Adapted from the upcoming 'The Wall Street Journal Guide to Management' by Alan Murray, published by Harper Business.

    Leadership is less about your needs, and more about the needs of the people and the organization you are leading. Leadership styles are not something to be tried on like so many suits, to see which fits. Rather, they should be adapted to the particular demands of the situation, the particular requirements of the people involved and the particular challenges facing the organization.

    In the book 'Primal Leadership,' Daniel Goleman, who popularized the notion of 'Emotional Intelligence,' describes six different styles of leadership. The most effective leaders can move among these styles, adopting the one that meets the needs of the moment. They can all become part of the leader's repertoire.

    Visionary. This style is most appropriate when an organization needs a new direction. Its goal is to move people towards a new set of shared dreams. 'Visionary leaders articulate where a group is going, but not how it will get there setting people free to innovate, experiment, take calculated risks,' write Mr. Goleman and his coauthors.

    Coaching. This one-on-one style focuses on developing individuals, showing them how to improve their performance, and helping to connect their goals to the goals of the organization. Coaching works best, Mr. Goleman writes, 'with employees who show initiative and want more professional development.' But it can backfire if it's perceived as 'micromanaging' an employee, and undermines his or her self-confidence.

    Affiliative. This style emphasizes the importance of team work, and creates harmony in a group by connecting people to each other. Mr. Goleman argues this approach is particularly valuable 'when trying to heighten team harmony, increase morale, improve communication or repair broken trust in an organization.' But he warns against using it alone, since its emphasis on group praise can allow poor performance to go uncorrected. 'Employees may perceive,' he writes, 'that mediocrity is tolerated.'

    Democratic. This style draws on people's knowledge and skills, and creates a group commitment to the resulting goals. It works best when the direction the organization should take is unclear, and the leader needs to tap the collective wisdom of the group. Mr. Goleman warns that this consensus-building approach can be disastrous in times of crisis, when urgent events demand quick decisions.

    Pacesetting. In this style, the leader sets high standards for performance. He or she is 'obsessive about doing things better and faster, and asks the same of everyone.' But Mr. Goleman warns this style should be used sparingly, because it can undercut morale and make people feel as if they are failing. 'Our data shows that, more often than not, pacesetting poisons the climate,' he writes.

    Commanding. This is classic model of 'military' style leadership probably the most often used, but the least often effective. Because it rarely involves praise and frequently employs criticism, it undercuts morale and job satisfaction. Mr. Goleman argues it is only effective in a crisis, when an urgent turnaround is needed. Even the modern military has come to recognize its limited usefulness.

    當(dāng)領(lǐng)導(dǎo)就是少考慮自身需求，多考慮你所領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的人和團(tuán)隊(duì)的需求。領(lǐng)導(dǎo)風(fēng)格不能像衣服一樣試來試去，看哪件合適。相反，它們應(yīng)當(dāng)適應(yīng)具體形勢的需求、相關(guān)人等的要求以及整個(gè)團(tuán)隊(duì)所面臨的挑戰(zhàn)。

    在《Primal Leadership》一書中，普及了“情商”概念的丹尼爾•戈?duì)柭?Daniel Goleman)描述了六種不同的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)風(fēng)格。最具成效的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人可以在這些風(fēng)格之間轉(zhuǎn)換自如，采用最符合情勢需要的風(fēng)格。這些風(fēng)格都可能成為領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人傍身之技的一部分。

    遠(yuǎn)見型。這種風(fēng)格最適用于團(tuán)隊(duì)需要新方向的時(shí)刻。其目的是讓人們朝著新的共同夢想前進(jìn)。戈?duì)柭�與合著者們在書中寫道，遠(yuǎn)見型領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人會(huì)說明團(tuán)隊(duì)前進(jìn)的目標(biāo)，但不會(huì)限定達(dá)到目標(biāo)的方式，從而讓人們自由地去創(chuàng)新、實(shí)踐、承擔(dān)計(jì)劃中的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。

    指導(dǎo)型。這種一對一的風(fēng)格重點(diǎn)在于單獨(dú)培養(yǎng)人才，教他們?nèi)绾胃倪M(jìn)自身表現(xiàn)，并幫助將他們的個(gè)人目標(biāo)與團(tuán)隊(duì)的目標(biāo)聯(lián)系起來。戈?duì)柭鼘懙�，指�?dǎo)型風(fēng)格對于表現(xiàn)主動(dòng)積極、想實(shí)現(xiàn)更多職業(yè)發(fā)展的員工最為有效。但如果這種風(fēng)格被認(rèn)為對員工管得太死，損害了員工的自信，則會(huì)適得其反。

    親和型。這種風(fēng)格強(qiáng)調(diào)團(tuán)隊(duì)合作的重要性，并通過讓人們彼此聯(lián)系來營造團(tuán)隊(duì)中的和諧氣氛。戈?duì)柭�認(rèn)為，在試圖增加一個(gè)組織中的團(tuán)隊(duì)和諧、提振士氣、加強(qiáng)溝通或修復(fù)受損的信任時(shí)，這種方法尤其有價(jià)值。但他警告說這種方法不能單獨(dú)使用，因?yàn)樗�注重對群體的褒揚(yáng)，可能會(huì)致使表現(xiàn)不好的情況得不到糾正。他寫道，員工可能會(huì)認(rèn)為平庸是可以容忍的。

    民主型。這種風(fēng)格吸收人們的知識和技能，并就最終目標(biāo)達(dá)成集 承諾。在團(tuán)隊(duì)的發(fā)展方向未明、領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人需要大家群策群力的情況下，民主型領(lǐng)導(dǎo)風(fēng)格最為有效。戈?duì)柭�警告說，在出現(xiàn)危機(jī)的情況下，緊急的事態(tài)要求迅速作出決策，這種建立一致性的方法可能帶來災(zāi)難性的后果。

    身先士卒型。這種風(fēng)格的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人會(huì)給工作表現(xiàn)設(shè)定很高的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，很想更快、更好地完成任務(wù)，并且對每個(gè)人都同樣要求。但戈?duì)柭�警告說，這種風(fēng)格應(yīng)當(dāng)謹(jǐn)慎運(yùn)用，因?yàn)樗�可能�?huì)打擊士氣，令員工覺得自己很失敗。戈?duì)柭鼘懙�，我們的�?shù)據(jù)表明，領(lǐng)導(dǎo)一馬當(dāng)先時(shí)常破壞氣氛。

    發(fā)號施令型。這就是“軍事化”領(lǐng)導(dǎo)風(fēng)格的典型模式，可能也是最常用的，但也是最不容易收到成效的。因?yàn)檫@種風(fēng)格很少表揚(yáng)，然而經(jīng)常批評，故而會(huì)打擊員工士氣和對工作的滿意度。戈?duì)柭�說，這種風(fēng)格只在出現(xiàn)危機(jī)、需要緊急扭轉(zhuǎn)事態(tài)時(shí)有效。就連現(xiàn)代的軍隊(duì)也已經(jīng)認(rèn)識到這種方法的效用有限。