Big mistake | The words that NO leader should use

There are many leadership traits that define how successful you are at your role. Empathy, attention to detail and willingness to invest in others and put their needs above your own are absolutely key to any leadership agenda, and over time, these credentials will either make or break those who utilise them, or those who choose to ignore them.

However, whilst these traits define the success of leaders, the external face that they put on when at work (even if this takes place remotely) also has a massive impact on how leaders are viewed, and therefore how successful they are.

Whilst mastering the key basics of leadership are ultimately key, the day-to-day of leading others also involves constant communication – and if this isn’t considered as carefully as other traits, it can slip. The curation of a business ‘persona’ is absolutely essential.

But what do we mean by business persona? Yes, bringing your genuine self to work is something that all leaders should be endorsing to teams, but that doesn’t mean that the version of you that interacts with colleagues shouldn’t be measured and considered. You’d say things to friends or family that you wouldn’t say to co-workers, right? Well, curating a work persona is just that; finding the boundary between personability, warmth and not overstepping the boundary of professionalism.