【商業智慧】蓋茨的領袖風範：真正的領導能力在於賦權他人 Bill Gates' Leadership: True Leadership Lies in Empowering Others
領導能力在職業生涯中非常重要，但對很多人而言，它並不是與身俱來的能力，而是一種需要學習、建立和不斷改進的技能。真正的領袖應該激勵他人發揮潛能，幫助自己的追隨者成為更好的人。即使有朝一日他們的能力超越了領袖自己，這仍應視作領袖最大的回報。微軟的共同創辦人蓋茨曾言道：「當我們展望未來，將來的領袖將是那些賦權他人的人。」
領袖不是關於頭銜或職位權威，它並不代表在等級制度中擁有一個「壓制」他人的位置。領導亦不同於管理，管理者維護工作，而領導者引導他人。領導更不是關於你自己，真正的領導要謙卑和願意放棄個人議程。領導是關於實現目標，讓你和你的團隊追求更遠大的目標，一個超越自我的願景或使命。
以下是四個領導者賦權他人的方法：
- 容許員工犯錯：
讓你的員工知道他們不應該為失敗感到羞愧，而是從中吸取教訓，重新開始。犯錯和遭遇挫折是每個成功的企業家都擁有的基因。 - 創造他人成長的機會：
領袖的首要任務是認識並承認各個員工的優勢，創造機會讓他們在各自的領域自在地發展，讓他們覺得自己能參與和貢獻企業的整體成功。 - 接納有禮貌的異議：
讓員工相信自己的想法在決策前被聽取和考慮，但首先領導者要確保員工在表達異議時感到安全。你可以尋求相反的觀點，讓員工知道你希望他們挑戰現狀和質疑決策。 - 分享領導：
如果你希望培養高度信任、高創造力和開放的環境，而你卻仍然擁有專制領導的高姿態，也許是時候下來，放棄控制，停止指揮了，讓他人輪流領導。
當你建立一個強大的團隊時，嘗試向他人分享權力和決策。因為只有這樣才能獲得實際的力量，得到團隊的支持以及他們為公司取得出色的成果。
Leadership is crucial in one's professional journey, but it is not an innate ability for many. It is a skill that needs to be learned, built, and continuously improved upon. A true leader should inspire others to unleash their potential and help those who follow them become better individuals. Even if their skills surpass those of the leader one day, it should be seen as the greatest reward for a leader. Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, once said, "As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others."
Leadership is not about titles or positional authority; it does not imply having a position in the hierarchy to dominate others. Leadership is different from management. Managers maintain the work, while leaders guide people. Moreover, leadership is not about oneself. True leadership requires humility and a willingness to let go of personal agendas. It is about achieving goals that lead you and your team towards a greater vision or mission, something beyond self.
Here are four ways leaders can empower others:
- Allowing employees to make mistakes:
Let your employees know that they should not be embarrassed by their failures, but rather learn from them and start afresh. Making mistakes and facing setbacks are part of the DNA of every successful entrepreneur. - Creating opportunities for others to grow:
A leader's primary task is to recognize and acknowledge the strengths of each employee and create opportunities for them to flourish in those areas naturally. This empowers employees as they feel their involvement in new initiatives truly matters to the overall success of the business. - Embracing respectful disagreement:
Make employees feel that their ideas are heard and considered before making decisions. However, as a leader, it is essential to ensure that employees feel safe expressing dissent. You can do this by seeking opposing viewpoints and encouraging them to challenge the status quo and question decisions. - Sharing leadership:
If you want to foster an environment of high trust, creativity, and open communication, it may be time to let go of autocratic leadership and share power and decision-making. Allow your team members to take turns leading.
When you build a strong team, take the path of sharing power and decision-making. Because by doing so, you gain real power—the support of your team, resulting in exceptional achievements for the company.