One is a real leader, when he helps others grow. A leader with subordinates who are constantly growing, enjoys the benefits of leadership. When the whole team is growing, there is no stagnation, the organization experiences tremendous growth as a result. There are several ways a leader can help his followers grow. Here are some of the three ways a leader can add to the growth of others in an organization.

Accept the human imperfection. It’s normal to make mistakes whether you are a leader or not. Understanding this would help you move beyond your mistakes quickly. But when you see mistake as impossibility, it affects you when you make one, because to you, it was never meant to happen. It also affects the way you relate with people you lead whenever they make mistakes.

A father is, in mostly places the head of the house. This is how a leader in an organization is too. Now, imagine a father who expects everyone in his house to act perfectly all the time. When the teenager in the house drops a steel cup, he complains. When his wife misplaces her wallet or anything else, he grumbles. When water slipped off the cleaner’s hand, he said she was too careless. Everyone tries to hide their mistakes from him so that he does not judge and condemn them. Now, guess what the father would do when he drops a stainless cup, lost his wallet or make a mistake? He would excuse his mistakes of course. You see, it is easier to judge others by their action and judge ourselves by our intentions. While it is not okay to condone indiscipline, it is also very important to lead by understanding other people.

As a leader, your team members should know you have their best interest at heart. When they are aware, they find it easier to communicate to you, their concerns about work and areas of your instructions that are not clear to them. They would not try to hide their flaws from you when you are an understanding leader, and when you are aware of their flaws, you can manage them better.

Be an encourager. It is easier to criticize those you are leading when they do wrong or fall short of certain standards. However, it is very important to applaud them when they do things right, no matter how small. It is a form of encouragement, which helps to boost their self-esteem. Encouragement fuels anybody’s energy to do more, to contribute more, and to raise the bar higher.  Another thing encouragement does is that; it helps people believe in themselves. People who believe in themselves are confident people. The more confident people are, the better they perform. So, as a leader, be careful of how you treat those working for you. When they get the task done faster, when they perform better than expected, when they proffer solutions, when their ideas are profitable, when they bring something valuable to the table, acknowledge their efforts. It is a way of saying, ‘Keep up the good work’. Nothing raises a person’s confidence better than a positive acknowledgement and encouragement from someone who is superior to a person in an organization where he/she works.

Expose them to life transforming trainings. Organising trainings for staff of your organization can help them grow in different aspects of their lives. It is great to organize trainings that can help them perform better with their jobs. However, when their personal live is intact, they are more focused on their work and also perform better. Trainings on emotional intelligent, conflict management, peak performance, mental health and other relevant areas can help them improves their personal live which ends up impacting the work they do.

Remember, real leaders help others grow!