Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
by Sadaf Javed from Al Shifa School of Public Health
An effective leader can transform the lives of they co-workers. Also, when it comes to international careers, being a leader is a characteristic that is very valued by IGOs. Hence, outlining 10 qualities necessary for being an effective leader will certainly be fundamental to achieve a highly sought competency.
According to the Oxford dictionary, leadership is, “the action of leading a group of people or an organization”. While, Gardner (1990, p.1) describes leadership as “the process of persuasion or example by which an individual (or leadership team) induces a group to pursue objectives held by the leader and his or her followers”.
In this article, we will offer you knowledge of qualities that are in line with these definitions of leadership and are coherent to the UN’s conception of this competency.
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10 Qualities for being an Effective Leader
There are a number of qualities that are attributed to a leader. These qualities can already exist in you, but if it’s not the case, you can either enhance them or create them with effort and focus destined to achieve desired outcomes effectively and efficiently.
#1 Being a Careful Listener
Nature has given us a single tongue and two ears. Well! Does it make any sense? Yes, of course, it explains the importance of listening!
We cannot work in a team effectively unless we hear other peoples’ perspectives.
So, for an effective leader, it is important to be a good listener. They must listen to the problems and insecurities of their team members in order to solve them more effectively.
It is generally observed that if a group leader does not listen to their subordinates and solve their queries, the group’s performance declines as there is a lack of communication and trust between the group leader and the members.
#2 Having Effective Communication Skills
Communication is not only what we actually hear. The beauty of communication is that we also hear what is not being said by the other party.
We all communicate with our body language, our gestures, and our attitude towards others. These come under the non-verbal communication category.
A lot of experts consider that our non-verbal communication makes up to 90% of all our communications. That’s how strong and important this is!
So, for a leader to have more influence on his team members, (s)he must have good communication skills – both verbal as well as non-verbal. (S)he should be able to reduce the barriers to effective communication between them and their team members.
And again, as for our first tip, for effective communication, it is crucial to be a good listener and to have your actions synchronize your words – or, in other words, to display consistency between your speech and your actions.
Also, an effective leader should always try to find the unspoken needs of their team members as some members don’t feel comfortable sharing their problems.
#3 Creates a Mutual Relationship With Team Members
An effective leader should be able to create a mutual relationship with their team members. They should ask for their ideas and inputs instead of merely issuing orders.
This will eventually build trust between the leader and the team members and boost the confidence of the team as a whole. This will surely enhance the productivity of the team members as well as innovative ideas will be generated, which in turn, will definitely boost the growth of the business or the company.
#4 Don’t Just Sit in your Side Cabin
An effective leader must ensure that (s)he just not sit in their office and issue orders!
For a person to be an effective leader, it is necessary to come out and spend some time with their team members, discussing their performance, their issues, doubts, and also discussing innovative ideas in order to enhance their business.
In sum, be a participant leader, not one that sits on the outside of most team deliberations.
#5 Motivate Others
An effective leader should motivate their team members to achieve maximum output in their work. As not all persons are equal in caliber, some persons need a bit more time in understanding things than others.
So, a good team leader is one who keeps all their subordinates on the same track and guides and motivates them to enhance their capacities as necessary.
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#6 Getting the right work from the right person
A good leader knows the capabilities of their team members. They should assign the right task to the right person in order to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of their work.
A good leader also considers the work capacity of their team members.
In sum, this is a quality that is crucial in order to get the most comfortable and efficient workload from each worker, guaranteeing both the needed profit for the company and the happiness of your co-worker for being assigned tasks coherent to their abilities.
#7 Praise your colleagues
Jess Lair said, “Praise is like sunlight to the human spirit, we cannot flower and grow without it”. A good leader knows that it is human nature to get rewarded for the good work they have done.
A good leader organizes small meetings whether formal or informal in order to praise their subordinates to encourage them to work more and also to encourage others to get motivated.
Creating such a work environment is crucial not only for good leadership, but also for productivity and happiness in general.
So, praise your team members when they deserve it! It will definitely increase their productivity.
#8 Being Transparent
A good leader should keep transparency in their dealings with either team members or clients. This will eventually develop a good level of trust among both parties.
A transparent environment in the organization will ensure that every member of the team works effectively.
#9 Work Ethics and Sense of Responsibility
A good team leader should be aware of what is ethically appropriate for their team members. They develop a good code of conduct and a code of ethics for their team and makes sure that they approve it and follow it.
A good team leader should be responsible and should be able to admit the responsibility for any damage on their organization’s end.
They should not blame others for any misfortune but, instead, think sensibly in order to find the root cause and improve their performance.
#10 Don’t Forget Yourself
Most importantly, an effective leader must have an idea of what they want to achieve and have clear directions. They should be able to tackle the stress and organize their routine so that it doesn’t collapse them.
Conclusion
Everyone can try to develop some potential leadership qualities by experience and effort in order to run a successful organization.
With the right guidance and motivation, everyone can acquire the basic skills that are necessary for an effective leader and improve their influence on their team members.
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