Leadership and motivation: how to be a good leader

What is leadership

Leadership are the set of Skills and characteristics that allow a person to influence how others behave or do things. This is especially important in jobs that are carried out in groups or with a team behind, since the leadership of the group leader will be what allows coordinate the workflow and task execution of the team, which will end up affecting the overall work carried out and, consequently, the company's profits. 

The relationship between leadership and motivation

One of the elements most closely related to leadership is motivation. Despite the fact that when thinking about leadership, the first thing usually associated is People and task management skills These are carried out, team motivation is also another of the skills that a leader must work on the most. 

This is because leadership and motivation always go hand in hand. The leader of a team is responsible for the success of the work carried out together. However, beyond certain objective and perfectly tangible elements (how the project objectives and goals can be, as well as the concrete data obtained regarding income and expenses associated with the project), there are others less visible elements which also affect the development of the project and each of the tasks that make it up, and motivation is one of the main ones. 

When talking about motivation, it refers to the leader's ability to To motivate and influence a person or their team as a whole to act as efficiently as possible in their work.. In other words, it is the ability that allows work to be carried out with enthusiasm and desire, which in turn allows it to offer much better results than when it is carried out in a purely mechanical way. 

How to exercise leadership to motivate employees

In this way, leadership and motivation are two related elements. The former must include the latter in its exercise, which will allow for the improvement of the results of the team and the company as a whole. 

Some of the most important ways to motivate people or teams in charge are the following:

• GuidanceOrientation refers to a leader's ability to direct their colleagues and subordinates in the tasks they undertake. Sound, objective-focused orientation, aimed at the goals to be achieved, will save time and greatly increase efficiency in work, leading to higher worker motivation as they will feel useful and effective in their tasks. 
• Empathy: Empathy refers to the ability to put oneself in another's shoes. In this sense, leadership and motivation are elements that coincide when the leader has the ability to place themselves in the position of the employee or team under their charge, which allows them to see the situation from the same perspective. In this way, the leader takes into account the employee's needs and preferences, making them feel more motivated by having a leader who understands them and is attentive to their interests. 
• CommunicationAnother fundamental aspect when encouraging the motivation of workers is good communication between the leader and them. This way, workers feel that their leader, despite their position and leadership, is an approachable person, which will improve their motivation when undertaking their duties and tasks. 

Employment benefitsFinally, and not least importantly, the benefits an employee receives for their work are another fundamental element of motivation. In this regard, salary is the most common benefit usually taken into account. However, there are also other benefits that can help increase employee motivation. Some good examples are those known as social benefits, such as Ticket Restaurant, Nursery Ticket or Transport Ticket, among others. These benefits complement employees' basic salary, and help to increase the sense of satisfaction derived from their work, improving their motivation without the company needing to allocate larger sums of money to their salaries.