I recently came across a research study by the Six Seconds organization (www.6seconds.org). They wanted to find out what creates exceptional leadership today. Let me share with you their main findings:
1. Stand-out leaders have a strong focus on others.
While for high performing leaders, “others” is associated with effective work, then feelings and needs, for the highest performers, “others” is associated primarily with caring about people and clients. Top performers go deeper emotionally – not just caring, but personal caring. Not just a good attitude, but giving the energy for people to smile.
2. The best leaders start with caring, then create the “right” emotions for success.
Top performers have strong “people-first” skills. The highest-performing leaders are generating results with and through people – and emotions. They create emotional conditions for people to thrive.
3. Emotions drive people, people drive performance.
The best leaders are focused on people, not tasks. They are creating a context, or climate, for high performance. They create effective emotional conditions. They motivate through passion, energy, and genuine care.
Let me add some more points based on my own experience.
– When you hire people, hire for attitude. Make sure that the people you recruit have great interpersonal skills (high EQ = emotional quotient).
– When you promote people, make sure that you promote people with great people skills rather than “only” were top performers in their previous function.
Gallup, an American performance management consulting firm, has stated that companies fail to have the right candidate with the right talent for the job a frightening 82% of the time. They apply a flawed methodology for selecting people into management. Companies typically base decisions on an employee’s past performance and then give them an entirely different role.
– Communicate across your organization that great people skills are the key criteria for any promotion and for any managerial position.
– Watch out for team players in your hiring and promotion process. Eliminate the “big ego” – guys.
– Don’t focus only on your company’s shareholders. Take also genuine care of your employees, customers, and the society. Like this, you have developed a 21st century leadership approach that helps you to provide meaning and purpose to your employees which in turn increases their motivation. If you take great care of your employees, customers, and society, stand-out results for all stakeholders will follow, including top results for your company’s shareholders.
– Make employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction a strategic goal of your organization.
– Develop a genuine care culture across your company. Give your employees respect, praise, and recognition. Always be positive. Address the human needs of your stakeholders and make them feel good. Create momentum in your organization. Leadership guru John Maxwell says: “Managers solve problems; leaders create momentum.” If you create momentum, “The Big Mo”, as he calls it, the organization picks up steam. Maxwell, who refers to momentum “a leader’s best friend”, states that only a leader can create momentum. Followers catch it, and through momentum, get inspired to perform.
What we can learn from all that is that a strong people focus and soft values drive exceptional hard results.
