Why practice ethical leadership in your team?

July 31, 2017

Being a great leader generally doesn't happen overnight, it's an art developed over time through conscious leadership. What does make an great leader? What is the magic recipe? If you think about all the great leaders in the world's history, Nelson Mandela, Abraham Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, there was a common thread throughout - ethical leadership. So what is ethical leadership?

It can be both, invisible and visible. The visible component is how you interact with your employees every day, how you behave publicly and how you leave statements to other team members. However, leadership that is invisible is how a leader makes their decisions, his or her mindset, principle and the values he has. It is how the leader responds to difficult situations and decisions. 

Integrity is paramount - being ethical all the time and it is not just when someone is checking or looking at them. Every day working hard to prove principles and values, something that needs to be shown through actions not just through the language.

 Here are some ways ethical leadership can influence your work place culture 

• Ethical leadership sets an ideal example to their team. As a leader, your team members look up to you. If you want your team to practice ethics then you must act as a role model to them.
• Ethical leadership increases and builds trust. Your team members will trust you even more because they know that you would do the right thing because they have seen you do it before.
• Ethical leadership makes you more credible and you earn more respect from your team. If you have been practicing ethical leadership then your team will see the integrity you have as a leader and as a part of the organization.
• Ethical leadership leads to a collaboration of not just your team but the whole organization. More teams will want to collaborate with yours since they know how just and ethically you deal with situations and decisions.
• Ethical leadership promotes a healthy workplace for your team. If your team members know that they have an ethical leader who does not abuse the power he has then your team members will work harmoniously and dedicated to each task or project you give them.
• Ethical leadership knows that it will always be the right path to take. As an ethical leader, you know that doing the ethical thing is never wrong and it is a path you must always take to keep your team members' trust.
• Ethical leadership gives you a good night sleep. At the end of the day, when you pause and rest to think about the decisions and the actions you have made today, you know that you have done your job well.

Ethical leaders do not stop reviewing their ethical principles and values because they know what an ethical leader truly means. Every day they work hard in developing themselves. If you want some help in practicing Ethical Leadership, contact Beyond the Boardroom now!