What Kind Of Situational Leadership Should You Use And When?
You can't be everything to everyone—after all, you aren't a Swiss Army Knife. And if you were, well, that would be weird.
Seriously though, think about how you interact differently with your parents versus your friends, Rabbi, co-workers, or boss. Not only do you have different relationships with each person, but the setting or circumstance also requires a change in behavior, action, tone, etc.
Let's face it. How you represent yourself at a board meeting differs from how you handle yourself at a Happy Hour. (Duh!) Every situation requires something different from you, which influences how you operate and what you say, and thus, how others will respond. Imagine the cluster your relationships would be if you never adapted to the people you were with and the situations you were in.
This is why effective situational leadership is so critical to the success of your team. An effective and impactful leader must be able to "dance" with different situations.
SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP
By adapting to a situation's specific needs, leaders can be more effective in achieving their goals and motivating their teams. For example, a new employee likely needs more direction and guidance, but as they gain more experience, they'll need less supervision and more autonomy. Successful situational leaders adjust their leadership style to match the situation, resulting in improved communication, motivation, and productivity.
There are four types of situational leaders: Delegator, Director, Coach, and Visionary. The question is when to use each type and in which situation.
THE DELEGATING STYLE OF LEADERSHIP
The delegating style best serves a team working on a well-established project or a team that is already high-performing. In both instances, the team or the project needs less involvement from the leader. Delegating empowers the team to be more independent, find creative solutions, own their role, and be responsible for seeing things through to completion. The delegating leader is still present and available but offers support and guidance, not looking right over the team's shoulders as they work.
Thinking about the delegating leader is how I interact with Kevin, my cat. (He's running for President, by the way. He wants to "Make America Meow Again."— just saying). I had to get him an automatic feeder so he wasn't dependent on me. I schedule it to put food in his bowl three times a day, and he can choose whether he wants to gobble it all up at once (hello, 6 am feeding) or graze throughout the day. That gives him the autonomy to chart his destiny. He isn't dependent on me.
DIRECTING LEADERSHIP STYLE
The directing style is the most effective for a new employee or team facing a crisis — kind of like leading a group of zombies. (I was obsessed with The Walking Dead when it first came out; if you watch that show through the lens of leadership, you'll learn a lot.) Back to the zombies.
Zombies travel in a group yet, at the same time, aren't collectively effective. Some might veer in the wrong direction. Others might get stuck in the barbed wire fence they should've seen coming a mile away (if their eyes hadn't rotted out). The 'zombies' need clear instructions that direct them where to walk and who to eat; you get the picture. They don't just need a plan but accountability to not deviate from the said plan and close monitoring of their progress so you can give them a "high five." (Unless they've lost a hand, I'd pat them on the back. But not too hard. You know. They are Zombies, after all.)
In real-life with living humans, the directing leadership style is effective because new employees don't know the internal ropes or their role yet, so having clear direction and guidance will help them be most successful. As the leader, you've got to "get in there," as I like to say. Take the time to outline the tasks, provide detailed instructions about the way you want things done, monitor their progress, and offer consistent and constructive feedback so they know whether they are being successful (or not).
The team facing a crisis may need more structure and stability because they're feeling the pinch and pressure of their situation. They need a directing leader to triage the problem by providing clear instructions, helping them make decisions quickly, and closely monitoring the action plan to ensure the crisis is resolved efficiently and effectively.
COACHING LEADERSHIP STYLE
The coaching leadership style is great when you want to develop individuals who also need to understand better they are a part of a bigger team, like a school of goldfish. This style is effective when you want to get your people moving in the same direction as a team working on a new project.
A team working on something new has a fresh slate and several directions they could go or ways to approach their objective. This group benefits from the leader using a coaching style who can help facilitate discussions, encourage participation, provide feedback and support, and empower the individual team members to share their ideas, influence the direction of the projects, and take ownership of the following steps and the final results.
This leadership style is also beneficial when identifying the leaders within the team and empowering them to take on a more significant role. Sure, a school of goldfish swims in a group, but there's gotta be one or two little fishes ahead of the rest of the class who might eventually lead the whole damn school.
VISIONARY LEADERSHIP STYLE
The visionary leadership style is great for any team and certainly for one comprised of unicorns (your top talent that is totally invested). Unicorns are creative and may seek more inspiration and encouragement to unleash their magical powers. You want to foster an environment that allows them to be unique. That said, you're going to get more people to be invested (unicorn or not) if you inspire your people.
Being an inspiring leader is essential. Providing your team with your vision keeps them engaged and understanding their part. Plus, it's super helpful if they get stuck in the muck at the end of the day. You can remind them why they're doing what they're doing and how they help advance the mission and vision. The key to the visionary leader is knowing when the people need inspiration and being reminded when they don't.
Bottom line: if you have yet to share your vision in a way that inspires your team, they won't be following you very long. It would be best if you had their buy-in, so share your vision.
The critical thing about all this is that you must be flexible and build muscle in these areas. No one is a cookie-cutter type. Choosing one kind of leadership style and employing it at all times with all people will not produce the results you're looking for.
What types of teams and people are you leading currently, and which situational leadership style might be helpful to start strengthening? This is your invitation to audit your team(s) and decide if you're offering the most effective leader you can be or if you've been trying to be one thing to all people.
It's always possible to learn new leadership skills. You can teach an old dog new tricks. You can become a greater leader. (Because great leaders are made, not born. Remember that.)
Interested in learning how you can apply the various styles to your teams?
Each month I’ll tackle a different leadership topic, and two lucky ducks will have the chance to receive live coaching. We’ll focus on “Situational Leadership in February.” Bring a current leadership dilemma to the call and leave empowered.
