Learning Leadership

If you invited the world’s most successful CEOs to dinner, you would find yourself sitting at the table with a diverse group of people with different personalities, backgrounds and approaches to running their businesses. By the time dessert was being served, you would fully recognize that extraordinary business success comes in all shapes and sizes, and our uniqueness as people directs us to a certain type of leadership style. No one style is necessarily better than the other. But by identifying and better understanding your style, you can become a stronger and more successful leader. That’s where we come in. Read through our top six leadership styles to discover where your strengths lie, and what you can improve upon.

Transformational Leadership

Transformational leaders, in the most simple terms, are innovators. They’re managers that recognize the need to continually try new ideas, and they plan to be that role model of transformation for their entire team. Constantly challenging the status quo to find ways to “be better,” these highly motivational leaders have an eye for spotting what is and isn’t working, but can also be intimidating to those who aren’t as excited about change.

Pace Setter Leadership

You’ll recognize pace setters as the Bill Gates and Elon Musks of the world. They set sprinting paces from the very beginning, and both their company and their industries follow. Although these high-energy visionaries pride themselves on staying at least two steps ahead of competitors and motivating their subordinates to do the same, pace setters’ employees often report a higher “burn out” rate.

Charismatic Leadership

Joining the ranks of Oprah and Barack Obama, charismatic leaders ooze charm, and are often those that people naturally gravitate towards. Because of their charisma, these encouraging leaders naturally inspire employees and build long-lasting business relationships. Although they may be prone to miss some finer details of projects, they’re at their best when working with a team.

Laissez-Faire Leadership

This “hands-off” attitude of leadership is a risky one, but one that has worked well for multibillionaires Warren Buffet and Richard Branson. Laissez-Faire leaders take on more of a mentoring role, delegating work objectives and decision-making to employees, but providing general direction and guidance when requested. This style of leadership is ideal for creative industries or an office of self-motivators, but if accountability isn’t set early on, productivity can quickly diminish.

Coaching Leadership

Contrary to the Laissez-Faire leaders, those who fall in this category tend to take a “hands on” approach to leadership, focusing on identifying and developing strengths their employees possess. Coaching leaders naturally create well-trained successors and a strong bond with employees, but have to carefully toe the line between “teaching” and “micromanaging.”

Authoritative Leadership

These visionary leaders set clear standards and goals, and then step back to allow their teams to reach them. Providing fair and constructive feedback as needed, authoritative leaders thrive in high-stress situations and are known for inspiring enthusiastic and confident teams, but can also result in fearful or underdeveloped employees.

Arkansas Capital has provided lending expertise and support to local businesses for over 60 years, so no matter your leadership style (or combination of styles), we’re here to help! We offer the funding services and industry expertise your business needs to help launch or grow.