The art of leadership: finding the best leadership style

Why is it so difficult to find the right leadership style?

As a manager, it's often difficult to meet all expectations. On the one hand, managers often report to general managers or higher, to whom they must meet set targets. For example, they are evaluated on the basis of sales figures or completed projects. At the same time, however, they are also expected to lead and motivate their teams well, and retain employees for as long as possible. Depending on their background, area of responsibility and knowledge, employees have very different expectations of their line manager's behavior. Some want to be taken by the hand and told exactly what to do. On the other hand, some individuals only need intermittent assistance and recognition for their efforts. In addition, managers have to make decisions that are not always welcomed. However, hesitant or uncertain behavior and permanent uncertainty are not qualities we want in a manager. Instead, managers should possess professional expertise, natural authority, persuasiveness and decisiveness, and use these qualities judiciously according to the situation, team dynamics and individual employees. Moreover, individual personality plays a part in influencing a preference for a particular leadership style. This creates a tension that challenges managers to be convincing in their leadership approach.

Overview of different leadership styles

No single leadership style is always appropriate. Therefore, effective leaders must understand the diversity of leadership styles and adapt their approach to the specific requirements and dynamics. Here are some of the most widely recognized leadership styles:

1. Authoritarian or autocratic leadership style :

Managers with an authoritarian leadership style make all decisions themselves without involving their employees. They therefore give clear instructions from the top down. This leads to a clear division of roles and a command structure, enabling rapid decision-making. However, an authoritarian leadership style can also quickly lead to resentment, especially if the manager engages in micro-management.

Practical application:

• Effective in crises or time-critical projects.
• Suitable for clear objectives and known work processes.
• Quick decision-making and clear responsibilities.

2. Democratic/cooperative leadership style :

Unlike authoritarian leadership styles, democratic management styles involve employees in decisions and planning processes. There is open communication and ideas are discussed together. As a result, all team members are involved on an equal footing, and some responsibility for tasks is transferred to them. This can increase employee satisfaction, but can also lead to somewhat longer decision-making processes.

Practical application:

• Well suited to creative projects and innovative solutions.
• Promotes teamwork and participative decision-making.
• Develops a sense of shared responsibility.
• Increases employee commitment and motivation.

3. Laissez-Faire leadership style :

In the Laissez-Faire leadership style, all responsibility is delegated to employees. The manager only specifies the framework conditions and communicates the objectives to be achieved. As a result, there is minimal control on the part of the manager, and team members' independence and initiative are emphasized. This allows the team to fully realize its creativity.

Practical application:

• Suitable for experienced, self-motivated teams.
• Encourages creativity and innovation.
• Works best when employees are highly skilled and work autonomously.

4. Leadership style coaching :

The coaching leadership style is all about helping employees realize their full potential. To this end, their professional and personal development is encouraged. The manager supports and advises employees on how to achieve their goals, and gives advice on how to improve their performance.

Practical application:

• Promotes employees' professional and personal development.
• Can increase employee commitment and thus lead to better performance.
• Emphasizes a relationship of partnership and trust between manager and employee.

5. Charismatic leadership style :

Charismatic managers impress with their personality and charisma. As a result, they inspire their employees and motivate them to give their best. Employees trust the manager, and there's a strong sense of cohesion within the workforce, as everyone works towards the same goal. However, the charismatic leadership style cannot be consciously chosen or learned. You either naturally have the necessary charisma, or you don't.

Practical application:

• Suitable for promoting corporate culture and values.
• Can be effective in environments with creative or innovative projects.
• Emphasizes the importance of the personal relationship between manager and employee.

Choosing the right leadership style depends on a number of factors, including the situation, team composition and organizational objectives. An effective leader can use and adapt different styles flexibly to achieve optimal results.

Self-analysis: the basis of effective leadership

A central key to effective leadership is the ability to self-analyze. A person's leadership qualities depend largely on his or her understanding of his or her own strengths, weaknesses, values and personality traits. Consequently, a leader should take the time to conduct a self-analysis, especially if he or she is new to a leadership position.

• Reflecting on values and beliefs: Leadership is based on personal values and beliefs. Ask yourself what your core principles are and how these are reflected in your leadership style. This also includes thinking about how you make decisions or give feedback to your employees - both criticism and praise.
• Recognize strengths and weaknesses: As a manager, it's also important to know exactly what your strengths and weaknesses are. To do this, observe how you behave towards your employees. In this way, you can quickly discover which management style best suits the manager and which does not match your own strengths and weaknesses. It's important to be very honest with yourself during this analysis, and to admit your weaknesses. This is the only way to manage your team authentically.
• Get feedback: You should also ask your colleagues, employees and superiors for constructive feedback. It often happens that a manager's behavior has a completely different effect than was actually intended. Other perspectives therefore help to reveal blind spots and thus to understand your own leadership behavior.
• Developing awareness: In addition, a manager should be aware of his or her own emotions, motivations and behavior patterns. For example, you should know how you react to stress or great pressure. If you know your own reactions, you can learn, for example, to step back and not say or do anything rash that harms the team. In this way, you can continue to develop and become an excellent leader.

What does the team need?

Many people make assumptions about others. For example, if a manager favors maximum flexibility, he often assumes that this is also the case for his team. However, it may be that the team or individual team members prefer clear rules to which they can adhere. A manager should therefore also find out what the team and individual employees want. It can be useful to talk to individual employees and ask them directly about their expectations of managerial behavior. In this way, you can find out what the employee needs from the manager.
However, it's also important to take into account the employee's respective activities and skills. For example, a directive management style may work well for routine tasks, whereas it would be more of an obstacle for more complex activities requiring creativity. Employees' skills, knowledge and expertise also influence the right management style. For example, a new employee generally needs a different management style from someone with years of experience. In addition, employees' motivation levels can vary considerably, so that some perform their tasks on their own, while others need direct instruction.

Adapting to the situation

The next step is to combine the leadership personality with the needs of the team, i.e. to find a leadership style that provides the necessary support to the team while also matching the manager's preferences. However, it should be noted that even if a manager has found an optimal leadership style for a team, it may not work in every situation. The ability to adapt leadership style to the respective situation is therefore crucial to a manager's long-term success. It is therefore important for a manager to always consider current circumstances and be aware of team dynamics, objectives and individual employee skills, so as to be able to react flexibly. This is particularly important in the following situations:

• Crisis situations: In crisis situations, an authoritarian management style may be needed to give clear instructions and make rapid decisions. For example, if the implementation of a project threatens to fail, rapid intervention is required. Although a democratic or Laissez-Faire management style usually works, it may be inappropriate in a crisis.
• Encouraging creativity: Even teams which normally perform routine tasks and are managed in a rather authoritarian way may be faced with new tasks requiring a greater degree of creativity. For example, when work processes need to be optimized. In such creative projects, a democratic management style can enable greater participation and exchange of ideas.
• Team experience: A newly-formed team certainly needs much more guidance from the manager than a highly experienced team, which would be rather demobilized by excessive control. It is therefore necessary to adapt the management style. If the team and the manager remain in the same constellation for a long time, the manager needs to adapt to the team's accumulated experience and give greater freedom to a more experienced team. This also applies when a new manager joins a self-motivated, experienced team. If this team is too restricted by the new manager, it could become demobilized.

A situational leadership style initially seems more complicated than it is. If you know your strengths and weaknesses, accurately analyze current circumstances and take into account the skills and maturity of your employees, you'll quickly learn to decide which management style is necessary and best suited to the situation.

Leadership Essentials

• Communication and feedback: Open and transparent communication is the basis of good leadership, whatever a manager's preferred leadership style. It's the only way to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that respective tasks are carried out smoothly. This also includes managers listening to their employees and fostering a feedback culture based on trust.
• Be a role model: As a manager in particular, you are always a role model for your employees. Managers should therefore fulfill and embody what they demand of their employees. For example, transparent communication, open feedback, keeping promises, but also admitting mistakes. This way, employees can respect the manager and know where they stand at all times.
• Empathy: Empathy requires the ability to put oneself in other people's shoes and understand their perspective. Empathetic managers are always aware of their own emotions and recognize those of others. This enables them to learn how to react appropriately and to develop themselves and their leadership style.
  
• Delegation of responsibility: Authoritarian leadership styles and micromanagement are not very popular these days. While this type of leadership is justified in times of crisis, for example, very few employees want to feel that everything they do is closely monitored and judged. However, if the manager delegates some of the work, employee satisfaction and motivation can increase, and at the same time, the manager has more time for other tasks.
• Dealing with conflict: Conflicts or misunderstandings arise in every team at some point. A good manager addresses these conflicts as early as possible and finds solutions to defuse such situations before they become a major problem.

Conclusion

In the multifaceted world of leadership, there is no single leadership style that always works best. On the contrary, successful leadership requires a harmonious interplay of different styles that can be adapted to suit the situation. The key components of communication, empathy, feedback and continuous development form the basis of effective leadership that promotes not only individual development but also team success.

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