The traits of a great boss (and how they make your work life better)

Effective leadership comes in many forms. While there isn’t a single recipe for success, there are a few essential ingredients. A great boss can be an incredible asset to their team, individual members, and the entire organization, serving as the heart of a positive workplace culture. We’ve all encountered a bad boss who can make work feel draining and create stress that hinders our potential. On the other hand, good management lays the groundwork for innovation, collaboration, and growth. As Jennifer Garvey Berger, CEO of consulting firm Cultivating Leadership, puts it, a good manager “helps their employees lean into those growing spaces that could be great but aren’t there yet, helps them see a bigger horizon than they themselves could see without support, and guides them through the bumpy patches to come out stronger.” We all need a hand in rising to our fullest potential, and these are a few traits that signal a boss who is truly on your side.

Knowing and caring for your team

In any team, personalities vary, and not everyone naturally connects. A good leader understands this but goes beyond superficial connections to foster genuine care for each team member. Garvey Berger explains, “If we are able to understand what drives people, and what they deeply care about, it becomes hard not to like them or care about them in some way. It doesn’t mean you’re going to be besties. But a really good boss can create the conditions for their people to like each other more.” Great leaders create a culture where understanding replaces judgment, which ultimately helps people work better together.

Additionally, a boss who knows their team can also tailor support and motivation based on each member’s strengths, according to a study by the Harvard Business Review. Leadership coach Agnès Perrone from Turningpoint Leadership emphasized this, stating, “You have to be able to manage different personalities, different expectations, different drivers, motivational drivers. Not all will be motivated by the same thing,” she says. “You need to find the right language for each person. With some people, it’s immediate and natural because you have similar styles. But with others, communicating may take more effort.” When a boss takes the time to understand each person’s strengths and challenges, they create a setting where individuals thrive.

Embracing failure

As the old saying goes, the road to success is paved with failures. According to the Harvard Business Review, to innovate you need a space that allows for experimentation, that embraces mistakes and challenges the status quo. Even if you have ideas and vision, a boss that makes you fear repercussions for failures will force you to hold back. In fact, failures can often offer important lessons that lead to future innovations. Look for a manager who pushes you to come up with new ideas, and doesn’t scold you for failures but praises you for having the courage to try.

Communicating expectations

Clear communication is the bedrock of productive teamwork. We’ve all experienced the frustration of vague instructions or unclear goals, which can leave even motivated employees struggling. Good leaders make sure everyone understands not only what’s expected but why it matters. A study by AI Screen found that 86% of employees cited poor communication as a top source of workplace failures, and on the flip side, it found that good communication leaves workers 3.5 times more likely to perform well. It can even keep them around for longer: a study by Gallup found that organizations could reduce turnover by nearly a quarter if workers clearly understood what was expected of them.

Self-awareness and consistency

Even leaders have off days, but self-awareness is what separates a good manager from a great one. A leader who openly acknowledges their mood or challenges builds trust, setting the tone for honest, two-way communication. Perrone says being vulnerable and communicating when you aren’t feeling your best can be a superpower as a leader. “It doesn’t make you weak, it helps you connect, and gives space for employees also to share what they are going through when it has an impact on your work. People are understanding. But if you don’t tell them, they cannot guess.”

Inconsistent behavior, on the other hand, can be highly distressing for employees. If your boss is taking their bad day out on you, or communicating in an uncharacteristically bad way, it’s all too easy for it to create stress. You may even be wondering if your boss’s bad mood has something to do with your performance. A study by Michigan State University found that inconsistent behavior from managers caused more anxiety than consistently bad behavior. They were more prone to stress, job dissatisfaction and emotional exhaustion. Garvey Berger says it can feel similar to a toxic relationship. “It’s often that inconsistency that makes people stay in even abusive relationships, because sometimes it works and then sometimes it doesn’t work, and they never know what today’s gonna be like.” Look out for a boss that creates space for honest communication and leaves no space for the guessing game.

In conclusion: Be a good human!

At its core, effective leadership is about embodying qualities that also make for strong friendships, partnerships, and family ties. “Being a good parent would include all these things too, right? Or being a good friend. That’s the awesome thing about getting better at leadership, is it gets you better at humanness,” says Garvey Berger. The best leaders lift others up, creating space for growth and encouraging those around them to strive for their best. In the end, leading well isn’t just about getting results—it’s about making a positive impact on everyone involved.

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