You’ve probably heard both sides of the leadership lingo: “Leaders lead from the front” versus “Leaders lead from the back”.
Regardless of what school of thought you subscribe to, the important thing is that leading is all about supporting your marketing department team.
If you don’t have your team in mind, then your leadership will fail and your team will fall apart.
Let’s look at some of the ways you can lead so your marketing team can be primed to be the best they can be.
Emotional Intelligence
Being aware of your own emotional intelligence levels and seeking to mature in this area is a great way to improve leadership of your team.
Emotional Intelligence (EI) is the ability to recognize, understand, and manage not only your own emotions, but also those of other people.
It involves measuring your capacity to perceive and express emotion, assimilate emotion in thought, understand emotion in others, and regulate emotions to adapt to environments or achieve goals.
One way to find out where you are currently in your emotional intelligence is to take an online test.
Just do a web search for “emotional intelligence test” and you will find multiple free and paid test options.
Once you’ve established your starting point, choose one area to focus on and grow.
Ask your team if they see any areas of improvement as well.
Once you find you’ve grown in that area, move on to another.
Constant growth only helps serve both yourself and your team.
Additionally, here are three items you can practice now, regardless of where you fall on the emotional intelligence scale, to help promote and grow you in this area:
Practice active listening
Listen attentively to the other people on your team.
Don’t just try and push your agenda.
When people disagree with you, be open-minded and listen to what they are saying before making your final decision.
Even if your decision stays the same, your team will feel heard and taken care of.
Learn to express your emotions in a healthy way – practice expressing your feelings clearly and constructively to your team.
If something bothers you, say so without pointing fingers, but with an eye on solution-finding.
If something pleases you, let the team know and encourage them to keep up the great work.
Develop empathy for others – when someone responds in a way you don’t understand, ask them questions about where they are coming from.
Keeping an open dialogue when things are different can help you learn how to understand, relate to, and appreciate the perspectives of others.
Willingness to Go First
Example from the “leading from the front” school of thought
One of the most powerful examples of a leader going first is Alexander the Great.
His ambition, drive and determination to conquer lands was inspiring to his army.
He would often lead from the front and go first into battle, demonstrating that he was not afraid to put himself in danger for the sake of his troops.
This showed them that he trusted and believed in them, and in turn they trusted him.
Today, as it was back then, leading by example is still a powerful tool to get the best out of your marketing team.
It’s easy to give orders from behind a desk or make demands when you’re not directly engaged with what’s happening on the ground.
But if you are willing to get your hands dirty and go first, your team will be more willing to follow suit.
By leading the way in team projects and tasks you can set a strong example of what you expect from the rest of the group.
If you want them to take initiative, then it’s important that they see that same level of commitment from you, first.
Example from the “leading from the back” school of thought
Willingness to go first doesn’t just mean leading from the front, however.
Throughout history, great leaders have been known to lead from the back.
This type of leadership is often overlooked and undervalued, but it can be just as effective in motivating a team as leading from the front.
By standing behind their team and providing guidance, support and encouragement, these leaders were able to help their teams reach new heights of success.
One famous example of this kind of leadership is Julius Caesar.
He was an inspiring leader who had a clear vision for his troops and was willing to put himself at risk for them.
His ability to stay focused on the bigger picture while also understanding individual needs enabled him to lead with confidence and respect from behind the scenes.
Through his commitment to his soldiers’ welfare, he inspired them beyond what they thought possible and achieved victories that would otherwise have seemed impossible.
Leading from the back requires a special kind of skill.
It takes a leader who understands their team and is willing to go beyond simply issuing orders.
By taking the time to understand each individual’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as their goals and ambitions, these leaders can provide tailored guidance that will help them reach new heights of success.
You’re still going first, because you have the team in mind first.
You are simply creating an environment where they feel safe and free to thrive – because you went first and identified the goals, objectives, and roles, and communicated it to your team.
Know when to apply both.
Both ways of leadership have their benefits and time-appropriateness.
By understanding that there are different approaches to leading a team and being comfortable with both, you can become the kind of leader who inspires their team to greatness.
Whether you choose to lead from the front or from the back in any given situation, it will be your willingness to go first that will demonstrate your commitment to your team and will propel them forward to success.
Doing the Hard Work
What is the “hard work”?
It’s not the technical everyday grunt work.
It’s not even physical labor.
The truly hard work is thinking and application.
As simple as it may sound, doing the hard work of thinking is an essential part of success – and not a lot of people want to do it.
Why?
Because its, well, hard.
It takes time and effort to really consider a situation that comes up in your department, weigh all the options available to you, and come up with a plan that will ensure you reach your desired outcome.
It’s easy to rush into decisions without considering all the angles, and to just do things on autopilot.
But this lack of investment in the hard work can often lead to costly mistakes or missed opportunities.
Taking the time to think through each decision carefully helps us make sure we are making informed choices that will benefit us and those around us in the long run.
Thinking also allows us to come up with creative solutions that may not be obvious at first glance – solutions that can help us stand out from our competition and give us an edge over them.
So if you want to set up your team for success, remember: do the hard work and take some time for thoughtful consideration before taking action!
Continual Improvement
Another way to set your marketing team up for success is to never be satisfied with the status quo.
Always look for ways to continually improve yourself, your team, and your processes.
This drive to improve will impact your team and help them want to be better versions of themselves.
But it’s important to do this honestly, and not ‘fake it ‘till you make it’.
Acknowledging that you have areas to improve in personally will help your team feel more comfortable admitting their own desired areas of improvement – and in turn will affect the productivity overall.
Some ways you can put this into practice for yourself is by making sure you are open to learning new skills.
Also make it a point to seek constant feedback from others.
Get help from others both in your team and in other departments to help in identifying areas in which you and your department can further develop.
Constant learning is critical for success – it allows you as a leader to stay up to date with the latest trends and helps you to remain competitive, in addition to motivating your team to do the same.
Additionally, as a leader, it is helpful to be open to trying out different approaches when it comes to your style of leadership, especially if you experience any turnover within your department.
You’ll find that what works for one team of people might not work as well for another.
Taking the time to evaluate your performance and make necessary adjustments is essential if you want your team to continue growing and improving, no matter who they may be.
Clear Planning and Communication of Goals and Objectives
Part of leadership is helping the team get to where they need to go.
Whether it is for a specific work project or for their overarching career in your department.
However, as the saying goes, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Planning starts with you.
Then, it is up to you as the leader to clearly communicate that plan to your team.
An effective way to do this is by starting with the end in mind – what do you see as the ultimate goal?
Once you have that written down, identify what steps are needed along the way.
Keep in the big picture for this one.
Outline what you want to achieve for each big step and the timeline for accomplishing it.
Once you’ve got that laid out, break down the larger steps into a series of smaller, more manageable tasks.
Think ahead about which tasks need what skills and which team members would be best suited to execute the tasks.
Are they technical tasks?
Creative tasks?
Research heavy tasks?
Then, once you’ve got a clear picture, go ahead and assign these tasks to the relevant team members, making sure they are both aware of their responsibilities and have all the resources they need to complete them.
By doing this, you will ensure that everyone is on the same page when it comes to what needs to be done in order for your team to reach its goals in a timely manner.
This is really a way to set your team up for success, from start to finish of any work project.
Culture of Trust and Cooperation
No team can reach its full potential if it is built on a foundation of mistrust and self-interest.
We all know first hand that when people look out for themselves first and are constantly afraid of being backstabbed by their teammates, they will not be able to work together effectively or trust each other enough to share ideas openly.
This culture of fear and distrust will lead to an environment where everyone is trying to prove that they are the smartest person in the room instead of working together collaboratively towards common goals.
Moreover, it can also create a toxic atmosphere in which members feel unable to express their opinions without judgement or criticism from others.
Ultimately, this type of attitude shuts down communication, stifles creativity, and hinders progress – making it impossible for any team to succeed as a unit.
To combat this, as the leader, it is important for you to focus on building and facilitate a culture of trust and cooperation.
Without trust, it will be virtually impossible to build relationships, share ideas openly, and work together effectively.
To create a culture of trust and cooperation within your team, there are some practical steps you can take that will help foster an environment where everyone feels safe and comfortable expressing themselves.
For example, like we discussed in the Emotional Intelligence portion, make sure you are in tune with the needs of your team members and actively listen to their concerns.
Be open-minded when it comes to different approaches and be willing to give constructive feedback.
Facilitate conversations within the team as a whole to do the same.
Encourage collaboration by hosting regular meetings where everyone can come together and brainstorm solutions to any challenges you may be facing.
Finally, it’s important to recognize and celebrate success when it happens – this will help motivate your team to continue striving for excellence.
At the End of the Day
Setting up a successful marketing team takes hard work, dedication and thoughtful consideration.
By continually striving for improvement and doing the hard work, leaders can create an environment of growth and progress that will help their team achieve greater things.
Take the steps that stand out to you, enact them in your department, and you can ensure that your team remains productive and motivated, while also setting them up for success.
Good luck!
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