Leadership Basics

Leadership Styles

Which style do you use? Which ones should you learn?

BY THE TIME you decide you want to start your own business, you've already experienced virtually every style of leadership there is. You may not realize it, but you've already become one type of leader or another — you have a natural leadership style. The question now is whether the leader you are is the leader you want to be. And also, whether learning to use other leadership styles will pay off for you.

Parents, teachers, older siblings, bosses, police officers, military superiors — we've all had them for most of our lives. Some pulled productivity and efficiency out of us by enabling and encouraging us. A few were demanding, and that may have been just what we needed. Others were easy-going, and that did the trick. Different styles work for different types of people and in different situations.

Think for a moment — which ones worked for you? More importantly, which ones didn't work for you? As the founder of your enterprise, you are its leader. But it's not all about you — or at least it shouldn't be. You're not the one executing the work; your people are. Your job as a leader is to empower them to be productive, and sometimes that might mean trying methods that may not have worked with you in the past. But they might work with them.

Be smart about this, however. Picture a continuum stretching from accommodating to intimidating leadership styles. According to Leigh Bailey and Maureen Haben Bailey,* Accommodators need acceptance and Intimidators need control. Both styles have good and bad aspects, and both styles can be harmful if a leader puts personal needs ahead of the good of the company.

While research suggests that being overly dominant presents the greatest risk of leadership derailment, the appropriate use of a forceful leadership style is critical to a leader's success. So let's say you are mainly an accommodating leader. Should you learn to be more forceful? The answer is yes, for some situations, like when you need to firmly commit your organization to a certain change, or to deal with a challenging person or situation. If you tend to be an Intimidator, you can benefit from loosening your grip and taking more risks to allow your people to learn from their successes and failures. The idea is to discover your natural style and then learn others so you can be a versatile leader, one who is effective in many different kinds of leadership situations.

Of course, nobody likes to be degraded or made to feel stupid or unappreciated, especially in front of others. Depending on the situation, a bit of "tough love" might work on certain employees, but be very careful with it. Think long and hard about how you're going to use it.

In my organization, when it comes to tough love, I tend to work up to it. I see difficult people as a valid leadership challenge. You can't just go around firing people — they are assets to your business and it's your responsibility to find out how to get good work from them. As you know, your leadership position makes you very visible. If you don't succeed with difficult people, you may get a reputation as a poor leader, which is the last thing you want. Nevertheless, sometimes people just don't work out, and that's life in business. That's another decision for another day.

Today, we're thinking about what type of leader you should be to get the most out of people. While taking more control has its place, here's a hint from history: Tyrannical leaders rarely last long and their dethroning is usually a painful event, so don't go too far in that direction. But doormat leaders don't get things done. It's best to recognize that each person and situation will respond best to a certain style of leadership, and to be able to be versatile enough to use the right one from moment to moment.

To this end, analyze what types of people you are dealing with and ask yourself what you can do to make them feel secure with your organization. Most need to feel motivated and guided by you.

It's always good to lead by example. If people have to work late to finish a big project, it would be good if you join them (if you're not in the way!), to show them that you are willing to go through hard times with them. If you have other obligations, come back later with some coffee or snacks.

Don't micro-manage them, however. Nothing stifles productivity like a pair of eyes constantly looking over your shoulder.

It's common for entrepreneurs to complain that with all the interruptions they get from freelancers, employees, vendors, the bank, and even their kids, they just can't get their own work done. So they close their office door to make progress. That makes sense, but don't make it a full-time habit. Try to schedule open door time — or if you can afford it, keep the door open almost all the time. People need and like to know that you are there with them.

As you think about what kind of business leader you want to be, think in specifics: consider that difficult person or that upcoming event, and ask yourself what style of leadership would work best. If you do your homework right, you will immediately be pointed in the right direction. Then just go for it and learn from your experience.

S.G.

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