1. It all starts with a vision
A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way — John Maxwell
The true essence of leadership begins with envisioning a set of goals. Think through the final result over and over to make sure you will be committed until the end. Provide a clear and realistic path to your team.

2. Accept feedback
Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.— John F. Kennedy
One of the best ways to grow and improve is by accepting constructive feedback. Your people hold the key to invaluable information that can make you more successful. So leave your ego behind, and ask what you can do better. Check how to create an open and constant feedback meetings.

3. It is all about ‘us’
When the best leader’s work is done the people say, ‘We did it ourselves.’— Lao Tzu
Leadership is at the heart of all group activity. When staff teams succeed it is because everyone shares a sense of ‘us’ and the group becomes ‘leaderful’.Professor Alexander Haslam at The University of Queensland says that ‘leadership is all about creating and advancing a sense of group membership that is shared with followers.

4. Motivate and empower
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader. — John Quincy Adams
Without the right kind of stimulus, people produce mediocre work and drain out quickly. Some get inspired by power, some by incentives, some by appreciation and some by interesting work. It is your responsibility to identify specific motivation factors in your employees and empower them. Your effort to nourish the team will also show that you care for them, which in turn is a great fuel to boost productivity and loyalty. Check how to do one on one meetings to know your team.

5. Lead by example
You don’t lead by pointing and telling people some place to go. You lead by going to that place and making a case. — Ken Kesey
Don’t waste hours trying to convince people. Instead, prove the benefits of a particular decision by your own action. You cannot expect others to do what you would not do. The easiest way to begin is by thinking of your role model. Who would you want to emulate?

6. The Incredible Decider
Without initiative, leaders are simply workers in leadership positions. — Bo Bennett
Leadership involves risk. If you are someone who can make decisions quickly using the information at hand, your own vision and your intuition, then you will be the leader people clamor to follow. Effective leaders don’t second-guess themselves.

7. Leaders Effect Change
Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm. — Publilius Syrus
Leaders understand the full meaning of “effect” as a verb. They put into place something that did not exist before — a new policy, procedure or mindset, a new organization, team or idea, a change of some sort that ameliorates the existing situation.

8. Communicate often and clearly
Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand. — Colin Powell
Deliver the message with conviction so that it permeates through all levels of the organization. Your people need to understand why they are working on a task, what they should be doing and where it will lead them to. One on one meetings are the perfect moment to communicate often and clearly with your people.

9. Help Your Followers to Grow
Today a reader, tomorrow a leader. — Margaret Fuller
As a leader, when your followers grow, so do you. Try to emphasize the physical, emotional, and spiritual elements of each person to create happier and more productive followers.

10. Embrace a new era of management styles
What helps people, helps business. — Leo Burnett
Professor Cary Cooper of the Manchester Business School has recently pointed out that we need a new era of managers. Give your staff more autonomy and control over what they do and allow them to work as flexibly as possible within the confines of their role. Forget about annual performance reviews, collect feedback and intentions in a more regular way.

Over to you
What are your thoughts on leadership? What do you think are the best tips to become a truly leader?

Originally published inside Steer's blog