Servant leadership differs from regular leadership as it aims to serve others. Leaders inspire others to share their vision. While servant leadership prioritizes the visions, others may have and assist them in accomplishing their goals. In servant leadership, a leader pushes their team to innovate, think outside the box, and follow their own dreams. Sometimes it’s not always about leading in the frontline. Sometimes it is about being the support system so that others can lead in their direction. This is essentially how servant leadership works. To understand what makes a leader who’s of service, one should consider the following:

Humility and Encouragement

Servant leadership requires a level of humility and the ability to encourage others. There may be times when a person is unsure of the direction they want to take or weary of their ability to make their vision happen. Servant leadership requires that a leader maintain the motivation and keep one’s vision a priority until it has come into fruition. With having humility, a leader isn’t concerned with status or notoriety. Their contentment comes from assisting their team with their personal passions and career goals. For this to occur, a leader must have an unselfish mindset.

Boosting Employee Morale

Leaders who are geared towards being of service to their employees or colleagues are more immersed in the growth and development of their team. To boost employee morale, servant leaders may give employees more responsibilities, be more personable, make the office fun, give small perks, offer training, recognize individual employees specifically for their work, etc.

Selfless Acts

Servant leaders look for how their service benefits others. So, they may provide mentorship programs and free training to help their workers become the best they can be at their jobs. Selfless acts may also include having wellness checks where leaders check in on employees’ mental health. These kinds of actions build trust and comradery within the workplace. By fostering an environment of transparency and open communication, leaders will receive more honest feedback from their team. When leaders of service provide resources and assistance to their colleagues, they are not expecting anything in return. They give out of a willingness to help others achieve their goals.