“Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision and relentlessly drive it to completion.” – Jack Welch (former chairman and CEO of General Electric Co.)
Leadership styles of small business owners are different from that of the large corporations. The approach for running a small business is different from that of running a large organization. A recent study conducted by Inc.com tells that small business owners perform better under pressure than CEOs of large companies. Despite that, many small businesses fail within the first five years due to poor leadership qualities of the SMB owners. What could be the reason? What is the ‘in-thing’ that is missing in a small business owner who has failed? Here we have put together a few points that would be useful for startup owners and also the established SMB owners to follow.
Leadership Qualities of a Small Business Owner
One thing that all small business owners need to keep in mind is never to emulate what the high-profile Fortune 500 CEOs do. Large companies have an organizational structure that makes it possible for their leaders to focus on the company’s vision. In reality, small businesses have to go beyond a brand based primarily on your image. Let’s take a look at a few things that will make you a good small business owner.
Are you dedicated and passionate about your business? – As a small business owner if you are passionate about your business, you are likely to extend your enthusiasm to your employees. You should motivate and inspire dedication in your staff to work as a team to achieve the goal of your business.
- Do not Forget to Appreciate your Employees – The success of your business depends on the people in your firm. Do not hesitate to appreciate even the small things that your employees have done to make a project a success. This draws the employees closer to the company.
- Be Fair and Just – Do not assume or jump to conclusions right away. If a problem arises between employees or among teams, show your patience by hearing both sides of the story. Gather enough facts before passing judgment. Your employees will not only trust you but will show you a great amount of dedication when they feel like they are being treated fairly.
- Nurture your Employees – Remember, when someone is working for you, they are looking up to you for advice on how to progress their career. An ideal leader would coach his employees rather than just lead them. Give them space and also create an atmosphere where your employees know that they have to get their work done in order to complete the company mission. By doing so, you are encouraging them to climb up the ladder of your organization as well as providing them an opportunity to start their own venture. lead Nurturing is an amazing quality of an ideal boss.
- Be Proactive – Plan for the future of your business, keeping in mind the unforeseen eventualities. At the time of a mishap, employees would look to you because they are not sure what is to be done next. Instead of playing the blame game, it is advisable to make decisions which are most suitable to the current situation of your business. The crises will come and go, it is your decision making skills that will bind your employees to you.
- Discover ways to be happy everyday – Remember when you dreamt of forming your own company, it made you happy. Therefore, you should assert ways to sustain that happiness as your company grows. Hire employees who like to work independently, are self-motivated and are not afraid to make decisions. Find ones who are willing to go the extra mile to shoulder responsibilities to make the dream of the company come true. Therefore, as a leader/owner of your business, be honest with your employees.
A good leader would be creating new leaders instead of increasing the number of followers. What are some leadership skills you use?
Flickr image by poptech
