You might feel confident in your ability to lead and the vision you have for your team. But what if it doesn’t feel like your employees are ready to follow you?

Leadership can be abstract, hard to quantify and sometimes difficult to convey to others. However, there are things you can do to show employees you’re leading the way.

Lead by example

If you want your employees to work harder to meet deadlines, or have a team spirit, you need to set the tone by doing it yourself. In addition to providing guidance, when you work ‘down in the trenches’ it is an inspiration to others. Getting your hands dirty also demonstrates that it’s not all about you but about working together, and not taking an ivory tower approach.

Be visible and communicate

Working alongside your employees also means you’ll be visible, and maintaining that visibility is another characteristic of good leadership.

Make regular trips around the company to converse with your employees and build relationships with them. Strong connections with your employees not only help to motivate staff, it also makes things easier when you have to deliver unpopular news.

Listen and adapt

People working in management and executive positions are accustom to trusting their own instincts. By doing so they may tune out valuable information coming from those around them.

Make an effort to listen to, and follow through on, any suggestions deemed worth investigating. This means being open-minded to different opinions with a readiness to make changes as needed in the way things are done. Successful leaders don’t fear change; they seek it out and embrace it.

Prepare your staff

Some of the greatest athletes in the world often say that their accomplishments boil down to relentless practice and preparation; being a great leader is no different.

Effective leaders know to prepare for sales pitches, negotiations and presentations but great leaders also prepare for everyday occurrences. Have plans in place for anything from a natural disaster to the departure of a key employee. Where appropriate, share these contingency plans with your staff so they feel secure knowing you’re in charge.

Maintain your sense of humor

The workplace can be a very serious environment, but it doesn’t have to be this way all the time.  Allowing your staff to take a few mental breaks during the day for some light conversation doesn’t cost you much. This kind of atmosphere will allow you to hold onto your top workers for less than what you might have to pay them to tolerate daily misery.

Having a sense of humor also helps when things aren’t going your way. The company can have a bad quarter; employees make mistakes. Being able to find the humor in these negative situations, as opposed to panicking about them, creates an environment conducive to finding solutions.

A great leader needs great employees. The team at Long Island Temps knows how to identify outstanding individuals in the workforce Contact us today and we will get started on providing you with perfect staffing solutions.