“She’s as cold as ice.”

“He doesn’t delegate tasks well.”

“She only cares about short-term goals.”

“He isn’t very people-oriented.”

“She doesn’t trust us to do our jobs.”

“He needs to stop micromanaging us.”

You’ve probably heard one or more of the phrases listed above from either yourself or someone else pertaining to management in an organization.

The reason being is that everyone has their preferred way of how they want to be led. Those in management positions have their own ways of leading others, that may or may not align with the viewpoints of their employees.

Some leaders practice “tough love.” Whereas they have an energetic but firm demeanor – they expect respect and give credit when acceptable.

Others are the type to roll up their sleeves – ambitious until the objective is attained.

Not everyone is comfortable leading large groups, some prefers to work one-on-one.

As rags to riches entrepreneur Jim Rohn said, leaders know when "to be strong but not rude; kind but not weak; bold but not a bully; thoughtful but not lazy; humble but not timid; proud but not arrogant; have humor without folly."

A great leader is one who focuses not only on the performance and production side but balances their attention on the people side of things too.

Leaders who take the time to think about how they’re leading an individual, whether its direction, development, or support demonstrates that they’re not taking a “one-size-fits-all” approach.

Not every employee responds the same way.

Understanding each individual and utilizing them in a way that will be the most beneficial will not only grow the business but build trust and loyalty.