What makes a true leader

I have heard that question many times, and the answer is as always with such questions - complex. By definition, a leader is a person that gives guidance and inspires others, by helping them discover their full potential. Now that we know the definition of a leader – we need to clarify what this means in the context of corporate environments.

In this context, it is very important to mention the difference between a leader and a manager as people very often confuse the two. Most people I have meat in my professional life so far, have been great managers, but they never became leaders. They were great in organising, executing, and making sure instructions from above were implemented and targets were reached. A manager is therefore an executer and implementer of strategic decisions so that targets can be hit, and the organisation can operate in the most efficient way. A leader, in contrast, is someone who out of existing resources can develop a clear vision and once established, manages to inspire others to follow his vision, to the best of their individual abilities.

The skills of a leader always involve people skills. Not only does a leader have to develop his or her vision, but they also need to be able to listen to people within the company and have a high degree of emotional intelligence to get buy - in for their individual ideas and goals. A leader is therefore only as good as his team he manages to inspire and motivate.

There are three main theories on what qualifies a leader. The personality, the skill, and the situation theory.

The personality theory describes the idea that leaders are not made but born with special personality traits such as emotional intelligence and motivational spirit that automatically lets them be leaders, whatever situation in a company they are it. According to this theory, a leader is purely defined by their personality.

The second, skill theory, assumes that a leader needs to bring certain practical skills or educational background to the table to be able to establish him or herself as a leader over time. Leadership here is based on knowledge and qualification. A leader is therefore the best qualified member of a team with the highest education. Certificated and knowledge are fundamental here.

Lastly, the situation theory is the most modern and dynamic leadership theory of the three. Here, it is assumed that a leader emerges over time by having the ability to be best suited to deal with a specific situation the company is facing at a specific point in time. A leader here is a dynamic figure that changes with external circumstances. Here, a member of the team can be a leader by being best able to contribute knowledge and expertise in a specific situation the company is facing at a certain time. A leader emerges in response to the environment.

So, back to the question, what makes a good leader. Having looked at the three theories above, the conclusion to what makes up a leader is a combination of things. A leader needs to have advanced skills relevant to the organisation, consider external threats and circumstances, while at the same time use strong interpersonal skills to understand and motivate others to help them develop and show their full potential. The combination of all those factors lets people easily distinguish leadership from management personalities which are all about organising and executing, rather than vision development and the motivation of others.