Building your startup’s leadership team is one of the most crucial steps you’ll take in order to see your venture through to the end. If you don’t have the right people around you, it can be quite difficult to keep focus and build momentum. Leadership plays an important role in any business. It helps cultivate a culture of accountability, transparency, and trust within your company.
And with that trust comes a willingness to accept new ideas and challenge the status quo. At the same time, leadership skills are not something that everyone possesses naturally. That’s why investing time and energy into building those skills can have a huge long-term impact on your company. In this article, we’ll share insights about how different personality types tend to lead, as well as practical tips for building leadership skills within your startup – from the moment you start hiring until you have an executive team in place.
When you’re starting or scaling your startup, there will be many things that you need to focus on. However, figuring out how to build leadership skills within your company can be challenging. Your team is the most important asset they have. If your team isn’t aligned, self-starters or even motivated, then they’re not going to be able to meet any of the goals you set for them as a company.
Leadership is one of those skills that most startups struggle with. Even though it might seem like a small detail, investing in leadership skills and cultivating team leaders within your company can have a huge impact on the future of your business.
Who’s good at building leadership skills?
People who naturally possess leadership skills are often extroverted and passionate about the cause. They’re comfortable asking for what they need, and comfortable giving feedback when someone else is asking for it. They’re good at setting big, bold goals and creating an inspiring vision for their organization. And they’re able to be self-reflective and identify their own strengths and weaknesses. While there’s obviously no “one size fits all” when it comes to building leadership skills, this general profile does hold true for many people.
Knowing your strengths and weaknesses
Once you’ve identified who in your company is naturally good at building leadership skills, it’s also helpful to look at what kind of weaknesses they may have. One thing to keep in mind is that everyone has room to improve – even the best leaders in the world. Even so, there are certain personality traits and preferences that are more common among people who are already very good at leading. For example, people in the top 10% of their field are more likely to be introverted, yet also more likely to be introspective. That’s because these qualities help leaders come to a better understanding of their own strengths, weaknesses and limitations.
Find ways to build emotional intelligence in your team
Leaders who are also good communicators tend to have high EQ. So while they’re comfortable asking for feedback, they’re also good at taking feedback, and using it as a learning opportunity. They’re comfortable receiving recognition and praise, and yet they’re also able to recognize when someone else deserves recognition and praise. When it comes to building emotional intelligence in your team, there are a few ways to get started.
- Hold regular team meetings where you can practice giving and receiving feedback.
- Be a role model for your team. Your actions will influence them more than you realize.
- Encourage team members to challenge each other, and be open to receiving criticisms.
- Provide regular praise and recognition. It goes a long way.
Don’t be afraid to break the status quo
Leaders who are comfortable breaking the status quo are often also very flexible. That’s because they’re comfortable experimenting with new ideas, and they’re open to accepting when the initial plan doesn’t work out the way they had hoped. They’re also comfortable asking for help, and they’re comfortable delegating tasks to other team members. This kind of “no-holds-barred” approach can help you build a stronger team that’s willing to take risks, and isn’t afraid to make changes when needed.
Conclusion
Leadership plays an important role in any business. It helps cultivate a culture of accountability, transparency and trust within your company. And with that trust comes a willingness to accept new ideas and challenge the status quo. At the same time, leadership skills are not something that everyone possesses naturally. That’s why investing time and energy into building those skills can have a huge long-term impact on your company. In this article, we’ll share insights about how different personality types tend to lead, as well as practical tips for building leadership skills within your startup – from the moment you start hiring until you have an executive team in place.
