How To Be A Better Leader

How to Build Charisma and Influence Others

Becoming an influential leader doesn’t mean that you have to be born into a position of power

Charisma is a quality possessed by some people that makes them generally perceived as being more attractive, powerful, and effective. By definition, it is the ability to attract or fascinate others. In other words, charisma makes you a leader with an army of loyal followers. If this sounds like you, congratulations! Use these tips to push your charismatic skills to the next level and influence others in your professional life.

The word charisma comes from a Greek word meaning “gift from the Gods”. It is often associated with leaders in politics and business who can rally people around a particular cause or ideology using nothing but their personality alone.

Charisma is what you are when nobody’s looking. — Tony Robbins

Charisma has been a topic in management and business strategy for centuries.

Aristotle wrote about charisma in his works On Rhetoric and Politics. He believed that it was a natural gift given from God itself to certain leaders, who were born with the trait and never lost it. It’s the kind of quality that makes people aspire to follow them, and is often referred to as “the leader’s magic”.

Many have tried to define it, but there is no right or wrong definition. The best definition I’ve come across is the following; Charisma means being able to “pull” other people toward your point of view instead of pushing them away.

In fact, the most charismatic leaders are often those who earn their position through sheer determination and hard work.

1. Listen To Others More Than Talking

• One of your most important duties as a leader is to “listen” and “watch”. This means listening with both ears and eyes, paying closer attention to what’s happening around you, and taking in every bit of feedback that you can. It also means watching the people who work for you; observing their body language and facial expressions for clues about what they’re feeling. In this way, you can determine how well your employees are working, and how to lead them effectively in the future.

2. Give Time Before Taking Action Or Giving Advice — It’s Better Spent Listening Than Talking Anyway!

• Be open to change. A great leader welcomes change; in fact, one of his most important responsibilities is shaping the environment in which others can succeed. Keeping an open mind and remaining flexible enables you to make fast adjustments to changing circumstances, which will inevitably arise at some point as part of being a leader

3. Be Aware That People Aren’t Looking For Someone To Just Listen To Them

They are looking for someone to care about them. To be a better leader, you must become interested in the people around you.

• So many times we get caught up in our “precious” ideas that we forget that no idea is so good that it will make anyone want to follow you blindly into the fire. Real leaders don’t tell people WHAT to do, they tell them WHY. It’s not about WHAT you plan on doing, it’s about WHY your team follows you into battle with such ferocity and passion. It’s not about what you are going to do or say next, it’s about how much they believe in your vision and mission so much that they would walk through fire for it. If your team doesn’t believe in your vision and mission then you are going to have trouble attracting people who want to follow you.

4. Communicate Effectively And Take Action

• You can’t build trust without honesty; furthermore, well-aligned teams that know where they stand are more productive and tend to get along better as well. A team that has a clear understanding of goals, roles, and responsibilities is going to be able to work with both more focus and flexibility. When everyone knows what’s happening — including all the changes and new developments — they are not left guessing, which helps keep the atmosphere positive. People can spend more time doing what they do best, rather than worrying if they are on the right track. The clearer you are about your purpose, the greater your team’s commitment is likely to be. This means that your team will not only perform better but will also view their leader in a more positive light as well.

5. Be Aware Of What Is Going On In The World So You Can Share A Real-World Experience With Others

That’s more valuable than talking about something you know nothing about.

• Leadership is not about an experience that you have. It’s about the knowledge you bring to the table. The world has enough leaders talking about something they know nothing about; in fact, there are too many of them in some industries! Instead, try to teach people things that they can use in the real world and that can make a positive impact on their life. Real-world experience is more important than any classroom-based education.

6. Take A Risk Or Take Some Time For Your Own Personal Development

There are no shortcuts!

• There are no shortcuts to success. A leader should always be willing to listen to the people who follow him, take on the challenges that they face, and not keep any information to himself that would help solve these problems. If you want to be a better leader, you must be willing to learn from your mistakes and improve, but also share with others what you get out of the experience, so that they can apply it as well.

7. Be An Example For Others To Follow

Both at work and outside the workplace.

• Leadership is about more than getting results, it’s about challenging people to bring their best and make them look forward to coming to work every day. Leadership is not about having a title or being in charge, it’s about being a steward of the people around you and helping them every step of the way on their journey towards success.

8. Don’t Be Afraid Of Conflict

Learn to manage, resolve and diffuse conflict effectively — otherwise, you’ll lead your team into conflict and frustration instead of working towards a positive goal.

• Adaptability is one of the most important characteristics that leaders need in order to be successful. Leaders are only as good as their team members. When things don’t go according to plan, a leader should always take a step back and ask what he can do differently to make things better for everyone involved. If your team is struggling because the work environment isn’t right for them, speak up! Don’t be afraid to tell them how you would have solved the problem differently if you were in that situation.

9. Be A Person With Integrity Who Gets Things Done

• Leaders are people who take initiative and take action. They don’t just sit around making excuses or dreaming up ideas that never get done. They make things happen, one step at a time toward their goals. They not only talk the talk because they have walked the walk before leading anyone else anywhere.

Takeaway

Try and listen more than talk, give time to others before giving advice, and be proactive in learning from others who do have a wealth of experience. Taking different actions based on the information you receive, and communicating effectively with your team are all important steps to becoming a better leader.

So how do you go about improving yourself as a leader? Well, we’ve done the rough work for you. Our list above outlines some of the key things that you can improve in your leadership skills. It’s not an exhaustive list by any stretch of the imagination, and there are more factors that make someone a good leader, so it’s definitely worth reading through all of these to see if they resonate with you.

A well-adjusted leader will follow these guidelines and more to become a more effective leader; Listening to others, making decisions, communicating effectively and taking action (without being afraid), learning from mistakes (always), taking initiative, managing conflicts, and negativity effectively and being an example to those around them.

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J.D Rehbein-Wrightstein founder of The Savytech articles is a writer who loves to help people discover their hidden potential as well as their true purpose in life. He inspires and educates people on living an awesome life with inspiring articles. Connect with him on Twitter for more!