Tiffany Harper* says there are some key leadership skills women must adopt to drive success in the workplace.
Women have gone beyond the traditional beliefs that men were meant to be leaders.
The current trends indicate that women have a greater potential of making greater leaders and people of influence across the globe.
But what are the specific leadership skills exhibited by successful women to make them stand out from the rest?
Here are seven skills that are most influential in dictating successful women leaders.
- Effective communicators
Effective communication is undoubtedly the most critical skill seen in successful leaders.
When we talk about communication, it’s not just speaking, but rather includes such skills as effective use of nonverbal language, ability to read, ability to write well, as well as active listening.
These skills are critical in making individuals establish strong relationships and influence others positively.
For women leaders who communicate effectively, they tend to provide their followers with appropriate guidance, ask questions, and seek feedback.
These individuals are always transparent in their communication so that the recipient of the information is not confused.
They are also ready to clarify issues that are unclear and ensure everyone is always satisfied with the information provided.
- Trustworthy
Successful female leaders show strong attributes of trustworthiness.
They create a climate that promotes trust, and their teams are committed to the realisation of set goals.
High levels of trustworthiness manifested among women leaders are associated with clear communication skills, and a greater free flow of ideas.
In addition, this skill is critical in ensuring that workers become more comfortable with and prepared to adapt to change and show a willingness to embrace new ideas.
For aspiring women leaders to realise this skill, they need to be credible, willing to listen to others, honour the commitments they make, and be ready to accept their mistakes.
They must be reliable in terms of maintaining confidences, giving credit to others, and sharing information.
- Problem solving and critical thinking
The ability to solve organisational problems requires asking important questions, gathering and assessing all the relevant information, and making a well-thought conclusion.
Successful women leaders have the capability of thinking with open minds about the various consequences and assumptions associated with decision-making.
To succeed in making decisions as a leader, you need to learn as objectively and fairly as possible on the basis of the available and relevant information.
You should understand any potential biases you may have and appropriately guard yourself against them.
- Confidence
There is no doubt that successful leaders need confidence, particularly when it comes to making decisions.
If you are not confident about making and committing to your decisions, you may not be in a position to make a difference in your leadership.
To succeed in gaining the confidence, understand the issues at stake and be prepared with the information you need.
Be aware that you may fail sometimes, but do not fear making decisions you believe will have a positive impact as this is what defines your leadership.
- Emotional intelligence
Emotional intelligence may be understood as the ability to understand and manage individual emotions, as well as the emotions of others around us.
The critical elements successful women leaders exhibit based on their emotional intelligence include social skills, empathy, motivation, and self-awareness.
An effective leader should be able to relate well and work with others towards achieving the success of the whole team.
To develop emotional intelligence as a leader, you should identify the ways in which you can effectively manage negative emotions and stressful situations so they do not overwhelm you.
- Innovation and creativity
In today’s business environment, there is increased competition and high levels of uncertainty.
Successful women leaders possess a high level of creativity and innovation in terms of addressing various organisational challenges through the use of effective viewpoints, different working styles, and embracing diversity.
“To effectively utilise creativity and innovation, women leaders should greatly focus on ensuring that the employees are provided with all the tools they need for their work, which include training, software, and computers,” argues Hanna Anderson, a leadership coach at Rush.my.essay.
They should constantly encourage employees to dare to be innovative and creative.
Although this risks some failure, it helps establish creative mindsets.
A good leader should provide a climate that does not intimidate individuals who develop creative and innovative ideas.
- Strategic vision
“The women leaders who are successful have the ability to influence other leaders and influence change in their organisations,” says Hughey Gorge, a leadership trainer and coach at Best Essay.
Successful women leaders anticipate what may happen in the future and encourage this among employees.
These seven skills are vital for all leaders, regardless of gender.
* Tiffany Harper is a New York writer. She tweets at @harper_tiffany.
This article first appeared at womenlovetech.com.
