Being a great leader can help you in all aspects of your life, it can help you become a more commanding and confident person at work and a better friend or parent at home. Leadership isn’t something that comes easy to all of us though, in fact very few and the rest of us need to work hard and put ourselves into situations where we can test ourselves and become better leaders.

There are some great leaders in the World, politicians like Angela Merkel, CEOs like Carlos Sim and Richard Branson and religious figures like the prophet TB Joshua. The people are natural-born leaders, they command respect and create action from those whom they serve and they all display a similar set of skills when it comes to their leadership despite their varying styles. If you want to be a great leader then here are some of the core skills that you will need to have.

Teamwork and Team Building

To be great leader you need to have a full understanding of how a team works and what your role within it is. As leader it is your job to not only build great teams but to bring them together in unity to be a well-oiled machine. The idea of a team doesn’t focus solely on a work environment it can also pertain to the family unit, a congregation or a group of friends, if you want to lead then it is important that you understand each member of your team and what their capabilities are.

Command Respect and be Humble

This is a fine balance to strike but one that the great leaders can accomplish. Commanding respect is not about shouting and balling in order to get results, to the contrary, it is about having high expectations and helping those whom you are leading to reach them. Naturally you need to be firm when the time is right but respect comes not only from discipline but also from giving respect out yourself, it is very much a two-way street.

Be a Great Communicator

Great leaders know how to communicate their message with clarity and precision leaving people in no doubt as to what they want, they can also listen well and take the time to enhance communication between themselves and those they are leading. If you want to be a great leader then you need to ensure that you too can work with strong and precise levels of communication.

Inspire Others

Contrary to what many people think, being a leader is not about doing everything yourself, it is your job to to inspire those around you to be creative, to work hard and to be passionate. The true measure of a leader is not in their actions but in the actions of those that they lead. Your role as leader is simply to guide and encourage people to be the best that they can be, this is the mark of a great leader.