3 Leadership Tips For Small Business Owners
Owning a small business is difficult and expensive work. Margins are often tight, hours may be quite long, and simply staying afloat can be a challenge.
On top of all this, as a business owner, demonstrating leadership is an essential part of your job. While it may sometimes feel stressful, here are three tips you can employ to be a better leader at your company.
1. Listen to Staff
There is simply no substitute for open and respectful communication. As a boss, a major component of this is listening well to staff. Active listening is a skill; it requires empathy, focus, and a desire to understand where an employee is coming from. Work on demonstrating this ability in all interactions with staff. Enhance it by holding regular one-on-one and group meetings, to solicit feedback from employees.
Aside from helping to build a great rapport with your staff, this technique will both clue you in to things that are working well at your company, as well as potential issues. In short, listening well is not for show; it’ll help you be a better business owner, and help your company thrive.
2. Don’t Be Afraid To Delegate
Some business owners may feel leadership equates to micro-managing decisions at work. After all, in such a competitive environment, there is a natural pressure for owners to want to control details.
However, in the long run, letting employees take initiative is far more likely to set your company up for success. A staff that is well-equipped to make decisions and act creatively on their own will be more invested in the work at hand, and more reliable when problems do arise. This will also ensure more flexibility for you, because you will not have to be the sole decision-maker for significant business choices.
3. Take Time Off as Needed
To be a good leader, you have to take care of yourself. Many small business owners are understandably burdened by the stress at work and feel compelled to focus on a neverending list of chores. But time away from the workplace will allow you to effectively refresh and rejuvenate, which is a necessity to performing well at your job. Time off will allow you to come back to work with a refocused clarity of mind, ensuring your own health and sustainable maturation of your business.
Owning a small business may be hard, but by employing the above leadership techniques, you can effectively work to set yourself up for success.
