Everyone has a leadership style, and no two leaders are exactly alike. There have been thousands of studies on leadership, and there are various opinions on how to categorize leaders. This particular article will classify leaders based off of three categories: Leaders that listen, Leaders that communicate, and leaders that observe. These categories are based off the experiences of the influential leaders that surround LT~CRS.

The Leader That Listens-

These are leaders that really have the ability to not only listen to their employees, but also truly care about the things their employees say. These are the leaders that shake the hand of someone once and remember the clients name, their kid’s names, and where they went for vacation last summer. These leaders often make their followers more productive because they know what makes each member of their team tick. An example of a leader that exhibits this type of leadership is Warren Buffet.

The Leader That Communicates-

These are leaders which keep their team informed. They are constantly organizing, storing, and disseminating information to their followers. As well as communicating often, they are the leaders that communicate effectively. They have no issues speaking on stage and inspiring large audiences. An example of a leader that exhibits this type of leadership is Martin Luther King.

The Leader That Observes-

These are leaders that deeply observe aspects of their business and work to resolve the problems that they see. They are the group that tends to innovate because they look more closely than the other two groups. This leadership groups’ personalities vary the most because they can be quite/shy or have a extroverted personality. An example of this type of leader would be Woodrow Wilson.

Although sometimes leaders fit into several of these categories, it is rare that a leader does them all well. Often, we see leaders lacking in at least one of these aspects. Although all of these styles are all equally beneficial, it is safe to say that the leader that observes is often not as acknowledged. These professionals are usually technically inclined and their works includes many facts that are difficult for the average follower to understand.

So what are a couple of options if you are lacking a particular skill set? Well, of course there is always training. But training takes time, and why in the long run will be best for long term improvement, lacks a bit in short term gain.

But there is an option to get a more immediate gain or effect. In order for those leaders to seek more recognition in their industries, it may help them to gain partners who are experts in the other two categories. Partners who can listen to others about the issues the organization faces as well as communicate effectively to resolve those problems. That way the leaders can notice the problems, and the partners can make it easier for the leader to make a solution come to fruition. This can have a significant and immediate impact to productivity, efficiency and most often sustainable bottom line improvements.

The use of the word “Expert” in our day and age has saturated the business market. Every business you go into, there is someone that says they are an expert in insurance, taxes, and every other industry you can imagine.

What is An Expert?

The literal definition of an expert is someone that has dedicated 10,000 hours of education to their skill or trade, and has achieved a master level status at their trade by their peers or customers. For example, if a violinist has practiced for 10,000 hours, they still may not be very good. The violinist can only be considered an expert if they are deemed one by their peers after 10,000 hours of practice.

Why Do Businesses Need Experts if They Have Employees for Those Functions?

Okay good, now you know the definition of an expert, but why would a business need one? Well let’s go back to the violinist metaphor. Your business has a need for a business solution like an audience has a need to hear beautiful music from an orchestra. Now maybe someone in the audience knows how to play the violin, and maybe the audience member can even play very well. However, anyone who has ever gone to hear an amateur violin concert, and then the symphony, knows there is a big difference between a good amateur and an expert violinist.

That is exactly why businesses hire experts. They have a need that their company may be filling now with a non-expert inside resource; however their needs now exceed that resource’s level of knowledge.  Experts do the business functions that the businesses’ inside resource performs, but does it faster, more effectively, and efficiently. This overall increase in capability usually ends up saving companies money in the long run, because the increase in efficiency usually surpasses the increase in pay you must give to an expert.

How to Find An Expert?

“I can just go on the internet and type in expert in _________ right?” Unfortunately, the internet has many websites that say they are experts with no proof. You will have to do a little research and look at the companies they have worked for as well as if those companies have given the company positive referrals and contact information that allows you to get in touch with those companies to get their confirmation of their referral. This may take an extra hour or two of research but it will benefit your business in the long run.