Managers vs Leadership – What’s The Difference?

Everyone knows someone who is a manager of things, but not everyone knows a leader. This is one of the biggest topics in the business world: managers vs leadership. Are they totally different? Or are they simply the same thing, just in different forms?

Let’s look at the definition of a leader, and compare it to how a manager is defined:

1. Manager – an administrator of an organization.
2. Leader – one who influences or leads others.

The nature of their meanings is very different. One influences others through their character, behaviors, and actions. And one watches over things (people, systems, objects, and organizations).

In this article, I will be going over the core differences between management and leadership, and how being defined as one does not automatically make you the other.

Let’s get into it.

Here is an in-depth guide on the differences between managers vs leadership:

What are the types of leadership?

Before we get into defining the differences between leadership and manager personalities, let’s dive into the concepts and skills of a leader.

According to the popular ThoughtCatalog, there are 12 types of leadership:

1. Autocratic Leadership – is unwavering, desires control, and is inconsistent with their behaviors.
2. Democratic Leadership – is fair, creative, yearns to manage things while valuing the entire group over themselves.
3. Strategic Leadership – desires performance, develops methods to improve everyone’s wellbeing, and is a progressive thinker.
4. Transformational Leadership – seeks radical, positive change, thinks big, and relies on micro-changes to create large outcomes.
5. Team Leadership – analyzes strengths and weaknesses of individuals to increase performance, creates smart goals, and is both a friend and boss.
6. Cross-Cultural Leadership – is empathetic, seeks diverse groups and those less fortunate to create change, is able to reason, and adopt multiple perspectives.
7. Facilitative Leadership – focuses on collective group approaches, is strict on results while disregarding emotions, and is able to identify group weaknesses.
8. Laissez-faire Leadership – is laid back and befriended by many, delegates their authority to others, and believes in personal motivation to drive results.
9. Transactional Leadership – is a position of high importance, focuses on maintaining status quo, rewards others for complying, and is excellent at communicating operative goals.
10. Coaching Leadership – encourages others to believe in themselves, desires performance and change, and develops strategies to promote self-realization in others.
11. Charismatic Leadership – radically influences everything in reach through sheer personality, naturally gains followers by displaying innate power, and draws crowds through proven results.
12. Visionary Leadership – is a rare form, dreams big and innovates, and is extremely efficient, organized, and able to execute their visions to become reality.

There are quite a few different styles of leadership. But you can see through their meanings that they don’t have to relate to “business”.

For instance, an autocratic leader doesn’t have to be a manager to be one who controls group situations. Just like a manager who thinks big doesn’t mean they are a visionary leader.

There are very specific criteria that separate the two, each with their own sets of challenges, roles, and obligations.

Let’s dive into the finer details that define the meaning of leadership and management.

What are the differences between leadership and management?

When you think of someone who has changed the world, do you first think of them as being a manager, or a leader?

Probably a leader, right? Why is this? Well, it’s likely because people who cause the types of changes that move the world led their way there, not managed their way there. They had people follow them, not report to them.

In other words, these inspirational and innovative people gained traction in their efforts to make a difference by the sheer nature of personality, and through leadership consciousness.

Leadership consciousness is a mindset and awareness where you take total form of who you are, your purpose and passion in life, and assume the complete role of your leadership position.

Having this type of mindset takes practice to perfect, but it is possible. Your personality plays a big part in it. For instance, if you’re having trouble finding motivation for work, then it will be difficult for you to feel inspired enough to take action and actualize your dreams.

Let’s take a look at a few examples of leadership skills which are necessary to achieve this.

Character traits: the qualities of a great leader

Is Leadership born or made?

Some of the best qualities in a leader aren’t something that can be easily learned, they come from within you—your heart, your morale.

These qualities can be mimicked, and adopted with hard work, but their true authenticity will always be a struggle if they don’t come from within.

Here are a few of those qualities and skills for effective leadership:

Leaders are motivational, whereas managers hold authority.

A manager—by nature, will cause change through giving orders and direction. But a leader will do this by creating motivation in an individual, and by reducing fear, so that change comes from a place of want, not a place of need.

Managers share good ideas, but leaders act on ideas.

Anyone can have ideas. It’s what you do with them that matters. A manager can think of ways to make the company better, but unless she shares them and creates plans of action within the company, she’ll never break free from the manager identity. She’ll be misunderstood, and she’ll never reach a position of self leadership (where it’s acquired through actions motivated by intrinsic desires).

Leaders take risks to create change, but managers mitigate risks to create stability.

Do you ever feel like your superiors don’t like you? If so, you might want to mend things with them. Otherwise, you become a risk for the company. And it’s management’s job to eliminate risks.

These risks are handled a bit differently by a leader (a leader irrespective of a management role). Sure, leaders consume resources and energy to identity and quarantine risk like a manager, but they’re more focused on the rewards of the risk. Leaders use risk as fuel to help them reach their goals. Managers mitigate risk to prevent their job from being at risk.

Managers accept responsibilities in their role, but leaders seek responsibilities without role in mind.

What’s the first thing you do before you get promoted to a management position? You negotiate your salary. What’s the very next thing that happens? You assume new responsibilities.

Notice the wording: assume. Management roles are forced into their duties, and if their role changes, so do their responsibilities. Leaders are different in that they don’t acquire responsibilities, rather they create responsibilities to further their objectives.

What’s the takeaway?

The values for leadership are a bit different than management. An influential leader overcomes challenges by validating the outcomes of their efforts through passive support and followers. Whereas, managers succeed in their role by improving methods of execution to create outcomes that continue giving their role relevancy.

Leadership & management duties to society

We’ve talked about the different types of leadership, and how they differ from a management role. Let’s now discuss how they are alike, and how these similarities affect the world.

Who and what do managers affect the most?

1. Who – the role of a manager is to influence the people of their organization, and to make sure their teams perform their duties optimally, as to benefit the organization.
2. What – a manager exists to ensure the goals of their organization are met. These organizations can be non-profit entities, for-profit businesses, groups, schools, or political functions.

Who and What do leaders affect the most?

1. Who – the power of leadership by influence is the driving factor that contributes to who they affect. The people affected are not only their followers, but the audiences who their causes seek to reach.
2. What – leaders create purpose by innovating ‘things‘ where change is needed. These things don’t start off as businesses (although the thing may become a business. i.e. Microsoft). The leader creates ideas, and those ideas organically transform into anything, such as a movement, an invention, a way of life, a message to society, or new ways of thinking and living.

It’d be easy to assume how the who and what are different between these two kinds of people, but by nature, they are actually alike.

Although managers exist only to oversee people and things within their organization, in the grander scheme of things, they are still affecting everyone in the world who experiences their organization.

The difference is that managers indirectly influence the world, whereas, leaders directly influence the world. They are alike on a wholesome level, but different on a personal level, defined by what drives their purpose in the cause.

Purpose is what guides the leader, passion is what drives them.

What’s the takeaway?

The difference between a leader and boss, regarding who and what they change, is actually very similar. Although their methodologies and roles are different, at the end of the day, they both influence people and things to impact the world.

How to be a world-changing leader

Effectively communicating as a leader

Have you ever had a manager who resembled the laissez-faire style of leadership, but who failed in terms of communicating? For instance, they let you do whatever you want long as you get the job done. But when you email/text them, they never respond.

Some might dream of having this type of manager. But the thing is, in terms of them being a true leader, they are lacking. Communication as a leader is key; It’s what creates change.

“The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.” – Ronald Reagan

Communication is what separates a good leader, from a great leader.

In fact, it’s a vital characteristic of leadership that shouldn’t be overlooked. According to the Center for Creative Leadership, communicating leadership is a necessary character trait to understanding a leader’s authenticity and sincerity.

In other words, no matter how good a manager might seem, if they fail to communicate, then they fail to be an effective leader. Sitting behind closed walls without engaging is not leadership, it’s fruitless comfort.

Consider these tips to better communicate leadership:

• Express expectations to achieve success.
• Understand individual desires, and communicate ways to overcome weaknesses.
• Be empathetic and identify patterns of emotional cues, like when someone should change careers.
• Encourage direct and open discussions.
• Ask thought-provoking questions that invoke doubts others might not know they had.
• Listen to individuals, and focus hard on their needs to effectively create plans of action.

What’s the takeaway?

Communication of leadership should be something that every manager strives for. Without it, then a manager is simply a manager—nothing more, and certainly, less.

How to be a manager everyone wants

We’ve talked a lot about leadership: the goals of leadership, the best qualities for leadership, types of leadership, how to communicate as a leader, and examples of influencing in leadership positions.

Basically, a good leader should inspire you to want to be a leader.

However, not everyone is ready, or in the right mindset to be a leader. And that’s okay. It just takes time, a strong vision, and the urge to change something.

You could start by being an awesome manager (one who doesn’t dislike their job), and take it from there. SO…how the heck do you do that? Well, it’s kind of an entire article on its own. But I’ll cover a few of the basics.

First, there is a type of leadership that I intentionally left out earlier, and it sort of ties leadership and management together. Let’s talk about it a little.

The Managerial Leadership Style

You’re either a manager, or a leader, right? False. You can be both. This managerial style of leadership is the bridge between the two; it’s very effective, and it can create powerful changes within an organization.

According to the Training Industry, this blend of leadership and manager is someone who can stagger their roles and responsibilities to fit any situation to accomplish goals.

This type of manager is flexible, fair, humble, and emphasizes conceptual skills, instead of soft or hard skills (although, they usually have all three).

Conceptual skills allow an individual to identify, conceptualize, and solve intricate, multi-layered problems, and to produce multiple solutions for various common goals.

In other words, a managerial leader is like a manager on steroids, ready to bring a company to new horizons, and for the greater good of the world. They’re also exceptional role models, and are adored by their associates.

This type of manager is both effective in making a company prosperous, and at inspiring greater human emotions, such as caring about the happiness and hobbies of their team.

What’s the takeaway?

How is a good leader supposed to be a great manager, and vice versa? It’s not easy, but it’s doable. You’ve got to train yourself to have people skills, want positive change in your company, and also care about the success and growth of your peers.

Conclusion

There are a few similarities between a manager and leader, but the subtle differences are really what separate the two. Being a manager does not make you a leader, and being a leader does not mean you are equip to being in a management role.

The biggest difference between the two is that a manager seeks change and growth within an organization (in their career), and a leader seeks to innovate and cause change by fulfilling their visions. Both management and leadership can occur on a small scale, as well as on a worldwide platform.

It doesn’t matter which you are, because one is not better than the other. Each has its own purpose and function in society. It’s up to you to follow your dreams, and to decide what you want in life, and which you will end up being.

What is it that you desire? Do you want to manage things and be on top of the world? Or do you find more satisfaction in creating solutions for the mysteries and weaknesses you find in society?

Let me know in the comments section below!

Thanks for reading, my friends. Until next time.

Here’s a quick recap of Managers vs Leadership – What’s the difference?

1. The 12 types of leadership.
2. Personality of leadership vs management.
3. Character traits – qualities of a great leader.
4. Is leadership born or made?
5. Leadership & management duties to society.
6. How to be a world-changing leader.
7. Effective communication methods for success.
8. How to be a manager everyone wants.
9. The Managerial Leadership Style.
10. Conceptual, hard, and soft skills of a leader.

That’s all folks! Thanks for reading.

Feel free to comment below if you liked this article on managers vs leader – what’s the difference? I’d love to take questions or suggestions on other content you’d like to see on eHowdy!