5 Proper Ways to Lead a Team as a True Leader

We all have our definition of being a leader; however, that doesn't mean the whole team approves of your way. That also doesn't mean you have to be a pushover and give away to whatever they want.

There's a balance between being a kind and generous leader vs leading from presence and being a strong self-actualized leader.

But the goal here is to be able to lead YOUR team. These are the people who will be with you and help grow your business, so making sure you can lead them to the right direction is crucial to your success.

Today, we'll be talking about five ways you as an entrepreneur can properly lead your team to show them that you lead with your fullest potential and that following you will bring everyone the success they're working for.

Follow your organization's rules.

It's essential to be a good follower first to show everyone that you are a great leader in your organization.

I'm 100% sure that you have your own set of rules and high standards in your company.

Following those and showing everyone that you are serious about the implemented rules is key to gaining their trust.

They'll follow you not because you are the owner of the company, but the whole team will follow you because you set an example.

In the first place, though, who would want to follow somebody who can't even follow their own rules?

Promote the growth of your team

To be an effective leader doesn't mean you know everything. You have your teammates to help you do the things you can't or won't do, but it's your job to lead them on the right path.

Helping the team grow their skills and knowledge is crucial to start tackling more challenging projects or increase your team's outputs and the quality they deliver.

Being stagnant in the world of business is one thing you do not want to do because everything is continually changing every day. Today, information is key to success, the whole team must keep improving at a good pace, and you, as their leader, must help them with that.

A simple way to do this is to recommend a book to read, support them taking a course on a specific skill, or their personal growth can help a ton.

At the same time, by doing this, you show your team that you are interested in how the business is doing and that you care for them how they are doing as well.

Listen to your team. Holding weekly meetings can help.

It doesn't need to be weekly, however. You can have it bi-weekly or once a month, as long as there's constant communication between everybody. That's one of the more vital tactics when building a strong team.

To lead appropriately, you must know the people in your organization. You can't just set rules and expect everyone to follow them blindly. When setting up your organization, you must listen to what the team wants and take that into account.

Suppose you have several freelancers from different corners of the world on your team. In that case, this is a critical step because communication is vital for a group of online freelancers to work.

None of you can meet personally, meaning there's a physical distance aspect that can't be fixed. If there's no communication, what do you think will happen?

When scheduling your meetings, also make sure that it works for everybody if you have different people in different time zones.

Giving the team some time to share what's going on for them, how they think about the company and organization, and come up with suggestions for improvement, gives everybody a feeling that they belong and that they matter.

Accept that your teammates are better than you - and that's okay.

Each person has their unique ability, and that heavily translates in business too. Even though you're the leader in your organization or company, that doesn't mean you're the best, most brilliant person in the room.

You should always look to hire people who are better than you.

Your job is to lead your people and make it possible for them to excel their talents and strengths when performing their job. You're not an expert in everything, so you need them to be smarter and better than you. You must actively find out where they fit in the company to use their brilliance to their fullest potential.

Another great way to think about it is if you had five of you, the same skillset and mindset, would you be able to run your company successfully?

Be patient and understand your teammates.

We all have different things we deal with outside the company. Everyone has their own lives to live, and as leaders, we must respect that.

If somebody is performing poorly, you could approach them and ask them if there's anything wrong or if there's a problem they want to talk about.

They might be dealing with something at home that they urgently need to fix, and the moment we address it, they turn on you.

We must always be sensitive to others. Practising being present in all communication will help you be more attuned and a better leader.