The 5 Best Leadership Traits Every Small Business Owner Should Have

Small business leaders play a huge role in the development of their company’s employees. They have an impact on their development, actions and every day performance. So how they act with their employees is crucial. Here are the five most important traits every business leader should have:

HONESTY

Employees look at every move their leader makes; they’re influenced by their actions and mimic their traits. Honestly, honesty should be one of those traits. Honesty in the workplace enriches the lives of your employees inside and outside of work; they’ll carry it through with them wherever they go.

 ATTITUDE

No one likes a “Negative Nancy” because immediately it’s annoying, and in the long run it’s poison. Don’t be the cancer of your own business and make your employees miserable. Small Business Owners need to stay positive to keep their company culture alive, even when they see a problem. Surround yourself with positive people and weed out the bad apples. Look for new ways to identify positivity in new employees through personality tests or quirky interview questions.

FUN & HAPPINESS

The people who work for you spend the same amount or more time in your working quarters than they do at home. Small business owners who know how to have fun create a home-away-from-home for their employees. Take a look at the culture of your small business and assign someone to dedicate one day a month to employee happiness. Whether it’s a themed day like Luau Day (like we just had in August at BlueGrace Headquarters) or catered in lunch, be the source of fun and happiness for your employees. They’ll appreciate it and know it’s OK to have fun.

TRUSTING

The big “T” word is a big must. If you don’t trust the people you work with, they won’t trust you back. Give them the opportunity to thrive or fail, it’s a big part in growing your business and thriving as a business owner. Trust allows you to delegate more effectively and allow the business to be successful when you’re not around. BlueGrace has an open social media policy and our employees don’t abuse their privileges because we treat them like adults. It’s nice to know that when 90% of the leadership team is absent our employees are still breaking records, coming to work early and staying late. It’s that “T” word that sets our teams apart from all the others.

COMMUNICATION

Talk to your team, they need it. Small business owners need to make time to clearly share their vision and goals with their employees so they know what, how and when something needs to be done. Don’t assume everyone knows what you’re talking about. If you’re seeing a deer in the headlights look from an employee every now and again, it’s probably happening due to a lack of communication. Your employees don’t want to disappoint you, so take the time to communicate with them in a way you are comfortable. Our President and CEO, Bobby Harris, speaks to the company at every Monday Morning Meeting. Keep a journal or notebook of things you want to say to your employees whether it’s to the entire group or in a one-on-one. It will help you stay on track and to the point.

 Randy Collack oversees the operations of BlueGrace Logistics as the Chief Operating Officer. Throughout his tenure with the company, he has been responsible for the growth of the sales and operations departments. He brings forth vast industry experience as the former President of PDT Trucking and senior positions with Express One and Preferred Shipping.