I am sitting at 35,000 feet writing this whilst listening to Chopin (beautifully interpreted by Emile Pandolfi). I am on my way to meet, interact and evaluate a bunch a great people in Chennai, India. To me that is probably the most fun part of my job, to help others excel as leaders whilst applying my own ‘in-your-face’ leadership. Seeing others develop and grow due their own hard work and dedication is a marvel few people have the privilege to experience but it is indeed very rewarding.

What is ‘in-your-face’ leadership style, you ask? Well, I have in other write ups on my blog explained what I believe good leadership traits are. However, I have not shared how I myself practice leadership in daily situations. So let me:

I believe in being direct, open and honest. It is key to long term relationships between the leader and the people following the leader. You see, developing relationships is crucial. That takes time and patience. That requires the leader to listen and to really hear what the individuals have to say. I believe in being clear about expectations and to follow up to ensure that the right development needs are addressed. I am a fairly tough leader but I am tougher on myself than anyone else. I would never ask of anything that I myself would not do. We know this as leadership by example.

Leadership is about instilling motivation in the team which then leads to a higher performance standard by the fact that the leader simply is a role model in as many situations as possible. I believe in charismatic leadership. A charismatic leader who possesses an iron will to perform is a person that most would like to follow. Now, add an abundance of energy and humility to this and you probably have a lethal combination that would outperform most others. I am not claiming to possess all of this, but I try. Everyday, I try! Working on oneself all the time is the most important part as a leader. Just because you were good in the past do not by definition mean you will be good in the future. Leadership is as difficult as parenthood and I make mistakes in both areas. However, I have a constant need to improve myself and I take it seriously.

Another crucial task as a leader is to constantly evaluate your team members. Who has development needs, who has a bad attitude and how can this be corrected? Who is a star and how can this person be promoted to the next step? Who has potential but is not stepping forth enough? Who needs to be asked to leave due to poor performance? Constant evaluation… Nothing more important than to ensure that your people feel appreciated but also key for the leader is to surround him or herself with the best possible people. This can only happen with constant evaluation.

As we are about to land now, (and I have switched over to Mozart’s piano sonata No. 16 in C Major) I will leave you with one final thought; if you are going to lead others ask yourself, would I follow myself?

Good luck!