If you were to sit down with ten different entrepreneurs and ask them what they believe makes a great leader you would most likely receive 10 different answers. However, there are some important attributes that seem to get spoken about more than others. Here is a good list of traits that an individual should focus on developing if they aspire to become a successful leader.  

Important Attributes: Focus On Productivity 

The term office politics is a term that most Australian employees hate. Despite this a suvey found that over 50 percent of employees believe that playing politics is helpful when it comes to obtaining a promotion in the workplace.  

An unfortunate side-effect of playing politics is that rather than focusing on working hard some employees might engage in petty battles that drag down productivity and increase stress.  

In most cases, leaders are to blame for this toxic behavior as it is often the leader who creates a culture of favoritism. Leaders often think their actions are simply a way of increasing friendships with workers who they naturally like. However, by doing this they are only doing their company a disservice. All too often, such relationships allow poor performers and toxic employees to gain power in the workplace, subsequently driving out top talent.  

It would be much more beneficial for a business to focus on productivity as opposed to playing politics. Focussing on productivity reduces toxic politics and by doing so creates a more inclusive and profitable business environment. Favouritism is always harmful in the office, it is especially harmful when a person’s actual contributions to the company have no impact on how they are treated.  

Important Attributes: Have Strong Communication Boundaries  

Communication or a lack of it is often a make or break issue when it comes to leadership. Good communication skills help employees feel valued, create a culture of accountability and make sure that everyone has the information they need to perform to the best of their abilities when they are at work. 

A survey found that 97 percent of respondents believe that communications within the workplace environment have a daily impact on their ability to perform tasks at work.    

A great leader will get to the point and focus on solving problems, not wasting time blaming and discussing the issue repeatedly. A great leader will listen, get to the point right away, and stay on one topic so that it can be resolved. 

Great leaders clarify with their team the expectations they have of them regarding the timing of information-sharing. When they delegate tasks, they give a deadline for response, so that the recipient knows whether the work needs to be done immediately, or if they have until, say, Friday to provide a deliverable. 

The ability to communicate clearly and directly is essential regardless of whether you speak to employees in person or over email. Adopting tools that facilitate communications outside of in-person meetings for example; Microsoft Teams or Zoom can further enhance your effectiveness and agility by keeping everyone on the same page, even if your team is geographically not living in the same location. 

Furthermore, a great leader should also set expectations for how and what their employees should communicate. Understanding who should have access to what information can be just as crucial for keeping everything running smoothly.  

Important Attributes: Be Open Minded and Avoid Being Set in Your Ways 

A successful leader isn’t content with the status quo, instead, a great leader is comfortable with the fact that they don’t know everything and often aren’t the most intelligent person in the room.  

Being humble and open-minded will make a leader easier to listen to and means that their employees will find them more trustworthy. It also makes them more actively engaged in learning to improve their abilities and their company’s output.  

Living and acting with a sense of curiosity and a desire to improve one’s performance also sets a valuable example to the rest of the team. Not only will employees be more willing to share their insights and opinions, but they will be better motivated to take on self-improvement efforts that will increase the likelihood of a business becoming more successful in the future and achieving the goals they set out to accomplish.