An effective leadership is characterized by adopting a straightforward communication and an encouraging attitude towards colleagues. Gaining trust requires trusting others, and an effective leader trusts their colleagues with tasks and problems for them to overcome. This does not mean that they are just given orders on how to do things – a good leader should also ask for solution proposals, challenging their colleagues to reflect upon a problem instead of mindlessly tackling it. It is also imperative that the leader monitors the work process of each member of their team and aid them whenever possible. By displaying trust and cooperation, leaders are more likely to be recognized as competent and fair guides rather than harsh and narrow-minded commanders. This may seem superficial, but it holds a number of advantages:

• Better and more honest communication between team members.
• Higher interest of your colleagues to take the initiative.
• More recognition of their work.
• Less competitive and distrusting environment.
• Increase of creative and diverse ideas.
• Promotion of critical thinking when problem-solving.
• Each team member will also be more motivated and work more confidently after successfully completing the challenges delegated to them.

Nonetheless, attitude and communication are not sufficient for an effective leadership. Effective leaders also understand that their job is not like their subordinates’. When accepting the job of a leader, employees are no longer solely functional workers, they now have managing responsibilities – tasks related to team management. It goes without saying that a leader should prioritize their managing responsibilities considering that their team’s work is essential for the performance of the company – hence, the team must be optimally managed. These responsibilities are unique to people managers; thus, they must never be delegated to functional employees. A leader is still required to oversee function responsibilities – tasks executed at an operational level. These are the responsibilities that should be strategically delegated to colleagues. A leader must consider the requirements of these responsibilities and evaluate the potential of each team member to meet them and grow from that experience.

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