While drafting my educational planning table document for the South Dakota Nurse Association (SDNA) convention keynote address, I spent some time in reflection on what makes a nursing leader. The SDNA requested that my talk focus on nursing leadership and so I decided to present ‘Nursing from Within: Leadership from the Inside Out‘ this October.
So what makes a great leader? Are there certain qualities or characteristics a nurse leader must have? Is leadership innate or is it a quality that one can cultivate over time?
Being that I myself am also a nurse, my logical mind went to traits like organized, innovative, connected, resourceful and educated. I decided to have a poke around on the internet to read about what others recognized in great leaders.
While I was all ready to find these highly masculine qualities, I was pleasantly surprised to read this article on Entrepreneur (dot) com on the 4 Critical Traits of Great Leaders. Strength, positive energy, passion and selflessness were the qualities offered in the post. This made my heart sing.
There is no doubt that to be a great nursing leader it takes education, clinical skill and professional expertise and experience. Yet I wonder how much of the other stuff, maybe the ‘soft skills’, that may be overlooked.
[Tweet “Here are 3 leadership skills to help you empower your nursing practice”]
- Stay present. A good leader creates a habitual routine in their non-professional life which cultivates mindfulness. A leader cannot be distracted by every little ‘bing’ that comes there way. They cannot be thrown for a loop when a huge barrier presents itself in the change process. A leader stays present and focused, able to effectively lead through one task at a time.
- Allow for appreciation. A leader looks for the good in each situation, even when that may be hard to find. A nursing leader can take a difficult experience and find the lessons learned. To be a leader means staying upbeat, positive and enthusiastic so that others feel the same.
- Be yourself. A leader can only lead by being themselves. Other people can sense and feel when a person is being inauthentic. Trying to hard to fit in with a crowd or serve everyone’s wants and needs will only create exhaustion and overwhelm. To be an effective nursing leader, one must be themselves every step of the way.
How about you? What leadership skills would you add to this list? How do you present yourself as a nursing leader in your role? I would love to hear from you; feel free to leave a comment below. Thank you for reading and enjoy the day!
thanks, it is true, the most i like be your self
Thanks for reading!
A good leader has a developed emotional maturity. It is a person can accept both criticism and praise. A good leader is someone who empowers you to do a good job but also encourages you yo live a life outside of the work arena.
Excellent additions. I love the part about encouraging us to have a life outside of the work place. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth
Empathy- getting in your staff’s shoes, knowing their role and their lives outside the workplace.
Love it, Arlene. Understanding people and being able to provide empathy and compassion are great leadership skills. Thank you for this addition. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth
Additional Leadership skills
Be a listener:- A good leader listens to everyone and never takes sides to avoid conflicts and save the conducive working environment
Knowledgeable:- Keep updated in all aspects. Your knowledge is the key to efficiency and effective performance
.
Great additions. Thank you for coming by and taking the time to read and comment. I appreciate the added skills. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth
I believe another important quality of a good leader is transparency
So true, Patti. We have to be honest so that people can trust we will do what we say we will. Thank you for reading and taking the time to share your comment, Elizabeth
I have found when you introduce a new concept you need to be positive about it and support them in the trnsition and they may accept it quicker.
.And yes, being authentic also brings respect so they feel like your compliments are sincere, Your corrections will also be more effective and they may try to see it as a stepping stone put there for improvement.
Being open to staff suggestions is right and good if the staff can see that you really do use their input at times . But we cannot try to please everyone all the time when in reality we please no one.
Thank you so much for coming by, taking the time to read and share your comment. Looking for the opportunity for growth can certainly speed up the change process. Great additions to the list, thanks for your insights. Elizabeth
A good leader helps staff to grow and develop, even at the risk of loosing them to another job or position. A good leader looking for opportunitites to assist staff to take on new challenges/ roles, while providing guidance and support so that the “opportunity” will be a great learning experience for the staff person as well as for the leader.Good leaders can see the potential in staff when staff cannot sometimes see in themselves.
Wanda,
Thank you for coming by and sharing your insights to the post. Your additions are well received and I do agree that leaders can help others grow as much as they provide development opportunities for themselves. The leader wants the best for the entire group.
Enjoy the day,
Elizabeth
Great leaders inspire respect from their staff and respect their staff, even if decisions aren’t always agreed with. Many of the prior comments are ways to get and show that respect.
The most common reason I’ve had for leaving a position is loss of respect for the leadership.
Hi Damon,
Thank you for coming on by and taking the time to share your comment. I have to agree with you; I too have noticed that when I find myself questioning the authenticity, respect and trust in my leaders I am more likely to move on and find places where I can find the values that are important to me.
Enjoy the day,
Elizabeth
Beautiful post. I love that you included these additonal qualities that I believe that most nurses have but don’t realize that they utilize in their work. I always think as I’m caring for my patients, “”What if I were in this situation? How would I want to be treated?” Being your true self is what makes a nurse a nurse.
Very well said, Marti. I couldn’t agree with you more. -Elizabeth
Wonderful article and fantastic comments – great discussion. I think it’s important also for each member of the team to understand their role well and how it relates to each other role in the the team – a good leader invests in ensuring this occurs. The important part of being a great nursing leader is to ensure other leaders in the team are invested in to learn leadership skills. Lastly a good leader must ensure they create a shared vision with the team to ensure everyone understands where the team is headed in the short, medium and long term.
A vision and a plan for the team, great additions Christine. Thank you for coming by and joining the discussion. Succession planning is very important to create strong leadership in the long run. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth
Set an intention to have a positive outcome with every issue that arises each day.
Love it, Allen! Short, sweet and to the point. Also highly effective as our intention can totally create the experience we want to enjoy. Thanks for coming by and sharing your comment. Elizabeth
Staying focus and present are good qualities, but a leader also needs to look at future trends that may impact staff. Being current in all aspects of heath care. Alsi being a good listener and being available are always key to good leaders
Great additions, Sallie. Thank you for coming by and sharing your insights. I do agree that having a creative, futuristic and big vision plan are also necessities to lead a nursing staff to the ideal place they can all be. Great share, thank you. Elizabeth
I think one of the most important things is to recognize the culture that exists and determine if that is a culture that actually serves patients as well as creating the space to allow excellent nursing.
You are so right, Amanda. Thank you for coming by and adding the culture piece to this discussion. That is very true as without the entire team, their history and the environment on board with leadership there will be great challenge. Thank you for taking the time to share your comment. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth
It is not bad and it’s being real to show your strong personality as a leader to challenging situations but always bare in mind to be sensitive with the feelings of your team members, be humane at all times. I wish that every member of my team would be smarter, more efficient / competent and would be happier in the workplace they are into. To provide a healthy environment conducive for excellent nursing care, if you put pressure and tension to the environment itself, it would be impossible for a team to achieve care objectives.
Great insights, Franco. Thank you for coming by and sharing from your perspective on the blog post. I agree that the leader needs to lead the team in a way that is humane- with respect and integrity. And yes, it would be a wonderful world when the team flows as one. Enjoy the day, ELizabeth
A leader must possess the skill of influence because of the fact that leaders must have followers
Thanks, Michael! So glad you came by to share your comments on the blog. Enjoy the day, Elizabeth