Leadership: it's a role not everyone is fit to fill. It’s not enough to be good at your job, innovative, or self-starting. Leaders have to be observant, diplomatic, motivational, and compassionate. These aren’t natural states for everyone, but that’s okay: it’s entirely possible to work on and improve your leadership skills. The first step? Figuring out what your leadership style is, it’s strengths and weaknesses, and how your approach impacts your team.

What are Leadership Styles?

In the simplest terms, leadership styles are your approach and ability to influence and guide others. Much like our personalities are varied and complex, shifting overtime and depending on the situation, so too may your approach to leadership. However, in the same way that our personalities have core traits that define who we are, your primary leadership style can be determined by the key traits of perspective, delivery, and reception of others.

The Ten Core Leadership Styles

1. The Visionary Leader

You have a clear vision of your team’s potential and your eye is on the big picture. You know how to encourage and inspire your team to take strides toward progress and lofty future goals. It’s easy for you to come up with and communicate new concepts and get everyone pumped for what lies ahead. However, sometimes the smaller details fall through the cracks and can come back to haunt you, especially in cases of team members feeling unheard.

2. The Pacesetter Leader

Your go-to motto is go, go, go! Performance and results are key, and you know how to get your team excited and in the zone to deliver. You thrive in a fast-paced work environment and are ready to jump in to help push your team across the finish line. If this sounds like you, be mindful that the constant push can be draining and discouraging for some employees, and confusing for others who need a bit more mentorship and guidance.

3. The Transactional Leader

Much like the Pacesetter, you are focused on performance, getting results, and hitting goals. You’re not afraid to use incentives to help motivate your team-- both rewards and discipline. While you dedicate more time to training and mentorship, this approach can be short-sighted. Not everyone is driven by monetary gain, and cultivating such a workplace can stifle creative, innovative team members.

4. The Hands-Off Leader

You trust your team to get the job done, so once tasks have been properly delegated, you shift your focus to other projects and tasks. You are much more flexible with the hows and whys so long as the final line is met. The opposite of a ‘micromanager’, your hands-off approach is great for highly trained and experienced teams, but can fall flat for entry-level employees or those who thrive in a more structured workplace.

5. The Coach

You have an eye for recognizing your team members’ strong suits and areas for improvement. You know what motivates them to improve and you love to help them on that path by setting personalized goals and providing constructive feedback. Your expectations are always clear and you focus on nurturing your team to help achieve your business goals. While this is certainly one of the most supportive and positive leadership styles, it’s also time-consuming and leaves little room for your own projects.

6. The Transformational Leader

You’re person-oriented like the Coach but with a wider scope. You focus on empowering the team as a whole rather than individual people, delegating tasks to the best person for the job and keeping everyone in line for success. Sometimes the smaller ones get lost as you focus on the big picture, which can lead to trouble down the line.

7. The Autocratic Leader

The often maligned ‘micromanager’, you have a keen focus on your specific goals and crave efficiency from your team. You like to keep decision-making limited to yourself or a select few to minimize too much input. You’re always mindful of industry guidelines and red tape to keep everyone in compliance and avoid unnecessary headaches. Your style of leadership is very precise and leaves little up for interpretation -- but it can also leave little room for growth in your team, leaving them feeling stifled and frustrated.

8. The Servant Leader

You are the people’s leader, all about taking care of your team so they can take care of the organization. You know that employees who are satisfied with their work and feel personally invested and cared for perform better and get great results. You keep morale high and address concerns quickly and efficiently. However, this approach to leadership can quickly lead to burnout, and you may struggle with being authoritative when necessary. Reaching your goals can be difficult when the primary focus is team culture.

9. The Democratic Leader

Your motto is ‘we’re all in this together!’ You take the time to gather feedback and consider all perspectives before making final decisions or big projects or changes within the company. Your team knows you are available to listen and really consider their thoughts and concerns in the decision-making process. They feel empowered to be a part of the process, but this can be time-consuming and negatively impact productivity.

10. The Bureaucratic Leader

You like a structured, organized environment with fixed roles and associated duties where everyone plays their part. Each member of your team has a set list of responsibilities, so there’s little need for close oversight or input. You value rules and regulations as a tool to increase efficiency, but you may be overlooking opportunities for growth and creative problem-solving.

As you may have noticed, none of these leadership styles are inherently better or worse than the others. There are situations and environments for each leadership approach, as well as benefits and pitfalls to keep in mind. You may feel one specific style fits you to a tee or that you’re a combination of two or more. What matters isn’t which style you have, but recognizing where you can improve your own leadership style and skills to benefit your team.

Why Leadership Style Matters

Decades of studies on school children have shown that different people learn differently. Some are more visual learners, some excel in learning by doing, and some pick up and retain information best through written text. These differences don’t disappear once we complete our education; we also respond differently in the workplace under different leadership styles.

Determining your leadership style is the first step in figuring out what is working, what isn’t, and what can be incorporated from other styles of leadership. Don’t be afraid to seek feedback from a trusted colleague as well; sometimes a second perspective illuminates the areas for improvement we can’t see ourselves.

If you need some extra help or don’t know where to start, The People Institute is here to serve. Our goal is to help companies and organizations improve communication, develop stronger teams, and grow company leaders from the inside out. Learn more about our training programs here, or contact us now to chat about how we can help.

What leadership style do you think best describes your approach? Which one do you want to work on developing? Let’s get a conversation started in the comment section!

What is Your Leadership Style?