How to exhibit positive leadership.

By Anne Welsh – Founder and CEO Painless Universal
August 24^th, 2020.

In the technical field of psychology, the specialisation over the last century has progressively stopped focusing on what makes us unhappy and unproductive and has refocused on what mitigates suffering to increase people’s happiness and positive outcomes.

The scientific community has continued to grow understanding on how positive organisational behaviour, that impacts the success of individuals – economics – political  and other organisation systems, can be optimised.

It follows that the implementation of positive leadership traits has become a vital success factor. It is not so bold to assert that positive leaders are a critical element of how optimal performance can flourish in the environment being studied.

Let’s determine what it takes to be a positive leader and describe what is different from regular leadership.  Many academics proclaim that positive leaders are those whose behaviours show an orientation towards the positive extreme. Although not an exhaustive list positive leadership tends to have the following three attributes:

1. A focus on people’s strengths and abilities rather than their weaknesses;
2. Results are emphasised and those results are above what is average or routine versus when average performance is just accepted as the normal.
3. When the leader acts they do so in a way that takes into account the human condition and demonstrates this by maintaining a positive moral outlook, showing confidence and self-knowledge, recognise others when they exhibit leadership qualities and social communication done frequently and in a positive manner.   The anti-thesis of this is when the leader shows no empathy to colleagues and communication always come in the form of a condescending manner.

At Painless Universal we welcome leadership conversations with decision makers.  It is likely that people that can intervene and reduce the pain that people or organisations are experiencing will have the ability to showcase the previously mentioned behaviour attributes and drive forward to greater success.