How to Be a Leader as Opposed to Just a Manager

Leaders and managers differ in a lot of minor and major aspects: charismatic vs. authoritarian, people- vs. work focused, experimental vs. risk averse. Innovation vs. administration; development vs. maintenance. The manager accepts reality, whereas the leader investigates it. The manager focuses on systems and structure, but the leader focuses on individuals. The manager has a short-range view; the leader has a long-range perspective. The manager might ask how and when; your true leader asks what and why.

To be a team leader requires that you are capable of inspiring personal loyalty amongst your subordinates. For most of us, although we might occasionally enjoy our jobs, a job is something tedious and unavoidable. When you can motivate your people to love their work, to challenge themselves, to look for the remarkable in every job opportunity, then you will be a leader.

While it is generally agreed that leaders make more effective captains of industry, managers are the cogs that allow the whole machine to run efficiently, practically, and above all, predictably. If you want to find a job as a manager, you need to ask yourself whether you can not only benefit the company you work for, but also whether you are truly capable of patiently extracting the best out of your workers. A lot of managers expect to be dazzled, without bothering to ask themselves if they dazzle the people they are trying to manage. In the same way that you should expect originality and ingenuity, so should the true leader be original and ingenious.

A manager leads with words. A leader leads by example. A manager expects the best value for money. A leader is harder on himself than his team. A manager demands respect. A leader commands respect. A manager elicits the bare minimum. A leader inspires unshakable faith.

That said; the skills of leadership and management are not exclusive in nature. Leaders who don’t display certain management skills will be ineffective when it comes to the finer details, such as checking time cards, completing employee reviews and scheduling employee leave time; all functions that employers require their managers to fulfil on a daily basis.

Bureaucracy and protocol are the less desirable attributes of a management position, and a leader in a managerial position who cannot focus on these details will be useless to their employers. Ideally you want to be a manager with leadership skills, with the wisdom and prudence to fulfil your duties, as well as excite your team.

So what steps can you take to be an effective leader?

Ask yourself what is important to you and your company. Evaluate your ethics, beliefs, values and performance expectations and ask yourself how you can demonstrate these qualities in your everyday undertakings. Assess the organisation for which you work, and decide whether they support and need a leader in your role. Try to discover the best methods to inspire each individual in your team. Consider any additional assistance your team might need to succeed, to feel fulfilled and needed in the larger organisational structure. Being a leader often means putting your ego aside, listening to suggestions and controlling your emotions for the benefit of your team.

It’s likely you will go through this process repeatedly in your job search to balance your duties and aspirational desires. While you can, and should, expect yourself and your company to make changes, it is unreasonable to assume that change will happen immediately. If you feel that the system needs revolutionising, and that your team has fallen into an unproductive rut, the only course of action which will guarantee change is by patiently setting and persistently good example.

Another important aspect to engendering change is to open the channels of communication. Listen to your team. Listen to your clients. Listen to your bosses and their wives, the cleaning staff and the receptionist. Find out what their dreams are, and whether they have any good ideas that they might have been too afraid to mention. As important as your opinion and convictions may be, a successful leader knows when to keep still and absorb.

Finally, whether you have always believed you’d gain the hearts of a team, or have never aspired to lead at all, leadership qualities are traits which pave the way for a successful and rewarding career. Demonstrating leadership qualities often results in opportunities of leadership being offered, or trust from your employers being freely given. Your employment search might not lead you to a position of authority, but if you allow yourself to display qualities that other people desire, you will find your work environment infinitely improved.

Source: http://talentocean.co.za/magazine/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=34:being-a-leader-as-opposed-to-just-a-manager