Top ten leadership skills: examples and tips

Leadership skills are the abilities that help you lead others effectively. But what separates a good leader from a great one?

In this article, we’ll outline key leadership skills and competencies. You’ll get to know which qualities you’ve already got, which ones you need to develop and how you can show off your leadership skills on your CV. We'll also explore the types of jobs that might require you to have leadership abilities.

In our leadership skills guide, we’ll cover:

• What are good leadership skills?
• Why are they important?
• Examples of leadership skills
• Jobs that require these skills
• How to improve your leadership skills
• How to put them on your CV

Leadership skills are the qualities that help you take charge. These skills are useful in various situations, like leading a project and training a colleague. Leadership skills are both soft skills and transferable skills, so you can build them with practice and then use them in many settings, at work and beyond. Even if you never work as a leader or a manager, your career (and life) will get a boost from having these skills.

We’ll run through leadership ability examples in more detail later, but some of the top characteristics for good leadership include communication, empathy and delegation.

Leadership skills improve your chances of success both as a student and as an employee in the future.

As a student, leadership skills will help you develop confidence and communication abilities – great for steering the way on a tricky group project!

Leadership skills will also help you succeed in extracurricular activities, which will benefit you during a job hunt. For example, if you use your leadership skills to become involved in student government or a society committee, you’ll stand out when applying for jobs or internships.

When it comes to the world of work, good leadership skills are essential for management roles or any position where you’ll head up a group. Being a good leader will earn you the respect of your colleagues and help you build stronger teams.

Not sure if management is for you? That’s OK. You don’t have to be a literal leader to benefit from leadership skills. You’ll use these qualities in any job where you interact with others. Employers value employees who take charge, inspire others and get results – whatever their job title.

There’s a lot more to being an effective leader than giving orders. To be successful, a leader has to have a wide range of skills. They’ll usually need to combine their role- or industry-specific hard skills (ie. strategic planning or financial management) with soft skills (ie. communication and creativity).

Let's take a closer look at some examples of transferable leadership skills:

Whether it's explaining your vision for a project or giving clear instructions, as a leader you need to get your point across clearly. That’s where strong communication skills come in.

Another important communication skill is active listening, which is paying full attention to hear and understand what others are saying. Being a great leader isn’t about having the loudest voice. It’s also about taking the time to think about how everyone fits together as a team.

Leaders often have to make tough choices, so they need strong decision-making skills.

To make better decisions, you have to know how to weigh the pros and cons of each option in a scenario. If you combine analysis skills with the ability to think quickly and under pressure, you’ll be an excellent decision-maker.

The ability to understand and share the feelings of others is an important leadership quality. Having empathy makes it easier to see things from other people’s perspectives. It also helps you build strong relationships.

Plus, being empathetic will make you more approachable, which encourages others to be open and honest with you. We’ve all met a scary boss or teacher, and we all know they don’t always get the best results. Being empathetic will make you a fairer – and better – leader.

Being able to resolve conflicts is a core leadership skill. If you’re in a leadership position, you’ve got to be able to intervene when disagreements arise.

It’s important to find a resolution that’s fair and satisfying for all parties. Doing this usually requires compromise and creative thinking.

Delegation means using everyone’s skills and talents in the best and most efficient ways. It also prevents burnout by ensuring that no one person is overloaded with work. Knowing when to delegate workloads (including your own) is a valuable skill.

A good leader needs to motivate others. Motivational skills include setting clear goals and providing the encouragement people need to reach their potential. Inspiring others is a key leadership skill, as it keeps everyone enthusiastic.

Strategic thinking involves setting goals, analysing the competition and making plans accordingly. It also requires flexible thinking and a willingness to adapt. As a leader, it’s important to think ahead and make decisions that will benefit you and your team in the long run.

Great leaders encourage their teams to flourish creatively – and not just in creative industries. It means being open to new ideas for solving problems in any workplace situation.

Encouraging innovative thinking also shows that you trust your team and you're open to new ways of doing things that could make things better. Being adaptable to change is an essential quality for any successful leader.

When you’re negotiating, you’ve got to find the right balance between your needs, the interest of the other party and the resources available. Again, this is where understanding compromise will come in handy. As a leader, you need to negotiate effectively to get what you want while maintaining good relationships.

Leaders must juggle multiple tasks and priorities. Managing your time effectively is necessary to getting things done and avoiding feeling overwhelmed. Good time management skills include setting deadlines (and meeting them), prioritising tasks and knowing when to delegate.

Other skills to build to improve your leadership include:

• Organisational skills
• Problem-solving skills
• Public speaking
• Research skills
• Teamwork
• Resourcefulness
• Flexibility
• Planning
• Recruiting skills
• Persuasion skills

Have our examples lined up well with your existing skillset? Leadership skills will stand you in good stead for a wide range of jobs. Here are five roles where leadership skills are essential:

A project manager is responsible for leading a team of employees to complete a project on time and on budget. Strong leadership skills are essential in this role, as they have to motivate employees to work together and reach shared goals.

HR managers recruit and manage employees. When working in recruitment areas, they need to identify talented candidates. They’re also responsible for navigating sensitive situations, such as grievances between employees. To do their job effectively, they need strong people skills and a good handle on conflict resolution.

As the job title suggests, change managers lead organisations through change. Examples of this will be helping employees get to grips with new systems or a company restructure. Sometimes, it’ll be a big challenge – especially if staff are reluctant to adapt to evolving ways of working. That’s why strong leadership skills are essential.

A content and communications manager creates content (ie. social media posts, blogs and newsletters) for an organisation. The role will include tasks like developing strategies, writing copy and overseeing the distribution of content. Content managers often need to lead a team of writers, designers or content creators and feel comfortable giving clear instructions, setting deadlines and providing feedback.

Community organisers bring people together to achieve a common goal. It requires motivating and inspiring others. To thrive in the role, you’ve got to know how to negotiate and build relationships with different community groups.

Now you’re familiar with some examples of leadership skills and roles where you’ll need them, it’s time to brush up on your abilities.

Here are some ways to improve your leadership skills:

Are you a delegator or a hands-on leader? Do you prefer to lead by example or by giving clear instructions? Getting a better understanding of your leadership style is your first step to improving it. So, the next time you’re on a group project or captain in a game, think about your style and how you’re leading.

Practising your leadership skills is the best way of learning (eg. taking charge of a project), but you won’t always have practical opportunities. The next best way of growing as a leader is by constantly learning. Resources like this guide will help you get to know your skills!

Read books, listen to podcasts, and attend conferences led by successful leaders. Looking for inspiration closer to home? Think about a supervisor at your part-time job or a society chair and learn from observing them.

If you’re able to, getting a mentor is a great way to boost your personal development. Choose someone whose leadership style you like and is willing to give you honest feedback.

Not sure where to start? Read our top tips for how to get a mentor.

If you’re serious about growing your leadership skills or find this area particularly tricky, consider taking a course. There are online and offline courses that will help you develop essential leadership skills.

When faced with a decision, don’t hesitate. Trust your instincts and go with your gut (without being too impulsive). While it’s important to consult with others when you need to, you’ve also got to know how to make decisions quickly and confidently. So, the next time you’re staring at a menu, make a definitive choice – and stick to it.

You’re reading a guide on how to build your leadership skills, so you’re already making the right moves. To push things further, you need to take initiative to make things happen.

Want a mentor? Go and get one. Fancy that skills conference? Book that ticket. Don’t wait for opportunities to come to you. So, if your uni doesn’t have a sports team you’d like to join, look for one in the local community. Being proactive is necessary for leadership success. After all, who’s there to lead the leader?

Focusing on a particular leadership skill, such as communication, is a good idea for building up your leadership ability bit by bit. Practise communicating clearly, both in writing and in person. You don’t need work or uni scenarios to do this. Think about how you communicate with your mates. Maybe you send rambling voice notes that your friends misunderstand. If so, you’ve got an opportunity to improve your communication skills (and your friendships!).

Strong relationships are key to being an effective leader. Getting to know your team and course-mates will help you build rapport with them. Having good relationships will make it easier to give and receive feedback, delegate tasks and work together towards common goals.

Want to create new professional relationships? Give networking a go.

As a leader, it’s important to create an environment where people feel comfortable sharing their ideas and taking risks. So, take the time to encourage others to step out of their comfort zones and reach their full potential. If you notice somebody not speaking up in a group project, invite them to contribute.

Once you’ve taken on our tips and improved your leadership skills, it’s time to show employers what you’ve got.

When it comes to writing a CV, you want to highlight your leadership skills. Employers are looking for candidates who’ll take charge and get the job done. So how can you show off your leadership skills on your CV?

Here are a few ideas:

Mention when you led a team or project and what the results were. For example, you could write "Became the leader of a group presentation project and achieved a 1st" or "Organised a uni society fundraiser that attracted 40 volunteers and raised £2,300”.

Don’t have any leadership experience? Don’t fret. You’ll have relevant things to say even if you don’t think you do.

Think about any time you’ve taken initiative or been responsible for something – even if you were working alone. For example, maybe you didn’t organise an event or oversee volunteers but still raised money for charity through your own fundraising initiative. All the times you've shown qualities like strategic thinking, creativity and problem-solving are important leadership examples.

Make sure you emphasise your transferable skills on your CV. Add them in the 'Skills' section and write about them in more detail in your 'Career History' and 'Achievements' sections.

Leadership skills help you motivate, inspire and influence others. Being a good leader requires soft skills such as communication, team building, time management and decision-making. Having those career skills is important for jobs in most industries, particularly if you're looking for a management role.

If you want to improve your leadership skills, there are lots of ways to do so, including taking courses, reading on the topic and practising in your everyday life.

Once you’ve got the skills, make sure you show them off in job applications. Including leadership skills on your CV will show that you’ve got the ability to lead teams and achieve results.