They are all common sense. But it is true that sometimes this sense is not common and that someone does not remind us to pay attention to the importance of small (and not so small details).
Whether we like it or not, our body speaks, even if we are silent.
Here the first 20 rules to express with your body an
attitude of a leader.
1. Stand straight. Keeping your shoulders back and showing your entire body will give you an air of confidence.
2. Take your hands out of your pockets. It is often seen as having something to hide.
3. The arms crossed behind the back. It will help you adjust your posture and the position of your hands is open and not intimidating.
4. Make eye contact. Look directly into the eyes of the people you talk to. Shows interest and confidence in oneself.
5. Sit with your back straight. Stooping can make you seem disinterested and gives you an air of laziness.
6. Stand in front of the person you are talking to. Shows interest and commitment in the conversation.
7. Firmly shake hands. For many, the handshake is the reflection of the person. You do not want to seem neither insecure nor dominant so make sure that yours is professional and safe.
8. Always smile. The smiles are contagious and will make others feel comfortable and positive with you.
9. Acceptable aesthetics. You do not have to dress like a model every day. But you must dress cleanly and appropriately. Clothing can have a big impact on the way you are perceived.
10. Walk with confidence. Head high and shoulders straight.
Common sense rules for leaders meet deadlines
11. Promise only what you can offer. Do not feed false hopes with things you cannot fulfill.
12. Set clear goals. Once you know what you need to carry it out, it is very useful to know how and when you want to do it. Put the goals on a piece of paper and make sure your whole team has a copy.
13. Organize a team. Each person has unique strengths and training that can make them great assets for certain projects. Choose a team with the right knowledge for each job.
14. Delegate tasks. Sharing the work among your employees is a way of not overloading anyone, in addition to speeding up the pace of the project.
15. Create goals. Creating goals will help keep you and your team tracking progress. In addition, it gives a sense of accomplishment when reaching each goal.
16. Keep an open communication. Keeping everyone informed with the status of the project is key to making sure it will be completed on time.
17. Get organized. Keeping yourself organized will save you from wasting time looking for documents and files.
18. Make sure that expectations have been clear. Make sure each member of your team knows what to do, how and when.
19. Create a plan. Create a comprehensive plan with your objectives, goals and characteristics to address upcoming projects. This way you will register the project and all your team will know it.
Get along with employees
A happy office is a productive office. Everyone will be happier if you follow these 10 simple rules:
Common sense rules for employee leaders
20. Do not make your employees come days that are not scheduled to work or call them on vacation. Unless it is not of utmost urgency, let the free time of your workers be just that, free.
21. Do not have favorites. It can bias your judgment and jeopardize your leadership ability. Treat them equally.
22. Give credit when it is due. Not giving credit to your team’s ideas or monopolizing all the attention fosters resentment and also makes you look unreliable.
23. No micro-management. It’s okay to keep up with what your employees are doing, but do not look constantly over their shoulders!
24. Never talk about an employee’s problems with other employees. It will only make them see how unprofessional you are.
25. Do not interfere in the work of your employees. If they are working, do not tell them how to do it. Even if they do not do it the way you would do it, it is best to let them use their own criteria.
26. Do not press with unreasonable deadlines. You do not want to spend all your time in the office. Your employees either.
27. Keep your promises. Especially that of wages and benefits.
28. Keep work at work. Do not ask employees to execute your personal topics. Hire an assistant-
29. Reward hard work. Make sure your team feels valued for what it does. Rewarding the effort will motivate them to be better.
30. Motivate It is vital to know how to motivate your team and provide them with an increase in morale.
Manage yourself
A leader is not based solely on what he can do for others, it is also about managing his own performance.
31. Be accessible. Do not take refuge in your office all day. Go out and visit your employees. Let them know you are there if they need you.
32. Be constructive with the criticism you receive. You will not always hear what you want to hear. Learn and grow from your mistakes.
33. Accept responsibility. Part of being the leader is accepting responsibility for the mistakes of everything you handle, not just yours.
34. Know that you can always improve. No matter how well you think you have done them, your work can always be improved.
35. Improve your skills. You never stop learning. It’s never too late or you’re too old to learn something new or ask someone to help you learn more.
36. Explain things in a simple way. Do not use technical jargon or ostentatious words to sound smart and impress your employees. Simplicity and clarity will help them to understand things better.
37. Instruct instead of ordering. You’re the boss, but that does not mean you’re bossy. You will be more successful if you deliver your requests with more tact.
38. Include the team in your plans. Do not make your work to “top-secret”. Let your employees know what is happening and how they are expected to contribute.
39. Know what your subordinates are doing. It will improve both the personal relationship and the professional status of the project.
40. Be flexible. It is okay to be firm when you must. But it allows the way it is done to be flexible.
41. Get feedback regularly. Both your employees and superiors can give you very valuable information on how to improve your performance. Use it in your favor.
42. Know your limitations. Know your limits to know how to say “no” to things you cannot do.
Boost productivity
Making the most of your day may sound difficult with a busy schedule. Use these tips to maximize your time and be more available to your employees.
Common sense rules for productivity leaders
43. Get the most out of meetings. Get organized and have the meetings prepared to increase the effectiveness of these.
44. Focus on your energy on things that matter. Do not let banal tasks take time away from the things that really matter.
45. Identify your time thieves. Everyone has things that distract him. Find out what yourselves are and work to eliminate them, even for a couple of hours a day.
46. Be punctual. Never make your appointments or meetings wait.
47. Respond to your correspondence within a reasonable period of time. You do not have to be chained to your inbox but make sure you answer to the emails in a short period of time.
48. Do only what is necessary. Going beyond sometimes derails the process of the most important issues. Make sure that the key pieces are achieved, and if you have time left then dedicate it to the additional issues.
49. Follow a schedule and routine. They help you simplify and improve your productivity.
50. Organize and manage your day schedule. Do not lose sight of anything you have to do.
51. Plan more than you think you can do. This may seem stressful, but it can really be a great motivator. If you manage to do everything, you will enjoy a great sense of accomplishment.
52. Go before to work sometimes. Sometimes going half an hour earlier to a solitary office can help you achieve great things or plan your day without the typical distractions.
53. Learn that stress is sometimes good. Something extremely bad is usually bad, and especially stress. But a little bit can be the flame that awakens your motivation to start moving.
54. The tasks that you least like first. After doing them, everything else will be a nice walk.
The management of finances and resources
Common sense rules for resource management leaders
55. Establish a realistic budget. It’s good to be an optimist, but do not plan on spending more than you know you cannot pay.
56. Save costs in the areas that matter. Do not limit yourself to pinching pennies. Make sure your savings will pay off in the long term.
57. Spend only when necessary. Every bit you save will go to your benefit.
58. Find alternative sources of financing. Even successful companies sometimes need help. Business loans and investors can help you in difficult times.
59. Stay true to your contracts. Not only will you earn the respect of your clients, you will also avoid legal battles that can be a burden for the company.
60. Make sure that employees are rewarded. Employees deserve to be rewarded for hard work. Doing so will increase your productivity and happiness at work.
61. Learn to do more with less. Quality is much more important than quantity.
62. Manage the team wisely. Make sure all the employees have the tools they need to work.
63. Invest in technology. This does not mean that it has to be the latest in technology, but it does mean that your office needs to work effectively.
64. Update when necessary. The use of obsolete equipment and programs can greatly reduce the efficiency and productivity of the company. Do not stay behind in front of your competitors.
65. Do not waste. Each paper, pen or paper clip is a cost in the budget. Use them wisely.
Communication with customers
Communicating with them effectively is a good example for the people you lead.
66. Remember that the customer is the boss. Your job is to make the customer happy. Act accordingly
67. Make a difference. Stand out from your competitors. Do not get lost in mediocrity.
68. Retain old people and recruit new ones. It is very important to maintain the relationship with loyal customers. Word of mouth advertising will not cost anything and will also bring you new customers. Take care of the old ones.
69. Provide effective communication channels. Make sure your clients can contact you easily and quickly.
70. Save the customer’s data. Use them to make your customers feel special by remembering occasions like birthdays and anniversaries.
71. Segment your customers. Not all are the same. Divide them in such a way that allows you to provide the attention and unique needs to each one.
72. Provides effective after-sales services. Do not stop maintaining contact after negotiation. Make sure your client stays happy.
73. Listen carefully. Listen carefully to what your customers are asking you to help them better meet their needs.
74. Do not be afraid to say you do not know. It is better to say that you do not know and go with the truth ahead that you do not dare to say yes and then have to back down.
To keep up to date
The world is constantly changing. So, follow these tips to stay up to date.
75. Do not fight against change. You cannot stop markets, trends and technology, so learn to go with the flow.
76. Adopt a predictive management style. Do not expect things to happen to act. Anticipate the problems and prepare contingency plans.
77. Test your contingency plans. Waiting for a strike is not a very smart way to see if they work. But check them from time to time to fine tune them and make sure.
78. Identify the positive aspects. Even negative changes can have positive consequences. Being able to identify them and maximize them will make the adaptation less painful.
79. Be quick to adapt. As Darwin said: “The strongest does not survive, but the one that adapts best.”
80. Pay attention to external factors. Your business is affected in many ways by external factors. Stay tuned to avoid surprises and speed uptake to sudden changes.
81. Put in place a research and development plan. Fostering innovation and creativity is a guarantee of success. It is important to be, but if you are the first one even more.
82. Take a look at the competition. Do not let him get the best of you. Keep up with your progress and use it to your advantage in your business.
Solve the problems
Whether they are external or internal, problems in a company can be a nightmare if they are not solved correctly.
Common sense rules for leaders to solve problems
83. Face your employees. If other departments or managers are giving a hard hand to your employees do not hesitate to defend them.
84. Fix the broken. Do not waste your time looking for culprits. First solve the problem, then already, if you want, you look responsible.
85. Manage and control your emotions. Do not let anger or frustration affect the resolution of your problems. They can cause damage that later costs repair.
86. Know when to intervene (and when not). Some problems are resolved on their own if you let them flow. Be aware of when your intervention is necessary and when it is not.
87. Take responsibility. If you have made a mistake, acknowledge it. Being transparent is one of the most important qualities in a leader.
88. Find out the facts first. Before judging make sure you know the whole story and not questions or blame anyone before knowing all the data.
89. Overcome the crisis. Learn to separate yourself from the problem and rise above it. Seeing it from a distance will give you a clearer and more objective perspective on how to correct it.
90. Do not ignore the problems. Sweeping it under a carpet will only make it bigger.
91. Do not personalize the problems. Let your employees know that the problem is not them but their actions. Do not do it personal.
Go further
Leading people is not just getting them to work. To be a true leader, you need to go beyond what the job demands.
Common sense rules for leaders to go beyond
92. Preach by example. No matter how much you talk about nothing will work if your employees do not see that you do what you say.
93. Get your hands dirty. Sometimes it’s good to show your employees that the leader also does unattractive tasks.
94. Make a difference with your employees. Do not limit yourself to be a boss, be a leader.
95. Earn the trust and respect of your employees. 9 Rules to earn respect and become an influential leader.
96. Be empathetic to personal problems. Personal life can greatly affect the quality of work. Be sensitive to the problems your employment
96. Be empathetic to personal problems. Personal life can greatly affect the quality of work. Be sensitive to the problems your employees may have.
97. Be unique as a leader. Do not try to imitate others. You are unique, and your forms too. Strive to be a role model.
98. Ethics is above all. Be honest and sincere in all your business and personal relationships.
99. Be on the lookout for new ideas. You will never know where your next inspiration will come from.
100. Meet your employees. Learn something more than their names. Be interested in your family, your tastes, interests … Getting closer to them will make them come closer to you.
