By Dr. Paul L. Gerhardt, PhD
www.paulgerhardt.com
Ever wonder how you could find the perfect job that you will love to roll out of bed to go to every day? It really is about knowing yourself first and searching for jobs that are in perfect alignment with YOUR personality traits. Leadership scholars and professional development coaches have studied leadership for hundreds of years. However man has been discussing the philosophy of what makes a good leader since the beginning of documented time. Countless studies have been conducted on personality, behaviors and varying leadership traits. Conclusions have suggested that there are a variety of leadership characteristics that leaders should possess in order to successfully influence others in a way that promotes the greatest effectiveness. Smart organizational decision makers recognize the specific traits of employees and leaders they are looking for and screen for them using assessments, interview questions and probationary trial periods of employment.
While no single person can be all things to all people, smart employers recognize that identifying personality traits plays a huge role in creating proper fit for employees. Some employees will usually be great at what they do because they are in an environment that brings out their very best. Those same employees can be moved to other teams or to work for other leaders where they just cannot get along or they feel they are a fish out of water. So, it is wise to recognize what makes great employees great and build teams with leaders and coworkers whose personal traits build collaboration and excellence. After all, bleach and ammonia are great cleaners, but when mixed, it quickly becomes toxic and destructive. So, chemistry of people works the very same way. Great in one combination and toxic in another is a phenomena that takes place when forming workgroups and teams.
Bad decisions in placing leaders and team members together can be costly in both terms of lawsuits, production, profits and reputation. Loyal-happy employees love to come to work and give their very best. Unhappy-dissatisfied employees act out in ways that sabotage success, call in sick, slow or stop productivity, and do things that destroy morale.
Organizational leaders must recognize that teams are only as strong as their weakest link. If they want to build teams that keep the organization competitive and strong, they must have the right people in the right places. This suggests that first an organization must both recognize the traits of the leaders and the subordinates. Second, they must identify what strengths the teams and leaders are missing and fill it with the ideal person or people that have those missing strengths--but also have other traits in common with the others who are leading.
Oil-based paints can create some beautiful colors when mixed with different colors that are also oil-based. However, water-based paints will not mix well with oil-based paints because there is not enough similarity in make-up to allow them to bond. So it is also with creating winning teams. Chemistry matters! Water paints are beautiful in the correct environment, as are oil-based paints in their ideal environment.
If we truly want to be happy in our places of employment, we cannot be on autopilot. We must actively take personal assessments and determine who we are as individuals. We must search deeply for our authentic-self and feel free to be who we are. We must be able to convey in words that others can clearly understand who we are. We must accurately know our strengths, weaknesses, triggers, likes and dislikes. We are not doing HR professionals any favors by not conveying accurately our personal traits. Likewise, Human Resource professionals are not doing individuals or teams any favors by taking a person whose personal traits do not mix well with the leader and other members of a team or misidentifying personal traits of the employee.
In order for hiring professionals to make the perfect placement, they must accurately determine the actual traits of those they are interviewing. This leaves great responsibility on every job candidate to know himself/herself accurately. Some of the best assessments for knowing strengths, preferences, behavioral traits and communication styles include Myers-Briggs (MBTI) and DISC. It is important to find a qualified and certified professional to administer the assessment and educate you on the outcomes.
Leadership assessments are also available and can be quite useful in helping individuals and leaders know themselves and their subordinates better. Smart organizational leaders know who they are working with and adjust their leadership style, communication and actions according to the needs of each individual. This doesn't imply that they take on a fake personality, but it does mean that they must be aware that their actions, insights and paradigms--which can and will have either a positive or negative responses. Good employees can become bad ones quickly with a leader that does not fully understand this concept.
Within the behavioral studies of leadership discoveries suggested that effective leadership hinges on skills which can be learned and styles which can be applied. One researcher, Robert Katz, suggested that leadership skills, instead of being innate, can be learned. At one time, there was a great debate whether leaders were born or made. Now we know that effective leadership can indeed be taught. Katz proposed that leadership skills can be classified into technical, conceptual, and human; and he developed a leadership model that suggested that proficiency at varying degrees depending on the management level that the leader operates at. Hiring professionals must be aware of every leaders' weaknesses and strengths and be active in helping hone those traits with consistent and meaningful training that sticks!
The literature suggests that leaders at lower management levels would find it more important to have technical skills than conceptual skills. Those in middle management would find equal amounts of conceptual and technical skills important. And, those at executive levels of management would find that conceptual skills are way more important than technical skills. In Robert Katz’s model, human skills remain equally crucial no matter which level of management the leader belongs. However, no matter the level, those who need to inspire employees to give their very best must genuinely understand their employees, use Emotional Intelligence actively, and apply effective leadership traits--which can be learned best through experiential leadership training done by outside independent trainers.
Scholars argue whether there is a place for trait theory of leadership. For all its apparent shortcomings, the trait theory of leadership is able to offer some useful information. It can be made use by people in all management levels in all organization types. Leaders and managers can use the information from the trait theory to assess their position within their organization and how to work on how strengthening their position. Leaders can get a deeper understanding of their individuality and the way they are able to affect people within the organization. The theory is something a manager can use to become aware of his or her weaknesses and strengths so they can understand how they may be able to develop their leadership skills better and be their very best.
Finally, if you want to find a job that energizes you, inspires you to be your best, and uses your own talents to make a positive difference--you must first accurately know your authentic self truly and deeply. Contact me or other qualified professionals to take scientifically-validated personality and behavioral assessments that help you get to know your true self. Once you have this valuable knowledge, you will can give your best, because you know what that really is. You can also develop your areas of opportunity (sometimes called weaknesses) through proper training and professional coaching. However, know that we are best at doing things we are strong at and truly interested in more.
If you found value in this article or know others who could benefit from it, please share it. There truly is enough success in this world for each of us. Make a positive difference by helping others be their very best with meaningful assessment, professional coaching and training. I am always happy to help.
Thanks so much for taking time to read this articles.
Best wishes,
Dr. Paul L. Gerhardt, PhD
Copyright © 2012 by Dr. Paul L. Gerhardt. All rights reserved.
