leadership

Characteristics of the Quiet Leader

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Building on yesterday’s post about introverts as excellent leaders I wanted to highlight the work of Frances B. Kahnweiler, author of The Introverted Leader: Building on Your Quiet Strength.   She describes 5 key characteristics of introverted leaders which I’ve adapted slightly:

1. We think first and talk later. We consider what others have to say, then reflect and then respond;
2. We focus on depth not superficiality. We like to dig deeply into issues and ideas before considering new ones; We like meaningful rather than superficial conversations. Continue reading →

Introverts make great leaders: Receptive and open

/ jeaninecogan / 1 Comment

Successful leadership is associated with traits of extroversion such as being talkative, outspoken, and directive.  Yet new research challenges this popular belief.  Francesca Gino of Harvard University and her colleagues conducted research where they found that introverted managers are better leaders when employees are proactive as their style of leadership is receptive and open. Introverts listen to employee input more and often build on and implement their ideas. In the same circumstances, extroverted leaders can feel threatened by more outspoken followers and interpret this as a question to their authority. On the other hand extroverted managers are more successful when employees are passive or lack motivation since their dynamic and directive style can motivate these employees.

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