Are you a good leader?

Are you a good leader?  Simple quiz. 

Who do you recognize as your best leader ever?   

What qualities did they possess?  

Do you possess the same qualities?   

• If yes, you are a great leader. 

• If not, why not?  Who are you letting down?   

I started my career in 1994, a little while ago, but the answer to that first question is easy: Alison.  What qualities did she possess? She always found ways for me to grow; she allowed me to take on extra duties, and she corrected me when I was wrong. She cared about my development and about me as a person.  

I remember the time I wanted to take on a bigger role, and it was outside the organization. How did Alison react?  She helped me by reviewing my resume and asking interview questions. Why? We had a strong mutual trust and appreciation for each other. Another thing we had in common was reviewing old processes and creating new and better solutions. I followed her to three different companies because I wanted to keep working for her. In 2001, after working many years together, the company we worked for filed chapter 7 bankruptcy. We had to go our separate ways; however, she was always someone I relied on for coaching and guidance. In fact, in 2022 when I came to Garver she was one of my references.  

Throughout my 30-year career, I’ve thought about how Alison handled things, and I find myself a very similar leader. Even when things are super busy, I make sure I take the time with my team. Why?  Because time invested in the team makes them stronger and eventually frees up more of your time for other important strategies.  

Earlier I mentioned that Alison corrected me when I was wrong. Yes, she did! I remember many of the lessons like it was yesterday. If she had not corrected me, I would have continued down the wrong path. I interpreted her feedback as feedback for growth, not as her being mean to me. I mention corrective feedback because it tends to be one of the most important but hardest things for a leader to give.  

Not sharing corrective feedback is mean and unfair. You as a leader are judging someone for something you haven’t made them aware of and given them a chance to correct. I know this far too well.  

A challenging manager I worked for — no names this time — harbored resentment of me for something I did that they did not like, only bringing it up when I was being considered for a promotion. When we finally discussed the situation, they realized my close relationship with a third party, who was also in the room, and how that relationship had influenced my actions. Had I been asked about this earlier, we could have discussed it openly, and I would have understood their perspective and acted differently. Instead, this was used against me and held me back for another year.   

When I teach leadership development classes, I always ask the participants, “If you were doing something wrong from your manager’s perspective, how many of you would want to know about it?” All hands go up. Then I ask, “If you want corrective feedback, don’t you think your employees do as well?” They all agree. Everyone recognizes that their employees deserve to be given corrective feedback. Everyone gets it. But all too often, our lack of communication with an employee about how they do something becomes such a bother to us as leaders that we want them gone. How is not saying anything fair to our employees?  

I write this overview as a simple reminder that we all have had an outstanding leader we appreciate. We need to remember to mirror the leadership qualities those people demonstrate, so that our employees can have the same experience.  

You are in a leadership role for a reason; make sure your legacy is being the best leader ever for your employees.