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How to Find Out Your Style of Leadership

How to Find Out Your Style of Leadership | Arc Integrated

A topic that has been coming up regularly at Arc Integrated is how exactly to find out what kind of leadership style fits you best. There are a lot of styles out there and we often get stuck with the question “how do we choose the right one?”

Today, I will be going over some of the best ways in which you can answer that question so if that is of interest to you continue reading below!

Tip #1: Know What Works

The reality is, of all the leadership styles out there, there are some styles that will work for you, and others that won’t. What we know from over the course of four decades is that regardless of geography, industry, or even the size of your company, the teams that have the most psychological safety, are the teams that perform at the highest level. 

Therefore, if we know this to be the case, then the leadership style we should be embracing is the one that yields the best psychologically safe conditions for the team environment. By psychologically safe, we are referring to the idea that all employees and members of a team or organization can have their ideas seen, heard, and felt with absolute comfort. 

Tip #2: Evaluate Options & Study

I am going to go over four different styles that I think are important to take a look at. While definitions may vary, there are links to thought leaders in each of these areas for more study, if you’d like to pursue.  If you are a leader, I encourage you to look these over and notice the nuances of each of these approaches:

  • Conscious Leadership – This type of leadership is a style of self-awareness where the objective is to build a culture of “we” instead of “me”
  • Servant Leadership – This style of leadership puts emphasis on the team’s growth and well-being rather than on the leader themselves or the organization as a whole
  • Situational Leadership – This style of leadership revolves around matching behaviors with the performance needs of the individual/group
  • Authentic Leadership – This style of leadership inspires others around them by creating meaningful relationships and garnering high levels of trust

The best way in which you can figure out which leadership style works and what doesn’t is by testing the behaviors out individually and seeing the results.

Tip #3: Ask Yourself Strategic Questions

Another core element that we know about good leadership is that self-awareness and leadership are always linked. It’s impossible to become an excellent leader without having some degree of self-awareness. So, how exactly do we become better at self-awareness? My tip is to improve on the questions that you ask yourself.

Here are some examples of questions to ask yourself for improved self-awareness:

  • How am I motivated?
  • How do I aspire to inspire others?
  • How are others motivated? 
  • What are my strengths as a communicator? 
  • How do I hold people accountable?
  • What are some of my “blind spots”?

These strategic questions can be helpful in navigating what kind of style we have as a leader.

Tip #4: Find Yourself a Leadership Coach

There are many resources out there in regards to leadership coaches, and we certainly do a lot of this at Arc Integrated. Here at our firm, we provide executive coaching for leaders that want to improve their ability to motivate, inspire and create high levels of engagement within their teams and organizations. 

The biggest question that we often hear, however, is “how exactly do I find the right coach”? In my book CHANGES – The Busy Professional’s Guide to Reducing Stress, Accomplishing Goals, and Mastering Adaptability, I have devoted an entire section (part two) on how to find the right helping professional. There are about four chapters in that section that teach you how to find different professionals and in this case a leadership coach.

Tip #5: Be Flexible

The best leaders that we have personally worked with are those that are able to be flexible based on a number of factors. These factors can include:

  • The culture they are in
  • Who is in front of them 
  • The task at hand 
  • Familiarity with the individuals or task

This flexibility translates especially well when you are dealing with your style of leadership. It is important that we learn to be as flexible as possible as we navigate through our own path on finding our personal leadership style.

If you enjoyed this post and would like to watch the in-depth video version of 5 Ways Leaders Can Find Their Leadership Style, click here.

Additionally, if you have an interest in finding out your leadership style you are more than welcome to take our leadership quiz. The quiz takes about two minutes and you can receive immediate feedback from us!

As usual, schedule a time to connect if you have any questions.

Be well,

Michael

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Learn more about Arc Integrated:

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How to Effectively Have Difficult Conversations as a Leader

How to Effectively Have Difficult Conversations as a Leader | Arc Integrated

Difficult conversations tend to be a topic of concern that we here at Arc Integrated, deal with on a consistent basis. People tend to shy away from difficult conversations because they are just that – difficult. In today’s article, I will be going over five tips on how you as a leader can not only have, but be successful in having difficult conversations with those that you are leading. 

Tip #1: Be Well Prepared

One of the more straightforward, but extremely helpful, ways in which you can effectively have a difficult conversation, is to be well prepared beforehand. What we have found here at Arc Integrated is that the more prepared we go into a conversation, the easier it will be not only for the person you’re talking to but for yourself as well.

Some ways in which you can properly prepare for an upcoming difficult conversation include:

  • Understand the content, what you want to say, and do not go into the conversation by simply winging it
  • Learn about the person you want to talk to, personal touches help ease the conversation
  • Make sure that you do your due diligence and understand the scope of the issue at hand
  • Figure out what you need to do internally to prepare for the conversation

Tip #2: Stay Objective 

One of the cornerstones of difficult conversations is that they can be, unfortunately, very uncomfortable in nature. It is important to understand that this uncomfortable feeling can go both ways – for the leader initiating the conversation as well as the person being confronted. Due to the discomfort, oftentimes our emotions tend to escalate and you lose track of your thoughts or steer the conversation in a way it was never intended to go.

For these reasons, the more objective we can stay, the easier the conversation will end up being. This is specifically why it’s important to avoid leaning in on the negatives of people’s personalities or what is wrong with them in general. Make sure to stay super specific to the topic at hand.

One strategy that you can implement is called the SAR Model:

Situation: What is the observable situation that you are there to talk about

Action: What was the action that took place that was observable

Result: What was the result of the action that took place

This strategy breaks down into three simple, easy, and clear steps that will help you stay objective in your conversation.

Tip #3: Take Responsibility as a Leader

This is where difficult conversations and leadership have a strong connection. It’s important to take as much responsibility as you possibly can in a given situation. We see this on a weekly basis at Arc Integrated. The more responsibility a leader can take on, the better the outcomes tend to be. Now, it’s important to note that you as a leader should not take on too much, because there are some boundaries to responsibility. 

Here are some common examples of things in the workplace that you as a leader should take responsibility for with regards to the idea of “what does this person/team need?”:

  • More individual/team training
  • A change in their current position 
  • Frequent accountability updates and check-ins
  • Better or clearer instructions on tasks        

Also, it’s important to note while you take on that responsibility as a leader, to ask yourself – “What can I do differently to help impact this situation in a positive way?”

Tip #4: Manage your own Energy Internally

The more effort we put into managing our own energy, the better we will be when we go into a difficult conversation and emotions start to escalate. Some examples of activities you can implement into your schedule before having a difficult conversation include the following:

Whatever you decide to do, make sure that it calms your energy down so that when you go into the conversation, you’re coming into it with a sense of peace and relaxation. Even though there likely will be some tension involved, going into the conversation with a clear and concise mind will only help the situation.

If you would like to take it one step further, a way in which you can proactively manage your energy is by implementing a daily practice. Regardless of if it’s some kind of meditation, exercise or even journaling, the best way to manage your internal energy is to have a daily practice set in place.

Tip #5: Get Clarity Around the Next Steps

Often what drives continuous difficult conversations are the likes of miscommunication, confusion, and disagreement. If the two parties can get clear on what they have talked about and formulate a proper next step based on the conversation, it can leave the difficult conversation on a positive note.

As a leader, you need to understand and be really clear on the behavior that is going on and what you would like to be changed. Secondly, you need to set up a timeline in which you will circle back and have an additional meeting on what was previously discussed. Finally, talk it over and make sure you have covered if there are any other agreements that either you or your employee need to create before parting ways from the conversation. 

If you found this article interesting and want to learn more, feel free to watch the video version of 5 Tips for Having Difficult Conversations as a Leader. As always you can book a free coaching consulting appointment with me.

Be well,

Michael

Resources:

Learn more about Arc Integrated:

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