Manar Al Hinai: Good leaders give clear instructions

To become a great leader, you need clarity and authenticity, according to Manar Al Hinai.

We are not meant to be the same. In fact, operating in a unique manner is what sets us apart and great leaders are often those that choose the unconventional route.

If we consider leadership or management, there is no one right formula. Each environment, team and business requires an adapted managerial style. What works for company X might not necessarily work for Y.

Sarah, for example, is a hard-working employee who recently had a new team leader. Her new supervisor operates in a completely different way to her previous boss. Even after weeks of working closely together, she and her colleagues cannot quite work out how she likes things done. When given a project to work on, her supervisor expects a certain result based on a set of beliefs or preferences that she has not communicated to the team. The end result is Sarah being asked to redo the project, because her boss says it was not what she had in mind.

“I can’t read their mind”, or “ I don’t know what they want”, or “Instead of telling us what they need, why are they wasting their time with vague instructions”, are common complaints I hear from different people about their employers.

This is why authenticity and clarity are so important, and for a business leader ensuring these qualities are in place will help with time efficiency, enhanced productivity and, ultimately, success.

Personally, I consider clarity the most important leadership characteristic of all. Great leaders communicate to their teams what the key priorities are, explain why they are important and how they expect their team to assist them in delivering these results.

It all starts by emphasising your company’s values and goals for the year or the period to come.

Clarify your objectives and deadlines, and provide instructions or advice where needed. Naturally, some people do not understand the big picture to begin with, so be ready for any questions that may arise and guide them through their concerns.

If I have learnt anything from my mentor, it would have to be the importance of establishing an open-door policy, whether you run your own business or manage a team in a company. Providing your team with this opportunity breaks down barriers and saves you time, money and headache in the long run.

One of the problems that Sarah and her team members faced was that their new supervisor expected everyone to adapt to her way of doing things.

Yes, sometimes that needs to happen as processes could be outdated or inefficient. However, what makes a business leader great is adaptability. To be successful in running your business, you need to be able to adapt without jeopardising your values and unique factors. Remain true to yourself while changing your style of management to handle different situations and issues that may arise.

We cannot be certain of everything, especially in the world of business. Nevertheless, certainty to some extent gives your team a peaceful space in which to think and be creative. If leaders have clarified their goals, the company’s objectives, the approaches they favour and what they expect out of their staff, it saves the team members time.

Instead of wondering what their next step is, they can focus on their work and deliver the results accordingly. If they know what their boss prefers versus what they do not, they can work on a project confidently, efficiently, and not waste time worrying whether or not their manager will like this or that.

Leaders become great through experience, so do not be hard on yourself if you believe you are not at that stage yet. As you begin leading your team, or if you are already leading a team, it is good to take some time to narrow down your goals and objectives and think of your leadership style.

The review process is constant, and only through that can we develop ourselves as people and as leaders. If people were to describe you, what would you want them to say? That’s a good way to start.

Manar Al Hinai is an award-winning Emirati writer and communications consultant based in Abu Dhabi. Twitter: @manar_alhinai.

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