How employees perceive leaders

Research found four dominant themes of origin stories among leaders: being, engaging, performing, and accepting.

These themes act as lenses, contributing to how leaders see themselves.

Leaders who use this lens always thought of themselves as leaders. They admit to having a natural call to leadership that started in childhood.

In current leadership, people who use this lens often note personal qualities such as confidence, optimism, and natural leadership styles.

Many training initiatives assume that the same group of skills or leadership styles are suitable without considering the strategy or organizational culture of a company.

An excellent leader in one situation does not necessarily perform well in another. Focusing on context means equipping leaders with two or three competencies that will make a distinction to performance, rather than a list of leadership standards that is of no specific benefit.

Companies face a challenge when it comes to planning the program's curriculum.  Adults typically retain only 10 percent of what they hear in classroom lectures, but nearly two-thirds when they learn by doing. 

The answer seems straightforward: tie leadership development to real on-the-job projects. While it is not easy to create opportunities that simultaneously address high-priority needs, companies should strive to make every major business project a leadership-development opportunity as well.

Define what meaningful work means to you.

Find your own personal satisfaction and connection to your work. It could be the people you work with or a project you are passionate about.

There’s always some level of personal investment in your work.

If what you're doing has a positive impact, it adds up and makes you feel proud of what you’re working on.

In order to keep the business running. managers' reactions in times of crisis are vital. Learning how to address the situation, to make people aware of what is happening, to control the response to the danger or to adapt to changes as they occur are some appropriate behaviors that can make a world of difference.

People like to know that they can rely on their leaders. And a leader who is actively involved in taking action is better seen than one who does not do much to help improve the situation.

A leader's response to what is happening is of the greatest importance. 

Therefore, providing guidelines while keeping his or her sense of perspective can turn a leader in the most powerful person involved in that very crisis, even if he or she is not taking action directly.

• Vision: Creating a shared vision is the leadership part of servant leadership;
• Implementation: Helping people implement that vision is the servant part of servant leadership.

Agile leaders are servant leaders.

It's a servant leadership model taught by The Ken Blanchard Companies, based on the belief that leadership style should be tailored to the situation. 

This kind of flexibility is a key principle of agile organizations.

The leaders that inspire are those who use a personal combination of strengths to motivate individuals and teams to take on bold missions and to hold them accountable for results.

And they unlock higher performance through empowerment, not thorough command and control.

• You only need centeredness: a state of mindfulness that enables leaders to remain calm under stress, empathize, listen deeply, and remain present.
• Your key strength has to match how your organization creates value.
• You have to behave differently if you want your employees to do so.

• They articulate an authentic commitment to diversity, challenge the status quo, hold others accountable, and make diversity and inclusion a personal priority.
• They are modest about capabilities, admit mistakes, and create the space for others to contribute.
• They show awareness of personal blind spots, as well as flaws in the system.
• They demonstrate an open mindset and deep curiosity about others.
• They are attentive to others’ cultures and adapt as required.
• They empower others and focus on team cohesion.

If a leader wants to know what is the most important trait, commitment is the most critical.
For those working around a leader, the single most important trait is a leader's visible awareness of bias - a leader that constantly challenges their own bias and encourage others to note their pre-conceived leanings. Raters also care about humility and empathy.