Author: Dr. Malini Moodley (Academic | MANCOSA)
In today’s busy work arena, problems occur frequently. As a result, businesses need leaders now more than ever to help them manage these challenges with their intelligence, strategy, and expertise, which is the reason why leadership courses have gained considerable momentum in South Africa.
Thus, leadership has become a highly desirable quality for many employers worldwide — and could lead to great promotions and career opportunities.
MANCOSA’s High Impact Leadership Course equips people with vital leadership skills to help them stand out in the work environment.
This article will discuss leadership in-depth. Inside we’ll have a look at what leadership is, the skills of a good leader, how a leadership course will enable you to grow in your career, and more.
H2: What is leadership?
Leadership is the ability of an individual to influence and guide other members of a community or an organisation. Good leadership can encourage and inspire team members to maximise their efforts towards achieving a goal.
Contrary to popular belief, leadership has nothing to do with a person’s seniority or position in a company’s hierarchy. It has nothing to do with job titles or management.
It also doesn’t automatically come when a person reaches a particular pay grade. Instead, a leader can be defined as a person who has followers. Someone who can transition visions into reality.
Effective leadership is a skill that can be developed by taking leadership courses and undergoing training.
H2: Why you need leadership in business
Successful businesses need leaders.
The importance of leadership within a company can’t be understated since the influence of a leader — good or bad — resonates throughout the organisation. It can either:
- Motivate team members, give them direction, and establish a good company culture, or it can
- Create unrest, confusion, and a bad work environment for all parties involved — which can mean the downfall of an organisation
When we look at great business leaders such as Elon Musk and Steve Jobs, it’s clear that their leadership qualities helped them succeed within their competitive markets. Their employees and team members were encouraged by their leadership, which ultimately resulted in profitable business endeavours.
Not only does good leadership encourage people to work harder and reach their full potential, but it also encourages them to engage and enjoy their work.
Employers all over the world recognise the importance of leadership. That’s why more and more of them are looking for leadership and management skills when hiring and promoting workers, all the more reason to consider considering some leadership courses to your portfolio of skills.
H2: Qualities of a good leader
Here are some of the essential qualities that a good leader needs to influence others:
- Integrity: This refers to an individual’s honesty, respectfulness, trustworthiness, and other strong moral principles. For people to be able to follow a leader, they first need to trust them and believe that they know right from wrong.
- Fairness: Leaders need to be fair in their decisions. For example, they can’t increase an employee’s workload simply because they’re more fond of another employee.
- Vision: They need to be able to see the bigger picture. Alongside having the vision to drive the company forward, they also need the determination to bring the concept to fruition.
- Communication: Great leaders know how to communicate with all stakeholders, including employees, team members, clients, managers, and more. They communicate clearly and ensure everyone knows what’s expected of them.
- Influence: For some people, “influence” may sound similar to “manipulation”. But, when used in the context of leadership, it can be the driving force behind great success. Therefore, leaders must convince people to be better, think better, and do better through emotional and logical influence tactics.
- Courage: Being a leader means being willing to do things others aren’t. As such, leaders must be courageous to take risks and step out of their comfort zones for the company’s and its people’s greater good.
Top reasons to take leadership courses
Building your leadership skills can help you achieve new heights in your career. Here are some of the most significant advantages of taking leadership courses:
1. Build self-confidence and self-esteem
Leadership training can teach you the essential skills to look at challenges differently and approach them uniquely.
Doing so can help you see the challenge for what it is instead of seeing it as a significant barrier holding you back. As a result, you’ll be able to solve problems and handle obstacles easily, building your wisdom and self-confidence.
2. Increase productivity
Leadership courses can increase efficiency and productivity. How?
A leadership course will teach you how to give direction to other staff members or subordinates — enabling them to perform above expectations.
Since you’ll be able to assess problems, manage situations, and provide reasonable solutions, processes will run smoother, and teammates will be able to do their work quicker and more efficiently.
3. Enable better decision-making
A leadership course will help you hone in on your emotional intelligence, which will ultimately help you make more informed and intelligent business decisions. You’ll be able to take a step back, see the bigger picture, and handle it better.
4. Improve leadership and management skills
Leadership involves many managerial skills, including critical thinking, relationship management, planning, and more. Leadership training will help you develop these skills to lead team members better.
As you develop your strengths and abilities in management, you’ll inspire others to work harder and unknowingly make them want to improve their performance.
5. Teach you to avoid mistakes and risks
Risk management is crucial for all projects regardless of the company’s industry. Leadership courses will teach you how to effectively identify, be aware of, and manage risks throughout the project.
As a result, you and your team can rest assured that you won’t run into big problems or make any unnecessary mistakes.
Get leadership training with MANCOSA skillME
Being a leader is no easy feat. It takes someone with drive and determination to be able to influence others. But taking steps to become a leader will undoubtedly help you grow in your career.
MANCOSA skillME offers a wide range of courses that’ll help you become a great leader. This includes the High Impact Leadership course, the Emotional Intelligence course, the Communication in the Workplace course, and many more. Learn more about our business courses.