Learning From Different Leadership Styles

Throughout my life, I have encountered leaders who have pushed me beyond my boundaries into a space where I could grow both professionally and personally. Leadership can be a tricky role to fill and there are many who buckle under its weight. Dictatorial leaders may get short-term results, but are unlikely to tap into the potential of those around them. The difference between a good leader and a great leader is the ability to create an atmosphere within which everyone can flourish.

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One such example of a great leader is the founder and president of a non-profit organization that promotes diversity awareness in education. She inspired 150 high school students—myself included—to write a book about our experiences. It was one of her many crazy ideas.

If there was one thing I learned working with her it was that if she said we could do it, we usually did. From the fundraiser for a visit from a famous author, to the trip to Washington D.C. to deliver a book we wrote to the Secretary of Education, we accomplished a lot.

All of this took work and our leader certainly didn't do it on her own. Her leadership pushed our group to see possibilities we had never seen before. She had this capacity to see greatness in others and help us see the greatness within ourselves. We all went through things, we struggled and there were days we wanted to give up, but we would have none of it. We could do anything we put our minds to and she proved it to us repeatedly. With every win, we grew more and more confident, both in our belief in ourselves, and in her as a leader.

In Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter, author Liz Wiseman explores the characteristics of leaders who “amplify the smarts and capabilities of the people around them.” Indeed, the leadership of our group’s founder had what could be called a multiplier effect. Contrast this with what Wiseman calls “diminishers”, or leaders who have a suppressive effect on those around them.

While I have worked with many multipliers, I have also experienced the other side.

I had landed my first job with benefits. I was excited and ready to embark on my first corporate experience. Things were fine until one of my colleagues was promoted. Most of us considered him toxic, yet he was our new manager and we immediately felt suppressed.

Almost immediately, he began to strip away our autonomy and implement processes to his benefit, instead of the benefit of the team or productivity. Perhaps worst of all, communication between our team and the department with which we collaborated most became fractured and tense.

He wasn't a bad guy; he just wasn't interested in collaboration. His promotion to management meant his ideas would be executed. If anything went wrong, he had a team of minions he could blame. It wasn't uncommon for him to suggest any of us could be given the ax if we didn't fall in line. The atmosphere was one of fear and we were constantly working to prove ourselves.

The diminisher didn't last long; he left for a job elsewhere after a series of unfortunate mistakes. Upon her first visit to the office after his departure, one executive noted that the atmosphere seemed lighter. “I haven’t heard you guys laugh in a while,” she said. It’s hard to laugh when your competence is constantly called into question and your job security is uncertain.

In the end, the leaders who tapped into my potential were those who believed it existed. There was the assumption of trust coupled with a demand for excellence. Indeed, the leaders who made the greatest impact on me were the ones who empowered me to be the best version of myself possible, and inspired me to be fearless in the belief that I could accomplish anything.