Gen Y Female Leader- My Take

The generation Y female leader

We are not the old school, straight and narrow, business is business, hierarchy rules type leaders. We are the teamwork, technology, use your skills, and appreciate emotion leaders. We understand that the best way to engage your team is to be honest with them, and let them get to know you. We appreciate George S Patton’s quote “Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity”. Why do we like this? We know no one likes to be micro managed. If we are the leader, we should know our staff is capable of doing the job requested on their own; and we are here to support our staff to achieve the best results we can.

To be a successful leader today, I believe there are a couple things the gen Y female needs to focus on: trust and knowing your style-leadership and character.
TRUST is the single most important element. Trust has two parts. I always hear leaders talk about the need to gain employee trust; however, I never hear them express the need to demonstrate trust. Employees won’t trust you unless you trust them, and I believe you need to demonstrate trust before you gain trust.
A leader needs to demonstrate trust in their employees simply because your employees are the ones who should have the information you need to ensure the best functioning organization and the best decisions are made from the information given. If a leader is unable to show their employees that they trust their ability the employee with have the same feelings towards their leader- it’s a two way street.

Trust is the single ingredient in any relationship that is built from the other components: communication, decision making, reliability. Without any of those factors being present or demonstrated a leader will not gain the trust from their employees. I mean, really, would you trust someone who you couldn’t communicate with, who make ineffective decisions and was not reliable? Clearly not.

STYLE can define you. I believe leaders have many of the same traits regardless of age or gender: the ability to make sound decisions, and understand the impacts of each decision; ability to draw out salient information; ability to communicate the vision. So if all leaders posses these skills, where do they differ? The execution.

This is not to say that subject matter doesn’t play a part of how a leader executes action, but for the most part, I believe the execution is linked to the personality. If you have ever taken a personality test (Meyers Briggs, or Insights) you understand the ‘type’ of person you are- extrovert/introvert; logical/impulsive etc. these traits shape your execution or delivery. Don’t try and change your style, just use it; your employees will come to know you and if you are trying to act in a way that doesn’t fit, you will lose credibility and trust.

For the female leaders it’s about our skills but also our presentation which is part of our style. Sad to say, but the way we portray ourselves impacts the way we are viewed as leaders.

My simple tips:
Dress to impress- it’s not about having the most expensive clothes, but make sure they are clean and pressed; this rule doesn’t apply on casual days, yes we should be able to have casual days too.

Dress for your personality- don’t be afraid, black isn’t the generation Y female leader colour. My favourite colour is pink, so I wear it with pride... and often.

Keep it classy- It’s ok to want to look good and be confident, but keep it classy. No one (men and women) wants to feel uncomfortable or like they are in competition with you.

So having said all that, what makes an effective female leader today?
- demonstrating trust in your employees;
- communicating with and including employees in decision making;
- knowing your personality;
- showing your style and personality;
- being honest with personal and organizational goals and ensuring your employees do the same.

Trust yourself in the position you are in, trust your employees in the position they are in. Do it your way, let them do it theirs.