acknowledging it, you won't reach your full potential as an effective leader.

Trust Your Team

When coming into leadership roles, it might be initially difficult to trust your team to get the work done in the way you want it done. It might feel awkward at the beginning to delegate and having team members do work that you are not hands-on with, especially when you used to be the one to complete the task.

Whatever the case, trust is an important foundation to building an effective and cohesive team. While this pursuit certainly makes staffers feel good, establishing trust isn't about being well-liked. More so, there are financial and company culture benefits to building this confidence and interdependence within your team and organization.

Maintain Composure

One of the most difficult functions of leadership is keeping calm when all you want to do is the opposite. Maintaining a level head amid chaos is a critical character trait that often separates good leaders from great ones. Demonstrating restraint, poise and control during times of crisis will help facilitate a better problem-solving result, impress, and inspire your team. It builds respect, staff loyalty, retention, and builds goodwill and models behavior staffers can follow and mimic.

While this behavior can project a sense of calmness and determination, you can demonstrate vulnerability when the going gets rough. Being honest and forthcoming, empathetic and humble can make your team members comfortable to also feel those feelings. It opens you up to be a person for them to come to. Try to commit to keeping a level head in hectic situations when the pressure is on. You will build trust as a voice of reason and the all-important votes of confidence.

Mindful leadership requires more than intelligence and academic qualifications. It involves being transparent with yourself and putting others ahead of you. The hopeful result is making the right decisions at the right time to bring about the right results. This requires that you step outside of your comfort zone. As a new leader in this role, embrace your position at the helm and find meaningful ways to rise to the occasion. These conducts and habits need not be mammoth or complex. As exemplified above, even a few simple, yet mindful, choices — made consistently — can prove profoundly impactful.

Interested in Working with Us?

If you need any help regarding your business or other legal matters please reach out to us directly here and schedule a call with one of our paralegals on our scheduling page here.