By Dana Phillips.

Are you respected as a leader? Whether you’re a top leader with hundreds of people on your team or a new leader with a handful of team members, you’re sure to find yourself in the position where others look to you for leadership. The greatest leaders share many common traits. By learning and practicing them, you’ll gain respect as you lead others.

  1. Leaders have dreams. They craft a vision, get excited about it, and share it with others. Ask yourself what your dream is. Write it down and think about how you’re going to get others excited about it, too. Think about what will happen to the people on your team if this dream comes true.  Will they make more money, have more influence, or build others?
  2. Leaders praise others. It’s a leader’s job to uplift others and reward them for doing well. As a leader, you’ll also want to let others know that their contributions are essential to the overall mission.
  3. Leaders listen carefully. Because they genuinely care about the members of their team, great leaders take an interest in their people’s dreams, doubts, and ideas for making improvements. Listening is learning!
  4. Leaders are honest. As a leader, you’ll earn the respect of your team by simply telling the truth. If you prove that you can be trusted, you’ll gain the confidence, loyalty, and dedication of your team.
  5. Leaders are modest. You’ll earn the admiration of your team members by giving them more credit than they expect, and taking more blame than you deserve. When you set a goal for your team, it becomes their goal, too—not just yours.
  6. Leaders know how to have fun. Don’t be too serious! You’ll make your team feel more comfortable and enjoy their work more if they know you can laugh. Find the humor in your work and share it with your team.

Want to Know How Other Leaders Do It?

Join the Direct Selling Leaders Network!

Every Friday, we offer a quick five minute Facebook live in our group, the Direct Selling Leaders Network. You and your future leaders are welcome to join the group. We have no cross recruiting and no daily sales pitches. Interested? Join today!