An organization's success depends largely on human factors – the quality of the leader as well as the employees the leader leads. A good leader inspires loyalty and a caring attitude from workers towards the company they work for. Thus, the result is more productivity, higher company income, and highly satisfied employees. How then should one drive employees to success?
Fear has always been the principal method in leading groups, but with modern times come new methods on how leaders implement changes and lead their teams. When one leads with fear, the driving force that makes employees work is apprehension of losing their jobs. Fear of authority or of failing could be other reasons for a person to work hard but often, these do not bring about good results. Employees become afraid to express their thoughts and feel unappreciated at work. Thus, instead of giving their best at work, the more they make mistakes.
Leading with love is the opposite of leading with fear. Love leadership (Bryant 2009) takes interest on how employees are doing and what a leader can do to make an employee's job easier and more efficient. Being there and showing appreciation on employees' work efforts are enough to keep employees motivated – knowing that their leader takes time to understand them, their work, and "wants them to succeed" (Bryant 2009).
Therefore, leaders should not use fear to make employees follow their lead. Neither should a leader adhere to all-love leadership, as some employees are wont to abuse such situations. The best way to approach leadership in the workplace is to find the right balance between leading with fear and leading with love. A leader, despite being "stern and autocratic can still inspire great respect if he is also authentic, and genuinely cares about the people working for him" (Snook 2008).
References
Bryant, J. H. (2009, October). Leading with love: Giving to your people gets results. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-hope-bryant/leading-with-love-giving_b_314114.html
Snook, S. A. (2008, January). Love and fear and the modern boss. Retrieved from http://hbr.org/2008/01/love-and-fear-and-the-modern-boss/ar/1
