Nursing Leadership Skills
Effective Leader Characteristics
The main characteristics of a highly effective leader are:
· Share their vision
A leader who has a vision has a clear idea of where they would like to go, how they will get there, and what success looks like. It is vital for a leader to articulate their vision clearly and passionately in order to ensure that their team understands how their individual efforts will contribute towards the higher organizational goals.
· Lead by example
The best way for a leader to build credibility and gain the respect of his/her team members is by setting the right examples. A leader should demonstrate the behavior they would like their team to follow (Pardey, 2016). Any leader who demands a lot form their team should be willing to set high standards for them self-first.
· Demonstrate integrity
Integrity is demonstrated by drawing on a leader’s values in order to guide decisions, behavior, and dealings with others. An effective leader has a clear conviction regarding what is right and wrong and they get respected for they are genuine, ethical, principled, and consistent. A leader demonstrates integrity by keeping their promises, communicating openly, honestly, and directly with others.
· Communicate effectively
Communicating clearly, tactfully, and concisely is a vital leadership skill. Communication is more than just listening attentively and responding appropriately. It will include sharing valuable information, soliciting input, asking intelligent questions, clarifying misunderstandings, and being clear on what a leader wants to be done.
· Make hard decisions
There are decisions that need to be made no matter the situation. An effective leader is able to make fast and difficult decisions even with limited information. Consideration is usually made for the likely consequences of the decision and the alternatives are evaluated.
· Recognize success
An effective leader is one who frequently and consistently recognizes achievements of his/her team members. When people know that their contributions and hard work will...
They also need to believe that they are doing meaningful work. Therefore, it is the work of the leader to ensure that he/she communicates clear goals and deadlines to their team (Shanafelt et al., 2015).
· Motivate and inspire
A leader who is able to drive their team forward with enthusiasm, passion, motivation, and inspiration is considered to be an effective leader.
According to Kaiser, LeBreton, and Hogan (2015) the worst leader does not like to deal with conflicts either directly or by being a mediator between two employees in dispute. They will do all they can to dodge disputes or any unpleasant situations. Bad leaders do not know how to empower other. The title or ranking will begin to go to their heads and this causes them to shift focus from team empowerment to boasting. A leader who does not show vulnerability is considered to be a weak leader. trying to show an image of flawlessness can be intimidating to employees. This is because employees will be scared to approach the leader with any issue since the leader seem not susceptible to the same hurdles faced by the employees. A good leader should be able to see the strengths of their team without feeling intimidated by them. Without understanding and knowing the strengths of their team a leader will be leading with blinders. They will end up delegating responsibilities to people who are not able to perform them and overlooking others. Any mistakes of the team should not be fully blamed on the team. The team leader should take some responsibility for their failure (Warrick, 2017). However, this is never the case with bad leaders. They will push the blame fully to the team and points a finger on individual team members. Failure to listen is another trait of a bad leader. They will seem quiet and allow someone to talk, but they will not be paying attention to what is being said.
Self-Analysis
My greatest strengths are communicating effectively, recognizing success, demonstrating integrity, and making…
