Business leaders are those people who lead work teams within company departments and, mainly, strive to ensure that assigned objectives are met successfully and within the established time.
A business leader , beyond his responsibilities, must possess qualities that represent him as such, both in work and networking spaces. Here are 7 attributes that business leaders possess .
Emotional intelligence is defined as a set of psychological skills that allow us to express our emotions in a balanced way and understand those of others in a rational and empathetic way. It is the art of being responsible and consistent with our emotions in both stressful and calm situations.
Emotional intelligence is composed of five elements:
Emotional self-awareness.
Emotional self-control.
Self-motivation.
Empathy.
Social skills
In the business world, emotional intelligence plays a very important role. A large part of business success is rooted in the proper use of emotions . Let us remember that emotions are nothing more than affective states that people automatically exhibit in response to certain stimuli.
Business leaders are characterized by having emotional intelligence because they are people who understand that it is not about eliminating or mitigating our emotions, but about accepting and understanding when it is necessary to act in a certain way or when not, depending on the conditions and the people with whom we are sharing.
2. Empower others
Empowering means giving another person the power to enhance their abilities and show them how capable they are of achieving their goals and projects. It also involves helping a person or a group of individuals to increase their strengths and giving them participation or prominence in a certain task or project.
This power is linked to autonomy and the ability to do something. Empowered individuals, therefore, can defend themselves, resist adversity and have autonomy.
One of the main characteristics of a good business leader is his ability to identify the strengths of his employees and cultivate them to enhance their professional and personal development, obtaining more capable collaborators who are comfortable with the company.
Successful leadership is one that seeks to bring out the best in other people in order to build a strong team that does not depend on a unanimous decision, but rather, each person has the power and responsibility to contribute a solution, idea or think of a strategy to achieve the objectives.
At this point, the characteristics of a leader differ drastically from those of a boss. The former always tries to ensure that the people with whom they interact in a work environment have the ability to decide for themselves and greatly value the contributions of third parties.
On the contrary, the boss wants to give orders and expect them to be followed exactly as instructed, without taking into consideration the opinion of others. Only he can take control of the situation and no one else. This is a characteristic that is not typical of a business leader and tends to lean towards authoritarianism.
3. Clarity and focus
In the business world, being focused and having a clear direction is a great advantage, especially when there are short, medium and long-term goals that need to be met, a time limit for each of them and a budget assigned for each moment.
That is why, among the attributes that business leaders possess, there is clarity and focus during their work days. They are persevering people who, when they set a goal, strive to achieve it effectively.
To achieve this, they plan key actions and resources to keep their objectives and results in focus.
4. Time management
Optimizing and managing time efficiently is a big challenge. However, business leaders must work on developing these skills to meet their daily goals and not leave any responsibility behind; making use of agendas or digital tools such as Google Calendar, Asana and Trello, which also serve to manage projects.
You may be interested in reading: 6 online tools to manage projects telegram free number philippinesand tasks in teams
A business leader is characterized by leading a busy lifestyle with multiple meetings and deliveries a day, so structuring his time and segmenting it into the different activities of the day allows him to attend to each of them in a more optimal way.
Although time management is a characteristic that we all must develop (especially when it comes to academic and work activities), business leaders enhance this skill every day and constantly look for ways to make their time more efficient.
5. They know how to communicate their ideas
Business leaders are good communicators . Mainly because they need to convey their messages correctly so that their team can understand the activities to be developed and can carry them out successfully.
To do this, these people use presentations, graphics, statistics and audiovisual material, which allows them to assertively communicate and cover all their ideas.
Business leaders must also have excellent spelling, writing and public speaking skills that allow them to negotiate with their clients and express the benefits of their company, products and/or services. In short, a business leader has the ability to use language creatively to achieve important alliances and contracts .
6. Respect for others
Respecting others means valuing their opinion and making them see how important their contribution is. Respect is a requirement for establishing constructive and positive relationships.
Respecting others involves understanding that, despite differences, we all have the same basic physical, psychological and spiritual needs, and that the experience and knowledge of others are useful when applied in particular contexts.
This is why respect for others must be a permanent characteristic of a good business leader and must be expressed in words and deeds.
A leader who respects the people around him, and especially his team, is a person who ensures long-lasting and trusting relationships. He recognizes that respect is bidirectional and the more respect he promotes, the more respect he will receive.
In business, respect and trust play a fundamental role, since money, products and/or services are exchanged and must be backed by an institution or agent that is responsible to consumers and has earned their trust.
7. They are in constant training
Constant academic and professional training is an inherent characteristic of any business leader .
People who lead companies need to update their knowledge periodically in response to the changes and updates that occur in the markets, including: strategic planning, administration, finance, and even marketing and sales.
Successful business leaders recognize that they do not have universal knowledge of things and are therefore constantly learning. They rely on digital platforms and tools such as ebooks, webinars, master classes, whitepapers, etc. to acquire knowledge in an attractive way and in line with new educational formats.