It’s challenging to be a young leader in an organization filled with people who have years more experience under their belts. In some instances, you may even feel some resentment – especially if you have taken on a role for which they were passed over.
Fortunately, even if you feel this way right now, it needn’t be the case for the rest of your time with the company. If the executives chose you, it means that you showed great potential and that you are fully deserving of your position.
With that in mind, the next step is to earn everyone’s trust and respect. In proving yourself to be the leader, you will find it much easier to manage a team.
Respect Everyone in Your Team
You can’t hope for respect if you don’t know how to show it to others. In your position, you will need to find an effective way of showing creating a fair, collaborative environment without accidentally passing your control over to others.
Offer freedom to others, but ensure that everything goes through you first. People will respect you because of your hard work and excellent decision-making skills. It has nothing to do with how strong you seem to be in public.
Understand What the Company Stands For
Prove that you deserve the top post by showing to everyone that you are operating in harmony with the company’s core values. It’s not enough that you have leadership skills – you also need to steer the company in the right direction, and it starts with demonstrating a clear understanding of its goals.
Treat Everyone Equally
It doesn’t matter if you deal with senior employees or a new hire – everyone deserves fair treatment. You should do the same from the highest position down to the office cleaners and utility personnel. Your employees will love you for your kindness.
Speak with Confidence
During meetings, you have to come prepared. Show that you have a clear idea about what you’re saying, and be confident. Prepare the meeting room before the arrival of your employees. Invest in a projector ceiling mount so that your presentation will go smoothly. Everyone will feel impressed if you show that you can take initiative, and handle the proceedings confidently.
Dress Appropriately
You might not feel good about wearing formal office clothes all the time, but dressing appropriately will demonstrate strong personal standards and a continued respect for the company, and yourself.
It may be unfortunate that people still base respect on physical appearance and fashion choices, but dressing appropriately demonstrates a necessary level of professionalism.
Learn How – and When – to Confront Others
Even with your effort to gain trust and respect, some people may well continue to resist your authority. This can be incredibly trying, but finding a strong middle-ground between kindness and firmness is essential for anyone moving into a management position.
The workplace requires everyone to be respectful and cooperative, and the time may come when you need to make this known to an employee. Keep it professional and focussed on the impact it is having on the company, rather than allowing your personal feelings to enter into the conversation.
It takes time to gain respect, but it is vital that you don’t give up. Eventually, you will make everyone believe in you. Be grateful to those who respect you as a leader, and maintain professionalism with those who are against you until they recognise you as the head of the team.
