From a very young age, we hear about leaders and that we should all strive to be one. In order to advance your career, leadership qualities are quintessential in guaranteeing success. Unfortunately, only a few people naturally are a good leader, but, luckily, qualities that make you a good leader can be practiced.

Before we dive into our list, we should lay some ground rules for what you need to have before you can even start to practice the below qualities. One cannot be a leader (let alone a good leader) if you are not honest. You must be honest with yourself and your team – nothing will make you look worse than getting caught in a lie and once the trust has been broken, repairing the damage will be next to impossible. Secondly, you have to convey passion about your work and goals. Why should your team care if you don’t? Thirdly, respect! It may seem like common sense, but working with different personalities is not an easy task let alone leading them to accomplish a goal.  You have to learn to respect the ideas of your team members – treating everybody equally and not showing favoritism is very important.

Now, let’s get on with the list.

Optimism

No matter how hard the struggle is, a good leader will never lose sight of their goals. The attitude that your team members have might very well be the reflection of yours. It’s understandable that people will have the occasional bad days, but these days can serve as a catalyst to create a stronger bond between you and your teammates if handled with positivity and not scrutiny.

Confidence/Decisive

Confidence is a captivating quality. As a leader, not only will you have to make tough decisions, but you will have to sell those decisions in to your team. The morale of your team can lower overwhelmingly if you make decisions with uncertainty; be fearless, and display confidence. Taking risks is an unfortunate part of the gig. Confidence should be displayed especially in all non-verbal communications.

Humility

If you are a good leader, your followers will put you on a pedestal; just don’t let the thin air get to your head. There’s a reason why leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King are still revered while others are forgotten about, although both might have gotten the job done. A great way to show this is by acknowledging hard work and sharing the credit for all the accomplishments with upper management; people like to get a pat on the back for their work.

Ability to Delegate

A team will never work properly without proper organization. Often times, tasks get handled incorrectly because of miscommunication and unfortunately the leader is usually to blame. As a leader, your team is looking to you for directions and you must possess the ability to break down a project in easy to understand steps. You can only do this properly if you know how your team operates and the only way to practice is through actually doing. A good start would be to share your vision with your team.