My Favorite Leadership Style Test (Goleman and Boyatzis)

There is a test that I also enjoy on those around me. The Goleman and Boyatzis leadership style test has a concrete purpose: to assess the impact of certain types of leaders on our emotions. These two experts first put forward this test in their Primal Leadership books published in 2011. The idea was to specifically highlight a person's personality traits that create resonance that they call resonant.

Daniel Goleman argues that the world of organizations and the economy should place a higher value on the emotional side of human capital. He believes a good leader should not only be capable of making an organization successful, but also have an impact on every employee. A good leader can positively affect people's working environment, well-being and motivation.

Besides Goleman, interestingly, Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee emphasize the idea of ​​the resonant leader. This structure is defined as a leader type with sufficient consciousness to sense the good and the bad in a particular situation. These types of leaders become people who can put their negative emotions aside to create enthusiasm, trust, and empathy in others.

At the end of the day, the resonance mentioned here means working on your own emotional balance so that you can fill others with positive emotions and inspiration.

Therefore, evaluating people's leadership styles can provide insight into what they convey to their colleagues. After all, a good leader is not the person who has the most power or that the board has appointed to lead. Instead, they become those who can unlock the highest potential in the people around them.

Leadership is not domination, but the art of persuading people to work for a common goal.

Daniel Goleman

Goleman and Boyatzis leadership style test

In Primal Leadership, Goleman, Boyatzis, and McKee talk about six leadership styles. These styles form the basis of the leadership style test they put forward. This test is an extremely useful resource for any manager, human resources department, or individual interested in understanding and applying leadership.

It's important to clarify that a leader is not just the person responsible for increasing the success of their team. A leader is more than just the people who provide the correct use of resources, training and guidance for the organization to which he belongs. In addition, leaders become people who have a strong influence on everyone, for example friends, family members or neighbors.

Goleman, Boyatzis, and McKee believe the vast majority of positive and resonant leaders know how to nurture and nurture those around them. They don't just direct people and give them instructions. This more holistic approach is what creates positive change and creates a work environment where everyone is rewarded.

Goleman and Boyatzis leadership test consists of a scale with six sub-domains. Each area measures one of the leadership types with nine questions. Test taker can score low, medium or high for each leadership style.

There are a total of 54 yes / no questions in the test. Let's take a look at the six different leadership styles the exam measured.

Authoritarian (visionary) leader

The visionary leader uses their experience, sources of motivation and enthusiasm to inspire their followers. They are leaders who know their priorities and communicate them to others in a positive way. These leaders also tend to give people they work with significant freedom to achieve their goals in their own way.

Coaching leader

This type of leader acts like a personal trainer or coach. They work with each individual on a personal level. They listen to them and help their personal development within the organization.

Participatory leader

This leadership style is defined by the term empathy. These leaders are sensitive to the problems of others and people take priority over goals. They are very good at creating a harmonious and balanced business culture.

Democratic leader

This style always revolves around the need to achieve consensus. Democratic leader promotes flexibility and quality within a team. They act according to everyone's needs and benefit from incentives.

Tempo determining leader

This type of leader will show himself as an example. They expect everyone to follow them and do as they do because they see themselves as examples of superiority and effectiveness. Their goal is to achieve short-term goals, they tend to micro-management and try to control their team's every move.

The challenging (ruling) leader in the Goleman and Boyatzis Test

This leadership style uses power and actually abuses that power. Such leaders expect others to obey them and respect their authority. They demand that everything they want be done as soon as possible.

It is important to note here that coercive leaders do not take into account the opinions of others. It usually happens because of the instructions, traditions and environment of obedience that are followed. Any innovative or original idea is considered a threat to their authority.

How can you interpret the Goleman and Boyatzis Leadership Style Test?

The results of this test provide different types of information. First of all, participants will usually score relatively high in several different areas. Overall, a person who scores high in the challenging leadership category will also score highly for authoritarian leadership style. Others' points will go towards the democratic style with the coaching style.

According to Goleman, an effective leader must have mastered at least three of these six styles. The styles considered the most respected are visionary leaders, democratic leaders, and coaching-style leaders. These styles are also worth considering and keeping in mind for other aspects of your life.

After all, everyone is part of some kind of social group (friends, family, coworkers) and you will surely have some kind of influence on other people. If you are working on your leadership style in this sense, you can be someone who inspires others and brings out the best in them.