Are you looking to move into a management position? Or perhaps you are currently a new manager looking to build your skill base. Skills and lessons to practice and learn lessons for small business owners should be a priority, yes?
To lead is to measurably help others succeed.
While there is always the argument about the differences between management and leadership, management, leadership, and teamwork go hand in hand, don’t they?
So to build a strong team you need to be the type of manager that will measurably help others succeed, don’t you think?
Small business managers certainly need to grasp this fact and understand the concepts of the best management and leadership qualities and attributes don’t they? Spot on.
I have been in management and leadership positions in the military and business world for forty-five years and I often get asked what the best lessons for future business managers I have found. Surprisingly (or not) my list of lessons probably have varied to a degree, depending on when in my career it was constructed.
It can be hard to make the most of your time when you’re running a business, especially when you’re wearing a lot of different hats and trying to complete a lot of different tasks.
There are others who have been there, and they’ve found some methods to improve productivity.
The list of lessons is based on real-world experiences as well as managers and leaders I studied (including many bosses). For example, Dwight Eisenhower was only one of many I studied over those many years.
Being such a business manager is a lifelong learning process. You are never done learning and renewing lessons you have learned. Every great manager always looks for ways to improve their ability to improve their leadership qualities and attributes.
Here is a favorite example of mine. Anthony Trollope was in the business of writing books and writing a book is a big project. It is not the type of task that you can complete in a day. In some cases, merely writing a chapter is too big a task for a single day.
However, instead of measuring his progress based on the completion of chapters or books, Trollope measured his progress in 15-minute increments. This approach allowed him to enjoy feelings of satisfaction and accomplishment very quickly while continuing to work on the large task of writing a book.
This is a big deal for two reasons: Small measures of progress help to maintain momentum over the long-run, which means you’re more likely to finish large tasks. The faster you complete a productive task, the more quickly your day develops an attitude of productivity and effectiveness.
I have found this second point, the speed with which you complete your first task of the day, to be of particular importance for maintaining a highly productive output day after day.
Related: The Zen of Distinguishing Your Leadership Behaviors
If you read 10 books on business management, you could easily build a checklist of 50 or more management lessons for future business managers. But more is not necessarily better for the best lessons to study and apply.
The following lessons represent my favorite 13 lessons on business management that I believe could make the biggest impact. If I was starting my career over and could take 13 leadership lessons back in time with me, these are the ones I would choose:
Create an environment of continuous learning
It is absolutely necessary that business managers be good learners. They need to instill this in all their teams. They must learn from their mistakes.
To be most successful, managers must acknowledge, understand, and improve on their shortcomings. And they must encourage their team to also focus on continuous learning.
Be a multiplier
Multiplier business managers know that at the apex of the intelligence hierarchy is NOT the lone genius. Rather, it is the genius who knows the importance of bringing out the smarts and capabilities in everyone in the team.
Build connections
Both managers and leaders know their job with their teams is about building lots of connections. They make people feel they have a stake in common problems.
Encourage feedback
It is vital that you let your team know you are interested and will listen to their concerns and ideas and contribute to solutions to any and all problems.
Offer recognition and always share success
Focus on building team confidence by publicly recognizing their efforts and achievements. Think of it this way; anything is possible if you share the glory. Giving others a chance to claim credit is an easy, and effective, way to magnify results.
Communicate clearly and often
Language is a manager’s most powerful tool, whether it is written or oral. Always keep your people informed of team goals, priorities, and schedules. Without the ability to communicate, managers can possess all the other attributes and still fail to have an impact.
Be decisive
One of the key jobs of a manager is to be an effective decision-maker. Employees are never comfortable with managers who make slow decisions and they frequently change their minds. Quality managers make decisions quickly and stick with them.
Provide sound guidance
Be available with your staff members and show interest in their career development within the business. Don’t hesitate to offer guidance along the way.
Building and maintaining trust
Always do what you say and set good examples. Demand from yourself the same level of professionalism and dedication that you expect from others. Trust, once broken, is seldom restored to its original state. It is the most fragile yet essential attribute of leadership and management.
Present the big picture
Consistently show the team how their projects fit into the larger goals and objectives of the business. You can never be too detailed on communicating the big picture.
Be patient but persistent
Delivering strong managerial skills takes time and practice. Seek guidance from mentors, colleagues, your boss, and your network.
Deliver confidence
Having and being able to deliver confidence counts. Most managers are self-confident. The real skill and ability are to extend faith to others. They must be good at recognizing and believing in the talents of others.
Accept learning is never done
You have worked hard to get to this point. Rely on your experience but accept there is still much to learn. Learn from everywhere you can, including your own team
The bottom line
The moral of this story is that the best leadership lessons should have a great influence on team development and teamwork. If these different thoughts are possessed by your current management or leadership team, or your emerging leaders, you will be in a good position for the road ahead.
Which of these leadership lessons stand out to you like the most critical? Do you have any other thoughts of effective leaders worthy of mention? Leave a comment and share your insights with us and other readers. We would be most interested in your thoughts.
