<p>In the book &ldquo;Primal Leadership&sbquo;&rdquo; Daniel Goleman&sbquo; who popularized the notion of &ldquo;Emotional Intelligence&sbquo;&rdquo; describes six different styles of leadership.&nbsp;Based in part on research data from 3&sbquo;871 executives&sbquo; the authors distill all leadership roles into six distinct styles--which effective leaders switch between depending upon circumstances--then explains the role of each style.</p>
<p>The most effective leaders can move among these styles&sbquo; adopting the one that meets the needs of the moment. They can all become part of the leader&rsquo;s repertoire.</p>
<p><strong>Visionary</strong><br />A visionary leader articulates a shared vision and gives clear direction and really helps people move toward a shared hope or dream. This is the classic model of leadership. It creates an immensely positive impact on the team's emotional climate. For example&sbquo; a visionary leader clarifies where the team is going but not how it will get there. This sets people free to innovate&sbquo; experiment&sbquo; and take calculated risks.&nbsp;<br /><br /><strong>Coaching</strong><br />The coaching style involves talking to someone off line&sbquo; outside the team setting. You have a one-on-one conversation&sbquo; not about your shared task&sbquo; not about the job&sbquo; but about the person. Who are you? I'd like to get to know you; I'd like to understand you. What do you want in your life? What's your life like? What do you want for your career? What do you want from your job? How can I help you get what you want&sbquo; go where you want to go?<br />This conversation opens up an ongoing dialogue letting the leader &lsquo;feedback&rsquo; the task in ways that make sense to that person&sbquo; in terms of where they want to go&sbquo; or to find a stretch task for that person&sbquo; to give them a challenge leading them in the direction they want to be moving anyway.&nbsp;<br /><br /><strong>Affiliating</strong><br />The affiliating style creates harmony in the group by getting people to connect with each other. Affiliating leaders create settings in which people can spend time together&sbquo; get to know each other&sbquo; and then bond together. They focus on people&rsquo;s feelings more than on tasks and goals and use praise lavishly.&nbsp;<br /><br /><strong>Democratic</strong><br />The democratic leader is a consensus builder&sbquo; the person who really listens to other people&sbquo; who takes their opinions into account in making a decision. In situations where the path ahead is unclear&sbquo; a Democratic leader can say in all honesty&sbquo; "You know&sbquo; you folks know more about this than I do. What do you think I should do?" The ability to listen gets people on board and makes each person feel they matter.&nbsp;<br /><br /><strong>Pacesetting</strong><br />The pacesetter leads by example and becomes very impatient when people can't meet that standard&sbquo; which is very high because pacesetters are very good. They don't give positive feedback&sbquo; only negative feedback. &nbsp;They make people feel guilty&sbquo; and that's why it lowers the emotional climate instead of raising it.&nbsp;<br /><br /><strong>Commanding</strong><br />The commanding style takes its name from the old command-and-control model&sbquo; the military model. &ldquo;Do it because I say so&sbquo; I'm the boss.&rdquo;</p>
<p><em>Purchase Primal Leadership by Daniel Goleman for more information on how understanding your leadership style can help you become a more effective leader.</em></p>