Let’s face it: other people are a necessary
part of your personal growth journey.
John Maxwell notes in his book, Winning With People, that nearly all our successes and failures can be traced back to the influence of those around us and how we build our influence with others.
He also said that, “if you do not connect
with others, influence is out of the question.”
Since moving to Montana, I’ve had to build mostly all new relationships.
With that in mind, let me ask: Do you need to improve your effectiveness as a leader?
Well, start with how you build
and sustain relationships.
Here are 5 points that many effective leaders have in common in terms of their relationship skills:
They’re self-aware. Boosting your self-awareness includes knowing your strengths and weaknesses, but also the impact that your behavior has on others.
They’re willing to delegate important tasks and decision-making. Besides being an efficient way to lead, delegating helps build trust on your team and builds experience and confidence in others.
They have strong interpersonal skills. This should arguably be #1, as it is that critical.
As a leader, you should be able to negotiate and handle problems without alienating others. This requires leadership empathy and understanding others’ perspectives
and needs. This is people skills!
They have a participative leadership style, As a strong leader, you are going to use effective listening skills and communication to involve others, build consensus, and influence decisions.
They give constructive, effective feedback. There is no such thing as “constructive criticism”—that’s an oxymoron. Instead, giving effective feedback and avoiding common mistakes in giving feedback is one of the best ways as a leader to improve your relationship skills. Feedback lets your people know how they’re doing, reinforces goals, and encourages strong effort.
Being good at relationships isn’t just a personality trait; it’s a key skill to have as a leader!
Relationship and people skills are what truly
separate a successful leader from the rest.
• How are your people skills?
• How are you at building relationships?
• What areas do you need to improve on to get better?