Being a leader is not easy. Leaders have to rise up, push through waves of inadequacy, and guide their people to success.

While anyone may sit in a corner office and assign responsibilities, effective leadership requires more. You should have a significant impact not only on the people you supervise but also on the business as a whole.

If you’d like to be a better leader that has a positive impact on everyone, keep reading.

Send gifts as a leader

People love to do business with those they like and trust. This isn’t only true for business partners but also for employees and colleagues.

It’s more crucial than ever to build and maintain genuine relationships with the people who help your company succeed. Corporate gift baskets are a great way to show your appreciation for your employees and SnackNation lists some great ideas for gift baskets.

Sending a thoughtfully chosen gourmet gift basket is a great way to show how much you care. You can emphasize their accomplishments in one tasteful bundle and demonstrate that you not only notice but more importantly, that you actually care.

Making your employees aware of their importance to the company fosters a healthier, happier culture and helps you become a better leader. A gesture of this kind will only strengthen the bond between your colleagues and you.

Empathy

Empathy is probably one of the most important leadership traits. But unfortunately, many leaders are elevated to their roles based on previous performance or industry credentials, and they have little or no leadership experience.

As a result, a heavy-handed order-giver with ambiguous expectations and little empathy for their team leads to low productivity and morale.

Being truthful with your team doesn’t imply that you should become great friends with them. However, you should share some personal experiences, tearing down defensive barriers and demonstrating that you are a human being. It helps you get respect by making you appear more approachable.

Stay positive to become a better leader

Even if leaders want their team’s day-to-day operations to run smoothly all of the time, they’re sure to hit a snag from time to time. Whether it’s a slight misunderstanding or a massive blunder, how you manage a difficult circumstance reveals a lot about your leadership abilities.

In such situations, Robert Mann, author of The Measure of a Leader (iUniverse, 2013), advised managers to remain focused on the positive.

Basically, before you find what caused this difficult situation, you should consider some positive aspects of it. When you focus on these positive aspects of an issue, you tend to react more positively to other people involved.

Mann discovered in his studies that when people bring out positive aspects of a crisis scenario, they feel less strongly about the problem and are better equipped to think rationally and fix it.

When a leader needs to strengthen their strategy, the same is true. If you or a member of your team finds that a specific course of action you’ve taken isn’t working, think about what you’ve done in the past that has led you to success.

Clearly demonstrate respect for the greater vision

When the battle cry is shouted, an experienced general doesn’t have to worry about the warriors following him into battle since he has made it crystal clear what they are fighting for and what the stakes are.

A foresighted corporate leader will follow suit. Every employee should be aware of the significance of their work. Employees who have a say in the decision-making process understand the motivation behind the organization’s vision and are more willing to support its objectives.

Set clear goals

It is critical to set clear goals and expectations for your employees if you want them to succeed. Encourage employee inquiries and feedback while setting these goals. Including them in the process can help them feel more involved.

Good leaders, according to Amish Shah, president of ALTR Created Diamonds, will also explain the company vision and how team member goals fit into that equation.

As a leader, you should keep your staff informed about their vision if you want to inspire and excite them. This way, you help employees understand the end goal of the whole team. When goals are clearly defined, all team members can identify accomplishments and track progress.

Moreover, it is extremely important to clarify how these objectives affect the entire business. Each employee, regardless of their level of seniority, should be able to articulate how their work contributes to the company’s success.

Don’t allow team members’ ambitions to become stagnant. Regularly review your goals and make any necessary changes or rearrangements. This will show your team members that you are there and paying attention to what they are doing.

Final words on Being a Leader

There is no such thing as a perfect leader. And because change is constant, it is critical that leaders continue to improve their abilities and stay current with industry advancements.

That’s what you need to do too and that is why it’s important to follow every guideline that could help you become a better leader.