You’re a born team player and believe that the team will always come up with the right response. You certainly don’t believe in a CEO sitting in an ivory tower, but you do believe that some hierarchy is essential. You have therefore opted for inclusive management with responsibility revolving between employees depending on the issue and situation in hand. This approach certainly encourages everyone to take responsibility, but this flexibility can sometimes result in confusion and errors, particularly during a period of crisis. If you’re the head of an SME, myLIFE can help you manage such periods of turbulence, drawing lessons from the crisis provoked by the COVID-19 pandemic.

You believe that the best approach is to enable everyone to play their role to the best of their abilities. To help manage your company, you listen to your team with its merits and qualities. But you’re also realistic – you know that someone has to make the final decision and that person is you. You know how to listen, take a decision, delegate someone for the task, and trust them to carry it out. You’re also capable of calling the shots alone if circumstances require this. Congratulations for achieving this difficult balance that is tricky to maintain! Your approach is a good basis for being both a good manager, and a real leader in the eyes of your teams. Have a look at the other characteristics of a good leader and things that can hamper good leadership.

You only accepted the role of CEO because someone’s name has to be on the organisational chart. You really don’t like hierarchies and believe that the best working structures are much more horizontal. You truly consider your employees as your equals. It’s a disruptive and undoubtedly worthy way to manage a company, but perhaps it also hides an unwillingness to take on responsibility? Who will take the final decision and drive the company forward? A hierarchy does not have to be an oppressive structure; in principal, it also reflects a quality that is essential for your company to function properly: competence! If you don’t want to be the boss, maybe you would accept to play the role of leader. Have a look at the other characteristics of a good leader and things that can hamper good leadership.

Not only do you want to embody the company you manage, you also want to know everything that happens and to approve everything personally. You don’t know the meaning of the word delegate. You like the idea of paternalistic management and the company is your second family. You are remarkably committed, but sometimes you may also hold up the progress of your teams and the company itself. Maybe you should occasionally take a back seat? To help get a better perspective, take a look at the cognitive biases that help entrepreneurs succeed and those that are a hindrance.