The qualities of a strong leader are in the way you interact with the people who are your followers. Your power to lead is determined by your ability to inspire others to take action through rational persuasion and emotional connection. You should have that vision and confidence in yourself to take risks, draw on experience, expose your vulnerabilities and create opportunities where none exist.
What makes a strong leader
The qualities that make a strong leader are varied. They vary depending on your self-control, confidence, self-discipline, decisiveness, and more. But all strong leaders find out what makes those around them tick and understand how best to lead them.
A strong leader doesn’t mind receiving accolades from others but always remains down-to-earth and without arrogance. The list that highlights the qualities of a strong leader is very long, as you can see below:
What are the qualities of a strong leader?
The list of qualities that make a strong leader is long. There is no one set of qualities that suits every situation. However, some will make a person more likely to succeed in a leadership role than others.
So, here are 22 good qualities of a strong leader:
1. Decisive
The quality to admire most is the ability for a leader to be decisive and make quick decisions without worrying about second-guessing themselves.
A good leader makes tough decisions with courage, no matter the outcome. It requires confidence in oneself and their abilities.
A poor decision can often lead to a longer-term negative impact on the quality and experience of work for those around them.
When leaders don’t have confidence in themselves when making important decisions, they will play it safe to avoid taking any risks.
A deep knowledge base is also a requirement. Leaders need information on everything from industry trends to competitor analysis to make informed big picture decisions that back up smaller ones.
2. Confidence
Confidence is a strong leadership quality that allows you to both inspire and motivate your employees to work hard. A strong leader can be confident, adaptable, and strong in character.
As a strong leader, you need to make decisions with confidence even if you know there will be strong opposition from others because you may create disappointment among your follower or employees.
Leaders must not be emotional about their decisions, or they will find it difficult to lead others.
A strong leader must always be aware of how the followers react and proceed with caution when necessary. A leader must also stand firm when making unpopular decisions.
3. Self-Discipline
Self-discipline is an important quality that enables you to reach your potential as a good leader by ensuring you set out goals for yourself before others’ expectations get in the way.
Strong leaders have strong ethics and strong morals in their dealings with people at work. They lead others based on their strong moral convictions and not for self-serving purposes.
Related: 22 Skills and Qualities That Make You a Good Leader
4. Vision
A strong vision is one of the most important qualities of a strong leader because it empowers them to go beyond obstacles, tackle challenges head-on, overcome failures and stay inspired in the process.
A strong leader has strong goals that they’re willing to work hard and achieve. Challenging goals help define who they are as individuals and keep them focused on an ultimate mission.
5. Thoughtful
Visionary thinking skills enable strong leaders to create new ideas that can help their organizations or teams excel in an ever-evolving future.
Strong leaders don’t leave any question unanswered that’s why they think through every possible scenario, explore all available facts, and then make well-founded decisions.
Strong leaders have strong memories because anything less can result in an unfavorable consequence that could affect them or their teams in the future.
6. Self-Control
Self-control is also another strong leadership skill. A leader must have self-control over their actions [not emotions].
Strong leaders maintain control over themselves while dealing with emotions such as frustration, anger, or anxiety.
It prevents them from reacting in negative ways or lashing out at others. They know how to control their emotions while keeping positive attitudes and character.
7. Conscientiousness
Strong leaders are self-disciplined and always be responsible for their actions. They think before they act and stand by their decisions even when strong emotions tell them to do otherwise.
A strong leader makes hard choices that might affect their teams. Strong leaders aren’t afraid to challenge themselves and take risks if it means achieving the goals.
8. Patient
Strong leaders are patient and know that sometimes there is a need to wait for the right moment. A strong leader will not rush into things without considering the consequences.
Strong leaders don’t often make snap decisions and rush headlong without thinking it through. They have patience and understand that everything takes time and are willing to be patient when necessary.
9. Passionate
A strong leader cares deeply about what they do. They are enthusiastic about what they do and show strong enthusiasm to others.
Being passionate is one of the leadership skills that makes you a great leader because most people want to follow leaders who have strong passions and are enthusiastic about their work.
10. Resilient
What makes a strong leader stronger is the ability to bounce back from failures and obstacles. Strong leaders have grit and resilience to withstand problems and do not break under pressure.
They have an optimistic attitude, even facing great difficulties head-on without developing self-doubt or losing confidence in themselves.
Being resilient allows them to believe in themselves and keep moving forward no matter what challenges lie ahead.
11. Flexible
Strong leaders know that flexibility is essential to manoeuvre through different situations.
A strong leader also holds tight to their ideas but will be flexible enough to listen to others and consider them before making any final decisions.
In other words, they know when it’s time to go with the flow or when it’s time to take charge and focus on a goal or result.
They can alter things around them if they need to without hesitating. Their willingness to compromise and adjust or learn from others shows not only strong leadership but also maturity.
12. Goal-Oriented
Strong leaders have SMART goals, dreams and can empower those around them. They know how to set challenging goals for themselves, which also motivates their followers.
Rather than focusing on the result, strong leaders focus on the process of getting there. They understand that no matter what goal you set, it is the process that will lead you to success.
Also, strong leaders know that they can always make corrections along the way.
13. Self-Accountable
Strong leaders hold themselves accountable for their performance. They have clear visions and goals for their followers to follow up on and are willing to step up when necessary.
They take responsibility for mistakes even if it wasn’t entirely their fault. And always find ways to fix the problems instead of placing blame elsewhere.
Read also: 16 Examples of Taking Responsibility at Work
14. Handles Surprises
Strong leaders are strong thinkers. Most leaders make decisions quickly, which sometimes leads to unintended consequences. Surprises typically happen in the workplace all the time.
However, a strong leader knows how to deal with surprises. They think on their feet and come up with a strong plan or solution to the problem. Being able to deal with surprises is something strong leaders do best.
15. Don’t Procrastinate
If you want things done right, then you don’t put them off until later. A strong leader knows that time is of the essence and if there’s one thing they hate most are people who procrastinate.
Strong leaders are not afraid to get started on a project if it’s going to contribute towards achieving a goal, even without having the details of all tasks involved.
16. Self-Responsibility
Taking ownership of your actions is a skill strong leader knows how to navigate. They don’t just take ownership but also explain why they make such decisions persuading their team to agree.
A strong leader understands that accountability means accepting complete responsibility for what happens or not happening within a given time frame.
17. Integrity
Integrity is a strength for all strong leaders, whether in the boardroom or on the shop floor. Even if a decision means losing something desirable, a good leader will never let that interfere with doing what’s right.
Other qualities include honesty and trustworthiness for all situations. It takes integrity to admit your mistakes and own up to them even when no one is looking.
It takes great courage to make hard decisions knowing they might not be popular with everyone. However, making tough choices demonstrates leadership at its best.
18. Strong Values
Strong leaders also have strong values that they focus on. It can be anything from making money to helping others.
Leaders need to value and promote these strong values because it helps keep the followers passionate about the leader’s agenda. Also, having strong values means strong leaders learn about these values.
19. Accepting Weaknesses
No one is perfect, and this includes strong leaders. A strong leader knows this and doesn’t try to hide their weaknesses from those around them. Instead, they accept their shortcomings and then start the process of rectifying them.
By admitting their weaknesses openly, strong leaders show that they are strong enough to acknowledge that they aren’t perfect.
Read more: How do You Demonstrate Leading by Example
20. Self-Confidence
Leaders who have strong self-confidence in their abilities can lead effectively, especially if they have strong confidence in how others will respond to their decisions.
Strong leaders can handle difficult situations with the utmost composure because of their strong sense of self-confidence.
21. Honesty
Leaders must know when to admit they made a mistake, which means having strong self-awareness of their strengths and weaknesses.
They accept praise for good decisions and criticism for bad ones without harboring any grudges or resentments against those who criticize them or find fault with them.
A strong leader also leads by example and are always honest about their intentions. And they never use manipulation or coercion to get what they want out of others.
22. Good with people
Strong leaders are skilled at getting people on board with their ideas by communicating well, building relationships, and earning others’ trust.
A good leader knows how to reach out, listen patiently, provide reassurance when necessary — all the while advancing whatever goals they have set out for themselves.
Conclusion
A strong leader can inspire people through words and actions to push beyond what they think is possible.
They have a clear vision and are decisive, focused, confident, and charismatic without being arrogant or ruthless.
They also believe in themselves and are inspiring others to believe in them too. Strong leaders know that people are complex.
What motivates one person may not motivate another, and that’s okay with them because they empower followers to work in ways that suit their strengths.
Do you consider yourself a strong leader? Share with us your thoughts about this article in the comment section below