Top Characteristics of a Good Leader

Wow, this was really hard for me to decide the most important characteristic of a team leader between good communication and lead by example. If I had to choose, I would choose communication. Communication skills play a vital role in developing a leader. Without proper communication skills, one would face difficulty in assigning tasks, giving out orders, and receiving feedback from the subordinates. All processes, which a team leader is involved, depend on effective communication skills as well as their ability to execute these skills with their team. Studying the communication process is important because you coach, coordinate, counsel, evaluate, and supervise throughout this process. It is the chain of understanding which incorporates the members of an organization from top to bottom, bottom to top, and side to side. Strong, effective leaders stress fundamentals like discipline, accountability, strategic grouping, managing to his or her values and empowering the team. Additionally, these leaders have mastered the six basic functions of management: leading, planning, organizing, staffing, controlling and communicating. However, communication ties all of those functions together. It is the key ingredient to great leadership. A leader may have the best evidenced based knowledge but inability to communicate this knowledge to team members as well as receiving clear communication from members will result in failure to effectively lead.

Clear communication motivates and inspires. The best leaders are first-rate communicators. Their values are clear and solid, and what they say promotes those values. Their teams admire them and follow their lead. The leader must have a clear understanding of individual differences in order to effectively utilize and appreciate the different contributions of different individuals. In addition, a leader must also be aware of the importance of communication between the leader and the followers; and of the communication among the followers themselves.

...