While many job seekers may not view themselves as “leaders” in fact we are all acting in leadership roles in some capacity. Whether we are a leader in our home,school, social club or house of worship, we are at some point wearing a leader’s hat.  And this is the hat that employers sometimes want us to wear, even if we aren’t partners or on the track to management.  Employers want to see that their new hires have some leadership skills under their belt. Let’s take alook at a few:

1. The ability to give of ourselves to others. Great leaders know how to give of their time and resources as part of a team and collective effort to achieve a common goal. Employers want to know that a new hire has the capacity to act as the one who is willing to step forward on a new project or give that extra amount of time to get the job done.
2. The ability to give honest and constructive feedback with tact. The best leaders know that they can’t always be “yes men” and that failing to speak out when necessary can actually be a detriment to their team. Employers want to hire discerning individuals who can see problems and who are willing to take the risk of speaking up about them when necessary.
3. The willingness to admit when you are wrong and the ability to immediately move to correct errors.  The most effective leaders know that life is nothing like school. In school we’re told that mistakes are made and that once you make an error you just get a big fat red mark and lick your wounds.  But employers are looking for employees who are not just trying to avoid mistakes. They are searching for those attorneys who understand that mistakes happen and who are willing to immediately own up to their errors while coming up with solutions to fix any mistakes made.