[November 21, 2020] Boss and leader are terms used interchangeably in the workplace setting. But there is a world of difference between both of them.
While bosses command, leaders inspire; bosses place the blame, leaders accept the blame; bosses criticize, leaders encourage. If you are holding a supervisory role, reflect on your own actions to decide who you are.
If you inspire people by your words and actions, that’s great. But if someone thinks that leadership is not about leading with the example and it’s more like passing out commands, then ask them to read this article.
Five Sensational Ways to Become a True Leader (Not A Boss)
Read on to know how you can be a great leader:
1. Be a Good Listener
Great leaders pay attention to what their employees are saying. Listening to your employees shows that you care for them, you don’t judge them, and you are an empathetic soul. According to studies, 85% of what leaders know is learned from listening. Knowing that employee productivity levels are impacted by a number of factors, there is a need for understanding the ins and outs links to their life at the office.
2. Guide, but Don’t Control Your Team
Nobody likes to be controlled. Your workers may listen to your orders out the fear of losing the job; but not for the matter of respect. There is a noteworthy difference between guiding and controlling people.
Guiding helps you to accomplish a framework and structure of teamwork and a sense of better interaction. It includes supporting and helping your workers through their difficulties, enabling you to boost up the overall performance of the workplace.
3. Give Credit, Accept Blame
Bosses are the ones who love to take all the credit when goals are achieved successfully, and they are the ones who blame their employees when targets aren’t met. These double standards could only be found in the bosses but not within the real leaders.
Successful frontrunners know that the actual triumph associated with teamwork. They love to showcase their teams’ effort when they succeed and have the guts of accepting the responsibility when situations are heftier.
4. Encourage Self-Awareness
If you want to be a great leader, self-awareness is the key. It is the ability to keep a check on your own emotions and how you react in several situations. Leaders with high self-awareness know their strengths and weaknesses and what triggers and motivates them.
Moreover, self-awareness is important because it leads to improved self-care. Leaders are key personnel who inspire others; therefore, they should take care of themselves.
5. Create Teaching Moments
When an employee’s education or work needs to be changed, there is an occasion to show them how to do it properly and make them feel valued. By imagining yourself as an advisor rather than a judge, a leader helps move things in a confident direction.
Final words
Ideally, leadership is about bringing out talented people by nurturing a workplace in which every individual is allowed to thrive. The transition from ‘boss’ to ‘leader’ is challenging, but it is extremely beneficial in the long run.
Good article, Mr. John. Thank you for adding to Gen. Satterfield’s blog.
A comment on #4 “Encourage Self-awareness.” I believe it would be more suitable to call this “Recognize your strengths and weaknesses.” Self-awareness is a bit vague unless thoroughly explained. Just my thoughts. Good luck Mr. W in your future writing.
Good point, Maureen!
Another guest writer that puts the exclamation mark on a theme that Gen. Satterfield continues to hammer home. Leadership means adopting specific traits that others can understand and a vision they can relate to and follow. The idea to “guide” rather than “control” is as old as when humans first walked the earth. Good job, John W.
Yep, that’s it all right. Coming in from a long dog walk with Missie (my German Shepard) and sitting down behind my computer, I always look forward to reading what Gen. Satterfield has in store for me. I am never disappointed. There is a lesson here for us all – and for Mr. William – “keep your powder dry” and wait for the opportune moment to show what you have inside. The best leaders take on the most difficult challenges and WIN.
Good points Tom and Otto. Yes, basic article here but worthwhile to read and contemplate. Reinforced training, I do believe Gen. Satterfield once called it. 👍
Right Otto, I’m also never disappointed. Even tho this entry by John is basic, it does touch on the major differences betw a boss and a leader. Most don’t know the diff and couldn’t care less (until they can compare them).
Good job, Mr. William. Thank you.
Hi John, excellent but basic leadership article. It is always good to read about basic leader differences when compared to a “boss.” We all had bosses, we haven’t all had a leader who could inspire us.