In these uncertain times, human leadership is not about being nice. It is about taking a psychologically supportive approach to leadership. A way of leading that drives performance by creating a sense of belonging, being respectful, and creating a connection and providing meaning for each person in their role.
Leaders who emphasis the human side of leadership create a safe space for open dialogue and feedback, value dissent and diverse perspectives. Leaders who understand the role of vulnerability and authenticity in building trust and fostering collaboration. By showing their human side and acknowledging challenges, human leaders build stronger connections with teams and inspire greater engagement.
By bringing this intention to everyday interactions, it is possible to bring greater humanity to leadership. This is psychologically supportive leadership that helps people navigate the complexity and the uncertainty of today’s turbulent times. This approach plays an important role in bolstering people’s social and emotional wellbeing and is a way of leading that increases performance.
As we know, a leader’s behaviour is the key driver of employee engagement. For a leader to successfully embrace more psychologically supportive behaviours he or she needs to start by developing their self-awareness. This includes building a greater understanding of the impact they have on others and how their values and beliefs influence the work environment they create.
The most effective leaders are those who can balance both people-oriented and task-oriented approaches. By prioritizing both the needs of employees and goals of the organization, leaders can create a positive work culture that fosters high performance, employee engagement, and overall success. This starts with creating a sense of belonging for everyone in the team, not just the high performers and valuing differences in the team.
Human Leadership Creates a Sense of Belonging
Belonging means an acceptance by others. Satisfying this need can help us better cope with the stressors of organisational life. Leaders play a vital role in creating a sense of belonging by being more deliberate in how they communicate with their team. Leaders often focus on belonging when a valued member of the team is thinking of leaving, instead of making this a deliberate behaviour each day. By connecting with each person in their team individually and consistently leaders can foster a sense of belonging.
Formal and informal interactions reinforce for a team member that ‘my manager values the work I do’. Leading with humanity is taking the time to validate people’s internal experiences, by listening to understand their challenges, to create the basis on which to offer direction and support.
In team discussions, leaders who foster a sense of belonging value differences, and encourage diverse perspectives. These leaders facilitate involvement from everyone in the team and are more conscious to recognise people for their contribution, instead of focusing on the quality of their ideas.
Human Leadership is Being Respectful of Others
When it comes to fostering commitment, engagement, and the wellbeing of employees, one of the most powerful drivers is when a leader shows respect. Respect starts with the small habits that a leader develops, such as being on time to meetings, giving people their full attention and treating everyone equally regardless of status or role.
A lack of respect often stems from a leader’s lack of self-awareness. Leaders often don’t take time to consider their impact on others. When a leader delivers performance feedback in a respectful way, they understand how development feedback, when given poorly, can trigger a flight or fight response. A lack of respect often stems from a lack of preparation for a feedback conversation.
Respect also demands that a leader believes in the resourcefulness of their teams’ ability to get the job done. These are leaders who look for ways to give people more autonomy in a way that motivates and contributes to reduced stress and burnout.
Human Leadership Creates Connection and Meaning
People need a reason to care about achieving organisational goals; especially Millennials who are entering the workforce in higher numbers, and are looking for safety, belonging, and a sense of meaning in their work.
Although extrinsic rewards like incentives play a part, we also need the intrinsic reward that comes with leaders giving people a deeper meaning to achieve goals.
We know from research that when people have a clear sense of purpose, it contributes to increased task persistence and encourages them to learn faster. When people are learning on the job and working towards meaningful goals, it supports their wellbeing, as they are more likely to feel like they are thriving in their role.
A team purpose doesn't need to be altruistic, instead make it credible and relevant, so each person understands how they are making a difference. Leaders who seek to provide deeper meaning make the team purpose a part of daily interactions, with regular updates on each person’s contribution to achieving the shared goals.
In summary, leading with humanity is being socially and emotionally supportive. This is not a ‘soft’ approach to leadership. It is leadership that recognises their role in a human system and the challenges in dealing with the volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity that comes with working in organisations today.
To be successful we need leaders who bring self-awareness of their humanity to lead others with authenticity, and a desire to help their team thrive.