How to be an effective team leader?- Startup Series#4

Handling your team effectively is one of the strongest virtues of a good team leader and being a good team leader is one of the strongest virtues of a successful businessman. The aim of a team leader must be to extract the maximum output from his/her team members by giving in the minimum input. It can be the toughest quality to master, but once you master it, it can help your efficiency manifolds.

In this article, I am going to provide you some practical tips on how to manage your team and some mistakes that you should avoid in order to become a successful leader.

1. Don’t give orders because no one likes to take them:

Remember, a team leader is not a boss. If you will act like a boss with your team members, then you will produce employees, not followers. If you are only going to bark orders at your team members, then they will start disregarding you. If you want to be a successful leader, then do not give orders rather give them suggestions, give them examples. Show them what you want from them, why you want it and how it can help the organization and in turn help them as well. Successful leaders raise leaders not employees.

“True greatness is attained not by giving orders but by serving.”

2. Listen to the advice of every member:

Listen to the advice and ideas of every team member and always try to be available when a team member needs you. It gives a person a sense of importance and a sense of belonging, in the organization.

Whenever someone offers you a piece of advice, listen very patiently to what your team member is saying. If you like the idea, accept it by saying “It is good, I will think about it and implement it as soon as possible.” If you don’t like the idea, then reject it in your mind. Never say on a person’s face that their idea will not work because it will demotivate them and will shatter their confidence and they might never be able to speak their mind up again. Just tell them that, “Your idea is good, but it can be better if you add this or that to your idea.” Tell them that, “We will hold your idea for the future as there is some room for improvement. This kind of attitude will motivate them to work harder.

“The world is giving you answers each day, all you have to do is listen.”

3. If you are wrong, admit it:

All successful leaders are respected by the team members, and the best way to win your team’s respect is to accept your mistakes when you are wrong because being able to accept our mistakes shows our strength of character. If you have the courage to accept your mistakes and act on them, then your team members will trust you more in the future. Anyone can defend themselves when they are wrong, but it takes courage to admit our mistakes. If you admit your mistakes then your team members will also accept their mistakes when they will make any, and this kind of atmosphere will help your organization grow rapidly because everyone will be working on their mistakes rather than pointing at others’.

“The world is changed by your EXAMPLE, not by your OPINION.”

The message:-

A strong team is built on trust, honesty, and loyalty and what makes a strong team stronger is a team leader. As a leader, you must be humble. You should appreciate everyone for everything that they do right and forgive everyone for everything that they do wrong. A good team leader maintains a healthy relationship with every member of the team, and most importantly a good team leader leads by example.

“Don’t expect something from anyone, if you can’t do it yourself.”

I would like to recommend this book to you, which I think everyone should read once in a lifetime especially if he/she wants to learn leadership skills.

This is one of the best books ever written on self-help and the richest in terms of knowledge on how to influence people and how to be a great leader.

I immensely benefited from this book in making friends and influencing many people, even my seniors. This book holds the power to make your personal, professional and social life much better and happier than it already is.

In this Video Dr. Vivek Bindra shares with his viewers ( How to Build World-Class Leadership Skills)