As business leaders we must possess certain leadership qualities. Enabling others to act, for example, comes from a point of humility and respect. This leadership quality requires flexibility and patience on the leader’s end. Knowing when to allow your team to make mistakes is in the spirit of learning and growing and therefore enabling others to act is one of the most crucial leadership qualities.

What It Means to Be an Enabling Leader

An enabling leader is someone who is willing to put their ego aside and listen to those around them regardless of their position. It is a leader’s responsibility to find ways to keep their employees engaged and encourage their ideas. But a good leader is also self-aware in the sense that they are aware of how their behaviors and characteristics have a significant impact on others.

Additionally, trust and respect are two key elements that aid in working in a team/group setting. Being an enabling leader involves a sense of balance. While it is important that you create an environment in which others feel encouraged, heard, and seen, an enabling leader must be able to provide constructive criticism.

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10 Questions to Ask Yourself as an Enabling Leader

  1. Do I truly know my team? – Ask yourself “how well do I know my team?” Make sure to not only know your team as whole instead recognize each individual member of your team alongside their strengths.
  2. Am I effectively communicating the “big picture”? – Find ways to integrate the “big picture” or the “WHY?” in your business.
  3. How can I help my team improve? – Consistently try to look at areas where the team can make adjustments to improve.
  4. Am I leading by example? – As business leaders we hold the responsibility of guiding and setting the example to those around us.
  5. Am I actively listening? – Make sure to be attentive and fully listen to your employees.
  6. Do I give others a chance? – As business leaders we must recognize that our employees come from all levels of experience nevertheless, it should not hinder whether we give them a chance.
  7. Do I hold myself accountable? – Being a business leader comes with tremendous responsibility and we must always hold ourselves accountable.
  8. Do I treat others with respect and humility regardless of their position? – Respect and humility are the foundation of a healthy work environment. If your employees do not feel respected it will negatively impact your business.
  9. Do we have the necessary resources to meet this goal? – Achieving certain goals can require access to certain tools and resources. We as leaders hold the obligation to make sure that your employees have access to the tools they need.
  10. What should success look like? – Everyone has their own mental image of what success should look like. As business leaders we need to cultivate what success can look like to our employees.

Time to Start Asking Yourself Questions

To be an enabling leader you have to start really reflecting upon yourself by asking questions. We know that this can seem tedious at times however, the only way to become an enabling leader is to ask yourself questions.

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