Exploring Your Leadership Style
I have had the (mis)fortune to work for a couple of bullies in my career.
Today I'm going to tell you a story involving one of them.
It's a small, silly, insignificant story. But I remember it to this day.
In one of my first jobs I was hired to look after the IT for a small office in Central London - it was basic IT support work with the occasional site visit to install and support systems at client offices.
One day fairly early on I was sitting at a table in the middle of the office space during my lunch break, reading a magazine. I had just finished eating and was minding my own business.
The office head comes in, sits down next to me, tilts her head to the side, pats the magazine, and says, "Is this work related?". As it happened it was but that's neither here nor there. I had no idea how to respond. I think I said something like, "I'm just having my lunch", but I felt so small and patronized in that moment. She said, "Haven't you got any work to be getting on with? Get on with it."
I felt sick, and ashamed. *And I hadn't done anything wrong.*
It was bizarre. But I learned from this incident - from then on I made sure that I spent my entire lunch break out of the office, usually in a food court nearby, so that I wouldn't feel like that again.
Writing about this now it seems like such a minor thing...however I can still recall the expression on her face and the feeling her actions created in me 25 years later.
Mind you, this company clearly didn't care about its employees. As part of my job I was expected to do installations on client sites, which could be as far away as Manchester. This meant leaving my place at 5am, driving to the office in Central London to pick up the equipment (including massive heavy CRT monitors), driving 4-5 hours to the site, doing the installation, and driving back again, all on the same day. I risked falling asleep at the wheel so many times it's a wonder I didn't end up in an accident.
I was young and I didn't know better. I allowed myself to be pushed around by a bully.
The takeaway from this is that your words and actions as a leader can have a long-lasting impact. I bet she doesn't even remember me - I quit after around 8 months I think - but I remember her and that lunch break.
My wonderful friend and fellow coach Ernest Barbaric and I being tourists
Leadership Style
Being aware of - and adapting - your style is a key skill for a leader.
One thing I strongly encourage among both my clients and the teams I work with is increasing self-awareness. As a leader you have a 'default' leadership style, and it's important to understand what that is. It's equally important to understand other styles and when you might employ them.
Different situations and contexts may require different approaches to leadership, and today I'm going to explore that a little bit, including when you might want to deploy something different to usual.
This list is by no means exhaustive however it covers many of the common approaches to leadership.
Autocratic Leadership
Also known as authoritarian leadership, this is characterized by a leader who makes decisions unilaterally, with little to no input from their team members. They maintain strict control over the decision-making process and tend to give specific instructions.
I have personally worked with leaders for whom this is the default in the past, and it's not fun. This style can come across as bullying if you're not very careful.
When to Use: This can be effective in crisis situations or when immediate decisions are required. However, it will stifle creativity, collaboration and reduce trust if used excessively in non-emergency situations. To be used sparingly, in my opinion.
Democratic Leadership
Democratic leadership encourages team members to be an integral part of the decision-making process. Leaders seek input, gather opinions, and consider team feedback before making a final decision.
Many of my favourite bosses over the years have defaulted to this style. It's particularly good at nurturing independent thinking and suits more experienced staff particularly well.
When to Use: This style is ideal when you want to get more diverse perspectives and it builds strong consensus with the team. It fosters a sense of ownership among team members, leading to increased motivation and engagement.
Transformational Leadership
Transformational leaders are often on a mission to get something done. They may have been hired for a specific project or purpose. They can often be inspiring, but risk leaving behind those that haven't yet bought into their vision.
I have a client who was working for a leader like this recently - unfortunately their boss was so focused on transformation they didn't bring any of the existing team along with them on their mission, resulting in an exodus of talented team members.
When to Use: Transformational leadership is particularly effective when a team or organization is undergoing significant change or when innovation and creativity are crucial. However it risks not being sustainable as a longer term approach.
Transactional Leadership
Transactional leadership is based on a system of rewards and punishments. Leaders establish clear expectations and reward compliance while addressing non-compliance through corrective actions. This is often expressed via OKRs or other objective systems, bonuses, etc..
This is a very 'run the business' style - this can be very helpful for establishing baselines and creating consistency.
When to Use: This style can be effective in settings where consistency and performance metrics are vital, such as in very process-oriented environments. This style can feel very 'operational' but there are times when it makes sense to deploy this. For example you might want to have periods of 'transactional' interspersed with 'transformational'.
Laissez-Faire Leadership
Laissez-faire leaders adopt a hands-off approach, providing autonomy to their team members. They trust their team to make decisions and take responsibility for their tasks.
Hands-off leaders put a lot of trust in their team - sometimes this might be 'forced' by having a larger team than is comfortably manageable - the leader has no choice but to let the team get on with it.
When to Use: Laissez-faire leadership works well when team members are highly skilled, self-motivated, and experienced. It can enhance creativity and innovation but may lead to confusion or a lack of direction in less mature teams.
Servant Leadership
Servant leaders prioritize the needs of their team members above their own. They focus on supporting and empowering their team to achieve their goals, often emphasizing personal growth and well-being. This is sometimes described as coaching leadership and it'll come as no surprise to you that I spend most of my time in this space.
I've worked for or alongside a couple of these over the years and, by using this style in combination with democratic leadership, they are often the most effective in the environments I've been in.
When to Use: Servant leadership is effective in fostering trust, collaboration, and a positive work culture. It is especially valuable when building strong, long-term relationships with team members is essential.
Conclusion
It can be helpful to think of these as ranges:
autocratic - democratic
transformational - transactional
laissez-faire - servant
It's rarely binary and you'll find that you have tendencies in each of the different areas.
Have a think about where you land on those spectrums. Where do you default to? Then, think about when you might want to adopt one or more of the other approaches, based on context and need.
Just...don't be a bully, eh?
When you're ready, I offer 1:1 coaching for leaders who are looking to take their life and career to the next level. Send me an email and we'll set up a time to have a chat.
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