Written by sgilroy | 20/08/12 13:18
Trust, empathy and mentorship can be the holy trinity of leadership skills - all of which can be learned from a young age.
Vineet Nayar, a leadership expert writing for hbr.org, believes lessons learned as a young boy playing in the street can be adapted for the workplace.
As a boy, Nayar played in a nearby park every evening with a group of lads; one of which introduced new kids to the group, taught them the rules of games and made sure 'no-one felt left out'. As a result, this boy forms the crux of Nayar's point - leadership traits can develop early and never go away.
When it comes to trust, Nayar says: "Do your team members trust you? Do they accept that you will, without doubt, stand up for them whatever the situation? Only that kind of trust makes people feel empowered, gives them the courage to innovate, take risks, and to push themselves beyond their comfort zones to find success."
Empathy is another key trait, as it involves treating team members not just as workers but as human beings, cites njuice.com. This could be useful for leaders struggling running a family business as empathy could help steer the ship in the right direction.
Finally, Nayar believes mentorship is just as important. "Would you be where you are today if your first manager hadn't nudged you in the right direction?," he added.