Leadership and Management: The Best Managers Also Lead

Leaders are in the business of preparing for the future.
Small business owners and entrepreneurs are known for seeking new beginnings, risk and change. They thrive on a healthy appetite for uncertainty and challenges. In order to grow and succeed, they need the combined expertise of leadership and management.

Like entrepreneurs, leaders crave and relish change and challenges. Leaders are qualified to challenge others because they first challenge themselves. They purposely seek out new and unfamiliar situations. In the business world these leaders similarly manage employees by challenging them to move out of their comfort zones. 

To lead others to new heights, leaders first start with themselves.
I work with small businesses and help train leaders. I’ve always thought that to be an effective leader, you must first begin with “self.” You can only take others as high as you have already taken yourself.

Authentic leaders get up every morning and think about ways to make the world a better place. If you think about it, not all managers are good leaders. However, in most cases, a successful leader is also an excellent manager. Successful leader-managers produce high-achieving teams by:

Basically, they inspire others to go beyond the day-to-day requirements and commit to following a vision and goals that have been clearly communicated.

In other words, the best managers embody both leadership and management expertise. They engage and energize their teams. They send out and receive “good vibes.” They are cheerleaders who genuinely and enthusiastically inspire motivated teams.

Four Leadership and Management Hats
Let’s face it. Starting and growing a prosperous small business is not easy. To help you grow, employ people equally adept at performing complementary leadership and management roles. Typically, you want managers who can successfully wear the following leadership “hats:”   

1. The Teacher Hat: As teachers, they seek to enhance employee competencies. Teachers find the key to unlocking potential. They focus on employee strengths, not their weaknesses. They understand that not all employees work in the same way. They know how to recognize each employee as an individual. They work with them to recognize their talents and put them to good use.
2. The Administrative Hat:  As administrators, they are visibly in control and they ensure productivity. Operating in multiple environments, they are coordinators and disciplinarians. They track statistics and if employees are not meeting performance expectations, they coach and, if necessary, redirect resources. They not only ensure that the work gets done; as time goes on, they see that it’s done in a process of continuing improvement. They are always asking their employees, “We did well at that level; now how do we get to the next level?”
3. The Inspirer Hat:  Inspirers find ways to influence others. They inspire a commitment to work toward common goals or a vision. By stepping forward to make a difference, their everyday actions reflect the talk. They set an example for embracing change. They offer fresh insights and get people excited about them. They also demonstrate the flexibility required to drive and make necessary adjustments and changes for the common good.
4. The Champion Hat: Champions support employees as whole people and they focus on mutual gains. They understand that it’s critical to communicate and achieve mutual benefits for both the business and the employees. This is what a leader does; a leader supports their team. You hear the term “Servant Leadership” in organizational development circles. In my view, that term describes someone who is truly willing to show their team that they are a part of their team; they do not behave as someone above or apart from them.

For example: I recall two popular movies, Braveheart and Gladiator.  The protagonists were respected as great leaders because they fought along side their troops. Likewise, when managers roll up their sleeves and work along side their teams, they earn respect and admiration; and they instill confidence. They figure, if the manager jumps into the trenches then they have no excuses for underperforming.

We know that small business owners take a leap of faith to start and grow a business. To successfully wear these four hats, effective leader-managers will mentally and emotionally connect with their employees.

Simply put: To compete in this fast-paced economy, you need leader-managers who are big-thinkers and have big hearts for their people.

I’ve always thought that to be an effective leader, you must first begin with “self.” You can only take others as high as you have already taken yourself.