Why You Should Focus On Leadership

“Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision,

and relentlessly drive it to completion.” -- Jack Welch

You are a busy small business owner, running in a million directions, juggling all the balls, and wearing nearly all the hats! This business is your baby. Your passion created it, and it is your commitment and dedication to it that will keep it afloat.

But who will steer it?

Unfortunately, it is not enough to own and manage your business – even if you do so flawlessly.

You also must lead it.

Some small business owners mistakenly believe that they only need to become leaders when their company grows to include a large number of employees. But the truth is leadership is just as important – if not more so – when your business is small. In fact, the act of nurturing and guiding your business into existence is, in and of itself, a form of leadership! From the getgo, having strong leadership skills is critical for any business, regardless of size. Effective leadership can mean the difference between a small business that fails and one that succeeds. 

As a small business owner, you hardly have time to have lunch! However, you should make time to focus on cultivating the leadership skills that will carry your business into the future.

WHAT IS BUSINESS LEADERSHIP?

Business leadership is often described as having the ability to lead employees and a company through anything that affects the business in any way. Leadership is most often discussed as important and necessary during difficult circumstances or conditions. But leadership is critical through times of positive change as well, like during periods of rapid growth or evolution. Business leaders help navigate all types of dynamic environments, negotiating opportunities and obstacles while keeping the end goal in mind.

Effective leadership is a complex undertaking that involves defining, providing, and maintaining a vision and path that will lead to growth and success. 

There are several reasons why cultivating effective leadership skills is critical for any small business owner.

1. Effective business leaders give the company direction.  Business owners and managers handle invoices and product development, establish social media marketing strategies, and provide customer support and service. Business leaders create a vision for the company and keep an eye on the bigger picture of the business’s landscape. Small business leaders direct the company toward goals, constantly reorienting productivity and productivity to keep the company heading in a specific direction. 

2. Effective business leaders set the tone for the business.  Similar to determining a company’s core values, setting the tone for a business can be of nearly equal importance. By setting the tone for company culture, business leaders model the ideas and beliefs that characterize it. Is the culture laidback and relaxed? Is it striving and ambitious – ruthless in its pursuit of profit? Does the company value doing good and making positive change? By identifying the blend of unique characteristics that make the company unique, a business leader aligns themselves with the actions and the intentions the company embodies and encourages other team members to do the same.

3. Effective business leaders motivate others to work towards collective goals.  In every business – especially those with slim operating margins – everyone must remain motivated to do their part and help bring the company to success. An effective always keeping the company’s best interests in mind and leads by example. Celebrating small victories and acknowledging hard work keeps enthusiasm for the business high. When a business leader can make members of the company feel valued, they are more likely to remain engaged and work hard on the business’s behalf.

WHAT LEADERSHIP SKILLS SHOULD SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS FOCUS ON FIRST?

You need a deliberate leadership structure and strategy even before your business hires a single employee or contracts with a single virtual assistant. 

The data indicate that the best leaders:

• Develop a vision and consistently inspire others
• Stay focused on a set of clearly communicated goals
• Give and receive feedback
• Can ask for help and admit their weaknesses
• Are transparent, reliable, and approachable
• Understand and identify strengths and weaknesses within the context of the environment

These skills are among the most important ones to cultivate as a small business owner looking to add to their leadership toolbox. 

MILITARY LEADERSHIP LESSONS LEARNED

Rich lessons in leadership are also readily found within the military. Freedom Maker’s leader, Laura Renner, is an Air Force veteran. She adds three additional leadership qualities to the list above from her time on active duty.

She believes the best leaders:

• Truly take care of their people.  People will follow people who are genuine and real. They know if their leader is a leader or is simply good at “managing up.” A true leader listens and does what is needed so that everyone is best equipped to do their jobs. Small business owners should work truly know and care for the people they bring into their company. Understanding your team’s personalities, goals, talents, and limitations can help you best care for their needs while they serve the company.
  
  
• Remain flexible always.  Flexibility is a critical key to effective leadership. Leaders must be able to constantly adapt as new challenges and opportunities arise. In small business environments, even minute or seemingly slight challenges could cause large ripples and potentially throw a company off course. An effective business leader can nimbly adjust and weather any storm.
  
  
• Put the mission first.  Effective business leaders are able to capably communicate the mission to all who work to accomplish it. Communication is critical in leadership because everyone in the organization must understand the mission and know what their role is to achieve it. A strong leader models this mission-first ethos by setting their own ego aside and asking for help when needed. Openly receiving feedback and making adjustments as necessary helps ensure that the business’s mission is successfully achieved.

SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS SHOULD FOCUS ON LEADERSHIP

Leadership helps provide a vision for any business, project, or venture. Fundamental leadership skills are critical to successfully executing any strategy and can mean the difference between entrepreneurial success or failure. Regardless of the size or scope of your business, it is never too early to start focusing on what being a leader means to you and honing your skills.

Start carving out time in your schedule to focus on leadership.  Contact Freedom Makers today to outsource some of your daily, administrative or time-intensive tasks to a qualified virtual assistant and lead your business to success!