What goes into making a successful leader? It can be a difficult question to answer because everyone has a different opinion of what makes someone a successful leader.
It could be based on how much a company has grown over the last year, how the employees feel about the leader, or a whole slew of other criteria. Nobody is born a leader, it is something that you have to learn and be trained for.
There are things you can do to make yourself a better leader, or to start training yourself to be one when it comes time for you to step up.
CONFIDENCE
One big factor to being a successful leader is having confidence. A leader needs confidence because he or she is making decisions for the entire team and shouldn’t be second-guessing themselves. They should be able to handle any situation thrown at them and have the confidence to take care of situations as they arise.
Marisa Beaver and Kara Wasserburger had the confidence to start Sewer Experts, a sewer relining and rehab company, in an industry dominated by men. That didn’t deter the two women at all. Instead, they learned everything they could about the industry and hired the right people to succeed.
Sewer Experts, featured in this issue, continues to grow each year and the company is taking on projects large and small, something the two women are proud of.
VISION AND CREATIVITY
To go along with confidence, a solid leader needs to have vision. Vision to guide the company in the right direction. What do you want for your business, where do you want it to go long-term?
All of the companies profiled in Dig Different have one thing in common — a leader who is pushing the companies into new territories and seeing them grow and prosper. They have a vision to see the business grow from little shops to big, multi-equipment ventures. It’s exciting to talk to the people in charge and hear what their visions were for the companies and how many have surpassed those.
In order to have a vision for the company, the leader must also have creativity. Yeah, some of the ideas for the company might be borrowed from other companies, but that can’t always happen. He or she will need to develop their own ideas for the business, whether it be what services to add, what area to push into, how to attract new hires or how to pull in new customers.
COMMUNICATION
In order for the confidence, vision and creativity to work, a good leader must be a great communicator. He or she needs to relay the vision and goals of the company to its employees. Without that communication, nothing will work.
Communication should maybe come before anything else above. Start talking to your crews, your business partner and your clients about where you want to see the company go. Having them on board will only help you develop a plan for your company, and will boost your leadership ability.
YOUR SKILLS
What do you think makes a great leader? What are some things you look for in a manager, or what are some things you look for in yourself? Email me at editor@digdifferent.com.
Enjoy this issue!
