First, it should be noted that just because you are in a leadership position does not automatically mean that you are a leader. It is not something that can be defined by having a particular title on your name badge, but it is something inherent in you. It is something that you need to be able to develop on your own.
To be a successful leader within the setting of a hotel there is a real need for you to be a real people person.
By this, we mean an ability to deal with both members of staff as well as the general public as you have to be able to keep both groups happy in order to have a happy and successful hotel.
Aside from being a people person, another quality that cannot be overlooked, and is an absolute must, is the ability to influence others and to be able to drive them to a particular goal.
It is often said that a good leader does not push people to their objective, but they pull them along, and that is certainly true.
There are a number of things that can be covered by this tag of being influential, but in this instance we will primarily view at as a way in which people look up to you and are inspired by what you do or what you bring to the hotel. By being inspirational, this can then become infectious and that will only ever be good for morale within the hotel and the different members of staff.
Being trustworthy
When you promise you will deliver something, then you do it without any problems or hesitation.
Being seen as trustworthy also leads to a sense of integrity surrounding you and this is another admirable quality that you should try and have whenever you are in any kind of position of authority.
This may at first sound like a strange point to make, but a good leader will always want to ask one simple question, "why"?
There is a need for you to always be wanting to find out what people think, what people need, why something has happened, how it could be stopped, and simple being involved in the day to day activities than staying on your own in an office. A failure to include yourself and get your hands dirty will lead to you being seen as being aloof and that is not exactly one thing that you want to be known for in any setting never mind the hospitality industry.
The fact that you are open to actually being involved in this way shows that you are a leader that does not believe that you know everything all of the time, which will only lead to some resentment towards you.
Yet another quality that any leader must have is the ability to be assertive because this is also something else that is an attractive quality in a leader.
However, you do need to be aware that there is a fine line between being assertive and being arrogant and that is something that you need to understand yourself. With this, it is certainly best to look at other leaders and managers to see how they deal with being assertive and follow their lead when you see that they then get the respect that they deserve due to the way that they are assertive.
Being an example to others
Staying with a list of admirable qualities for leaders, we have to mention being an example to others in the hotel itself.
Setting a good example means that others are likely to follow and that fits in perfectly with what we said at the beginning, that a good leader does not push people, but they are pulled along behind him and this is exactly what we mean by that.
Leaving everything to everybody else is not an option when you are seeking to be a good leader, so do keep that in mind and apply it on a daily basis to improve the way that people view you.
Share success
A leader that dishes out compliments and rewards people for doing good will be loved and respected by the staff rather than the manager that allows everybody else to do the hard work and then takes the credit. Showing that you appreciate what people do for you will go a long way to developing the best possible reputation for yourself and this has to be one of the most admirable qualities that you can ever have as a leader, so use it to your advantage.
Learn from your mistakes
Another thing that you can do is to make sure that you learn from your own mistakes because in the early days of your career there are going to be a lot of them.
However, it is not so much the making of the mistake that is important, although that does depend on what it is that you do, but more a case of how you then learn from it that is key.
In the early days of being in a position of authority, you may very well try different forms of what you understand leadership to be, but you will then tend to find that some methods may work better than others. You may try to be an authoritative type of leader and, for some people, that will work. However, if the majority of the staff are not responding, then you have to admit to your mistake and be willing to change tact. This is not a sign of weakness, but in actual fact showing that you are able to admit that you were wrong is actually seen as a sign of strength in a leader and is yet another admirable quality.
How to engage with staff
This is more important than you realize, but being a people person is something that you absolutely must be in order to get anywhere in the world of management.
This is also something that you will need to learn how to do as people skills can be developed as you gain more confidence in your own abilities. However, it is also true that some people are just naturally better at dealing with others although the knowledge that you can develop certain skills should remove some of the stress that you may begin to feel.
Showing Respect
When dealing with staff, it is always best that you show them the respect that they deserve no matter the job that they are doing.
There is nothing worse than a manager that is disrespectful because if that is the case, then how can you expect to be treated with anything other than disrespect yourself?
By engaging with staff, you will have people that want to work for you, and their production levels will also be substantially higher than ever before. In actual fact, studies have shown that staff that are happy at their place of work will also have far fewer sick days than other people and they will then also work better and be more engaging with guests and members of the public. In other words, because you have engaged with the staff, there is then a knock on effect whereby the guests will then benefit as well.
Be polite
Address them in the correct manner as even this small thing can make a huge difference to how they respond to you. Politeness can really get you everywhere.
Make sure you are approachable
There can be nothing worse than a manager to be seen as being standoffish and somebody that the staff cannot come to when there is a problem. By making sure that you are seen as being friendly and genuinely concerned about the welfare of your staff, then suddenly you will be treated with more respect.
This approachability will depend on your own individual nature, but as long as you are warm and you do the hard work by approaching the staff in the first place, and making sure that they are aware of being open to debate with them, then the next part should follow on without any problems.
Be active with them
By engaging with them on their level and seeking their advice, it will not only make them feel wanted, but it will help with the idea of you being seen as approachable as we discussed earlier.
Managers spend 40% of their time writing reports.
