19 Tips for Leaders

There are so many things to consider as a leader. At times, we may need reminding to do something we already knew about and other times we hear something new that may help us in our roles. Plus, there's a big difference between knowing about something and doing it. Sometimes it's about the knowledge and other times it's about the motivation to use the knowledge.

Here are 19 tips for leaders you may know about. How many do you do?

1. Don’t forget the little things - remember personal details, admit your mistakes, share the credit.
2. A good leader watches both the scoreboard (reports) and the game (observing behaviors). One of the two is not enough to understand what exactly is going on.
3. Don’t hold a meeting just for the sake of it. It takes a really good meeting to be better than no meeting at all.
4. Being influential helps when you develop a feeling of trustworthiness and credibility. Own up when things don’t work out but have answers as to why.
5. Ensure that each goal you set comes with accountability. Work on having your team members set goals. Your job is to guide them in ensuring they are realistic.
6. Remember that everyone wants to achieve, contribute and learn – these are the three basic motivators.
7. Learn what motivates each of your staff members and ask yourself the question, “Do they FEEL appreciated?”
8. Although it’s basic, learn to communicate so that there is always an exchange of understanding. Don’t assume you have communicated.
9. When coaching, ask them their preferences on how they like to be coached. If they’re not sure, give them some options.
10. Getting your team to talk is the key. Ask questions and avoid ‘telling’. When you feel like you’re about to give the solution, ask a question about it first.
11. When a team member needs you, stop what else you’re doing. Physically turn away from your desk and give the person your full attention. Establish eye contact.
12. Use informal coaching opportunities to reinforce good behavior and catch people ‘doing things right’.
13. Keep an eye on what you are doing to ensure that you are not contributing to any bad attitudes of your staff – inconsistency of managers is one of the worst contributors to bad attitudes in the workplace.
14. When delegating, remember these three important factors and make sure the person to whom you are delegating understands what is to be done, when it should be finished by and to what degree of quality or detail.
15. Focus on the benefits of any change you are exposed to in the business and link it to your personal drivers. Once you are committed, you are better placed to help others.
16. Get used to asking clarifying questions. Train your team to do the same. With clear expectations and less ambiguity, you’ll have less disappointment.
17. Give remote employees extra attention. Send them more company ‘swag’ and schedule longer one-on-ones.
18. Make your questions count - especially in coaching. One of the key skills that future leaders will have is the ability to ask powerful questions.
19. Avoid the trap of equating being busy with being productive. They often aren’t the same thing.

About the Author:


Derek Good has been a General Manager for over 20 years and since 2002 has been involved in corporate training and consulting. He has won the North Shore Business Award for Customer Service Excellence and the TUANZ Award for innovation for general education.

These days Derek's focus is on researching the changes in training trends and developing his online micro video training organisation LearningPlanet which is currently accessed by thousands of users across a number of countries.

For more information visit www.learningplanet.me and my Amazon page for leadership books