A true leader unlocks people’s potential to improve. Being a leader is and will never be about the title, but more so, it will always be about the goal. A leader must always be proactive and continuously strive to improve his leadership capabilities.

But how do they achieve this? An effective way is to undertake leadership coaching, which can help leaders become more self-aware, phase out old habits, identify the blind spots of personal performance, and improve team dynamics. This eventually allows them to identify growth opportunities, unlock the true potential of not only themselves but also those around them, and yield better business results.

Proactive leaders who have worked with knowledgeable mentors are always in the know when it comes to current trends that influence their respective businesses, industries, the workforce, and the working arena in general. This brings us to the most important question: what are the leading leadership trends for 2019? The answer can be found below.

1. The ability to lead generations.

The workforce consists of different generations of employees – Generation Z, the Millennials or Generation X and some Baby Boomers. Keep in mind that given the different generations, the difference in culture, characteristics, orientation, and priorities affect their ability to perform in the workforce.

As the leader, you must be able to adjust and adapt your leadership styles. One management style may work for the Gen Z but not for the Baby Boomers, right? You would want to create a healthy and harmonious working environment to make all of them feel motivated and be an essential part of the team.

2. Share the board with the women.

A study made by a management consulting firm found a connection between women leaders and profitability. Thirty percent of firms under a female leadership could anticipate gaining more than 1 percent to its net margin as opposed to a like firm with all-male leaders.

3. Maximize technology.

Technology has been a big leap towards progress, and as leaders, you must know how to maximize it without putting in jeopardy your human assets. Use technology to bolster office relationships and lessen the load of employees. Advanced tools can also be used to set business and team goals that every employee could access and improve their performance accordingly. By utilizing tools like KPIs and OKRs, companies can reduce the unnecessary time and effort employees put into unproductive tasks and help them to focus on operations that align with the company’s objectives and values. This could benefit both, the business and employees to get their work done quickly and efficiently. Let’s help make our work- life more comfortable with these available technologies.

4. Work-Life Balance

Say goodbye to the old practice of 9-5 working schedule. Studies have shown that employees tend to be less productive when they are subject to long working hours. As leaders, focus on the quality of work rather than quantity of work hours. Zoom in on your employees’ core strengths – regardless of where they perform their tasks and what time.

Implementing flexible working hours, at home or on the go can work magic with your employees’ productivity and well-being. No more burnouts and stressed-out employees on a Tuesday morning. Give your employees the freedom to choose their work hours so that they can be at their utmost productivity. In addition, they can get the time to look after their families or indulge in other activities like seeing friends, going on dates (perhaps, with the help of free local hookup websites or dating apps), pursuing hobbies, and more. Moreover, happy personal life means happy employees who can produce quality work, and that is what you as a leader are after.

5. Give them leeway.

You hired or chose your employees because you believe they are smart and can perform to your expectations, right? So why not give them the freedom to voice out their opinions, offer suggestions and motivate them to practice innovative thinking. This way, you are a leader and not a boss. A boss just tells his subordinates what to do, a leader motivates his subordinates to think. Through this, employee retention will do a jump to the good side since employees will remain loyal to the company if they feel they are appreciated and heard.

Dear leaders, one trend that will never go out of style in the workforce is the respect that you should give to your employees. Respect and appreciate what they do for you and for the company because employees who feel valued will always do more than what is expected.

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