When You’re Not a “Feel-Good” Type of Leader

A C-level executive once told me, “Do I really need to go to charm school and learn to become a cheerleader? I am not a ‘rah-rah’ type of leader.” He went on to add, “My job is to ensure the organization has clear goals, and that we are successful in reaching those goals. Employees need to be self-motivated. If people around here are looking for a touchy-feely, feel-good type of leader, they are working for the wrong company. I just expect people to do their jobs.”

I’ve written and spoken for years on the role of a leader’s attitude and communication style and its impact on the rest of the team. Some leaders are more focused on relationships. Other leaders are highly focused on goals and accomplishment. Still, other leaders are highly focused on details and the process of how goals will be accomplished. While all of these leadership styles are critical to an organization’s balance and success, leaders tend to feel most confident when they’re able to lead with their preferred or dominant style.

I’ve worked with leaders who excel in each one of those leadership styles, and have learned that what makes a good leader great is the ability to correctly adapt their style to the situation. When there is a need for strategic focus, goal accomplishment and accountability, they have the ability to achieve strategic clarity, develop a plan for accomplishment, gain buy-in from team members and hold people accountable. When there is a need for a defined process, they’re able to ask the right questions and bring discipline, accuracy and quality to the project. And, since all the work is done with people, when team members need constructive feedback or words of encouragement, they are able to communicate in a way that builds even stronger relationships with employees who are even more motivated to achieve the goals.

If you feel that being a cheerleader or encourager is not your dominant style or is not “who you are,” here are six tips that will help you in borrowing from this competency and allow you to both meet the needs of your team members and build a culture where employees love coming to work.

Remember, it’s Not All About You

Even though you don’t need a cheerleader or an encourager to get your work done, most people feel even more motivated when they know their leader believes in them, praises their good work and provides inspiration when the job gets tough or problems need to be overcome.

The Culture is Your Job

How would employees describe you as a leader and the team culture you create? Depressing? Ho hum? Task oriented? Or, are people really excited about the work and the people? Every day when you walk into the office, email a team member or talk to an employee by phone, your words set the tone. Every morning, a leader needs to be able to wake up feeling excited about the where the team or company is heading. What is your team doing that you’re really excited about? What are your direct reports doing that you’re excited about? You have a huge impact on workplace culture. Read on to make sure you are lifting your team’s spirits and creating a culture where people look forward to coming to work each day.

Be Positive

The old cliché is so true: is the glass half full or half empty? The pessimist focuses their communication on the glass being half empty. The reality is the glass can be whatever you want it to be…either half empty or full. Negative leaders are described as unpredictable and moody. And, moody is not helpful when you are trying to build relationships where people are motivated to follow you. Our research tells us that employees find it easier to be engaged and motivated to do whatever it takes when their leader spends the majority of their time being positive in their communication.

Listen and Show Empathy

When you do a great job listening, your team members feel cared about and valued. Before you speak, ask questions to gain even more clarification to ensure you fully understand your counterpart’s viewpoint. You will also quickly learn by listening what you need to do or say to offer the right encouragement or be a cheerleader.

Provide Constructive Feedback with Encouragement

Even when you have to deliver constructive, tough feedback, provide the feedback in a way that ll have the highest chances of being positively received by the recipient. A good test when you have to deliver tough feedback is to ask the recipient if they know that you do care about their success and believe they have the ability to improve in the area being discussed.

Provide Ample Praise and Recognition

When your employees do great work, immediately tell them that you’re excited about what they have accomplished, encourage them to keep up the great work, and ask them if they need any additional support from you or someone else in the organization.

So the honest answer to the executive who asked the question is: Yes, at times you do need to be a cheerleader, encourager and have the ability to communicate in a style that creates an environment where people are motivated to do their best work. Leaders who have ability to adapt their communication style to the needs of the recipient, (which occasionally means being a cheerleader) have more followers.

Image courtesy Flickr user, Courtney Rhodes.