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LEADERSHIP STYLES – AN INTRODUCTION TO 27
DIFFERENT LEADERSHIP STYLES
First edition. June 15, 2021.
Copyright © 2021 Carl Lindberg.
Written by Carl Lindberg, leadershipahoy.com.
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Copyright 2021 Carl Lindberg, https://www.leadershipahoy.com
Table of Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................... 3
27 Leadership Styles: the Complete List ........................................................... 4
Leadership styles – Brief Introduction .............................................................. 5
The Six Leadership Styles by Goleman .............................................................. 7
Servant Leadership.......................................................................................... 19
The Full Range Leadership Model ................................................................... 22
The Lewin Leadership Styles ........................................................................... 28
The Ohio State Leadership Studies ................................................................. 31
The Situational Leadership Model .................................................................. 35
Max Weber’s Classification of Authority ........................................................ 42
Paternalistic Leadership .................................................................................. 47
Spiritual Leadership ........................................................................................ 49
Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid ............................................................. 51
Sources ............................................................................................................ 60
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Introduction
As a long-time business leader and a CEO, I have led
companies with more than a thousand employees from
various countries and cultures. I have always reflected upon
my leadership and the leadership of those around me during
my managerial career. By learning about leadership styles
and what to do as well as what not to do, I have been able to
improve my leadership skills and the performance of the
organizations I have led, time after time. You can learn how
to do this too.
What is a leadership style?
A leadership style is a process by which a leader involves

followers to perform and reach organizational targets.
Modern research tells us that multiple leadership styles
should be used, depending on the situation and the people,
rendering all the older leadership styles based on
behavior obsolete.
By reading this article, you will learn about 27 leadership

styles, their definitions, origin, advantages, and
disadvantages. This will widen your horizon and
understanding of leadership styles, make you a better leader
that is more aware of your own behaviors as well as the
behaviors of others. For a deeper understanding and how to
use the different styles, refer to our in-depth articles available
on most of the styles. (There are links available throughout
this article.)
3
27 Leadership Styles: the Complete List
1. Authority-Obedience Leadership Style
2. Autocratic Leadership Style
3. Affiliative Leadership Style
4. Bureaucratic Leadership Style
5. Charismatic Leadership Style
6. Coaching Leadership Style
7. Country Club Leadership Style
8. Delegating Leadership Style
9. Democratic Leadership Style
10.Directive/Commanding Leadership Style
11.Impoverished Leadership Style
12.Laissez-Faire Leadership Style
13.Middle-of-the-road Leadership Style
14.Pacesetting Leadership Style
15.Participating Leadership Style
16.Paternalistic Leadership Style
17.Relationship-Oriented Leadership Style
18.Servant Leadership Style
19.Selling Leadership Style
20.Spiritual Leadership Style
21.Task-Oriented Leadership Style
22.Telling Leadership Style
23.Team Leadership Style
24.Traditional Leadership Style
25.Transactional Leadership Style
26.Transformational Leadership Style
27.Visionary Leadership Style
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Leadership styles – Brief Introduction
An organization needs leadership to operate, develop further,
grow, and ultimately achieve its goals. There are plenty of
leadership styles available, some old, and some modern. The
approach to leadership styles and how to use them has
changed over the years, which we will briefly explain in this
chapter. Beyond this introduction, the 25 leadership styles
mentioned above will be presented in brief, together with a
few comments on the useability of each style based on my
experience as a CEO.
History of Leadership Styles
• Max Weber’s Classification of Authority from the

1920s listed three ways a leader could gain authority,
which to some extent can be seen as leadership styles.
These styles are charismatic leadership, bureaucratic
leadership (rational-legal leadership), and traditional
leadership.
• Trait theory, popular in the 1940-60s, focuses on the
skills, characteristics, and attributes of the leader as a
person. This did not involve any leadership styles,
since it was all about the traits of the leader.
• Behavioral leadership theories focus on ideal
leadership behaviors, regardless of situational
circumstances. These concepts started emerging in the
1930s, and the Lewin leadership styles are the most
known example of this. Most of these behavioral
models are built on every leader having his or her
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personal style, i.e., the style was not an active choice
by the leader.
• Contingency models and situational leadership styles
have since the 60s been adding the perspective of
situational factors to leadership. This means that traits,
behaviors, and the situation at hand affect which
leadership style the leader should choose to get specific
results. (The six leadership styles by Goleman are
examples of this approach.)
Leadership styles history
The 25 leadership styles are grouped in connection with the

framework they belong to. However, there are a few
exceptions to this regarding leadership styles that belong to
several frameworks.
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The Six Leadership Styles by Goleman
The first six leadership styles belong to the Goleman

framework of Resonant leadership based on Emotional
Intelligence.
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1. Pacesetting Leadership Style
I think many business leaders, including myself, lean toward
pacesetting. This is because Pacesetting leadership creates
visible results quickly. Achieving results fast can lead to early
promotion, resulting in pacesetting leaders moving up in the
hierarchy.
What is the Pacesetting Leadership Style?
Pacesetting leadership is when the leader sets an example of

high performance, pace, and quality. Team members are
expected to follow suit, and the pacesetting leader values
results the most. Pacesetting leadership is good for reaching
short-term targets but is detrimental to long-term employee
engagement.
The pacesetting leadership style is one of the six leadership

styles in the Daniel Goleman model of 2000. It has a very
strong task orientation, with a low focus on people, since it is
all about getting the job done. Pacesetting is very different
from commanding or autocratic leadership since it is about
setting a high-performing example for others to follow, rather
than ordering people around expecting immediate obedience.
The Pacesetting leadership style is very similar to the
Achievement-Oriented leadership style, which belongs to
House’s Path-Goal theory.
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Advantages of the Pacesetting Leadership Style:
• It can substantially increase performance for a limited

time
• Short bursts of increased performance build team
confidence and commitment, as long as it is not too
often
Disadvantages of the Pacesetting Leadership Style:
• Overuse leads to stressed team members with low

engagement
• The focus on performance leads to a poor level of
people focus, meaning a lack of coaching and
development of individuals
Examples of Pacesetting Leaders
Jack Welsh and Virat Kohili are examples of pacesetting

leaders.
Read more in our in-depth article: Pacesetting Leadership.
2. Democratic Leadership Style

We have reached one of the most popular, engaging, and
effective leadership styles. If you consider yourself a leader,
you must learn and master the democratic leadership style to
a level where you can enjoy its advantages while limiting and
controlling its disadvantages. Sadly, a lot of autocratic leaders
are unlikely to be open-minded enough to make it work.
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What is the Democratic Leadership Style?
Democratic leadership builds on empowering team members

to participate in decision-making, with a strive toward
consensus. The engaging climate welcomes everyone’s
opinions, leading to robust solutions. However, the
democratic leader still has the final say on any decisions. This
style is sometimes slow but generally very effective.
The Democratic Leadership style was introduced in the 1930s

as one of the three leadership behaviors used in the Kurt
Lewin experiments in 1938. The Lewin model assumes a
leader has one of the three behaviors, and there is no push for
leaders switching styles depending on circumstances.
(Laissez-faire and autocratic leadership were the other two in
the Lewin model.)
Democratic leadership is also included in the modern
framework based on Emotional Intelligence, also referred to
as the Goleman leadership styles. The Goleman version is
defined as a situational style to be used with five other styles.
The democratic leadership style is also called participative
leadership, and it resembles the Team Leadership Style from
the Blake and Mouton Managerial Grid and the participative
leadership style of the Situational Leadership Model. Last but
not least, the participative leadership style of House’s Path-
Goal theory is very similar to democratic leadership.
Advantages of the Democratic Leadership Style:
• Creativity and innovation are encouraged
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• Collaboration creates solid solutions for complex
problems
• Employee engagement is high
• Common goals lead to high accountability
Disadvantages of the Democratic Leadership Style:
• Collaborative decision-making is time-consuming

• Productivity can temporarily decline when awaiting
decisions
• It does not work well in low skilled, inexperienced
teams
Examples of Democratic Leaders
Larry Page and Jack Dorsey are examples of democratic

leaders.
Learn more in our article here: Democratic Leadership.
3. Affiliative Leadership Style

A good leader knows to care about the team members and is
not afraid to show it. A confident and strong leader is also ok
with sharing feelings and thoughts with others without
considering it a display of weakness. A leader who desires an
open and trusting dialogue needs to start by being honest and
setting the stage for that dialogue.
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What is the Affiliative Leadership Style?
Affiliative leadership is completely focused on the people and

relationships in an organization. The leader’s primary task is
to ensure harmony and friendship in the workplace. This
leads to happy employees but can at the same time lead to
poor performance.
The Affiliative Leadership Style is one of the six leadership

styles by Goleman, which are based on Emotional
Intelligence. Overly focusing on Affiliative Leadership
compares well to Country Club Leadership, which is worth
avoiding. However, the most striking similarities are
probably compared to the supportive leadership style of the
Path-Goal theory, which focused on employee well-being,
reduction of stress, social satisfaction, etc.
Advantages of the Affiliative Leadership Style:
• The team feels that the leader genuinely cares about

them, which builds loyalty, commitment, and trust
• Positive communication and strong people focus
• Strong bonds between members help in collaboration
and crisis handling
Disadvantages of the Affiliative Leadership Style:
• Underperformance might be accepted (Country Club

Leadership)
• The focus on harmony can result in avoidance of
conflict and critical feedback
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• The overall goal might be lost, and the strive for
harmony takes over
Examples of Affiliative Leaders
Warren Buffet, the Dalai Lama, and Joe Torre are examples
of affiliative leaders.
Read more in our in-depth article on this style here:

Affiliative Leadership.
4. Coaching Leadership Style

Why would coaching be restricted to the world of sports? All
leaders who desire performance should spend some time
developing their team members, and the coaching leadership
style is perfect for that.
What is the Coaching Leadership Style?
Coaching leadership focuses on improving employees to

become better individuals and professionals with the leader as
a coach. A Coaching leader can sacrifice initial performance
for learning opportunities. Coaching leadership is very
effective in the long term, but can be difficult and time-
consuming.
Coaching Leadership was coined by Daniel Goleman in 2000

and is part of his six leadership styles based on emotional
intelligence. There are streaks of coaching leadership within
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the transformational leadership style, but besides that, it is
rather unique among leadership styles.
Advantages of the Coaching Leadership Style:
• It leads to high engagement and low turnover within

the team
• It develops people to perform more and better in the
future
• Coaching builds empowerment and confidence in
people
Disadvantages of the Coaching Leadership Style:
• Coaching is difficult and time-consuming

• Coaching requires commitment from both parties
Examples of Coaching Leaders
Andrew Carnegie and Red Holzman are examples of

coaching leaders.
Improve your leadership by learning more in our article on

coaching leadership.
5. Visionary Leadership Style

The Visionary leadership style is one of the best leadership
styles available today. I incorporate Visionary leadership in
my job as a CEO as often as I can.
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What is the Visionary Leadership Style?
Visionary Leadership is when a leader inspires others to

pursue through the use of a long-term vision. The Visionary
Leadership style builds on participation, communication, and
goal setting. A visionary leader risks tunnel vision and losing
short-term focus since all efforts are focused on the long-term
results.
The Visionary Leadership style is also known as the

authoritative leadership style and is one of the six leadership
styles introduced by Daniel Goleman in 2000. It has
substantial similarities with transformational leadership and
some similarities with charismatic and servant leadership.
Furthermore, visionary leadership was found to have the most
substantial positive impact on organizational climate in
Goleman’s research.
Advantages of the Visionary Leadership Style:
• A clear vision creates motivation, inspiration, and unity

among team members
• Innovation and creativity thrive under visionary
leadership
• Strong awareness of change drivers in the surrounding
world increases the chance of successful adaption by
the organization
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Disadvantages of the Visionary Leadership Style:
• The strong emphasis on the long-term can lead to

overlooking short-term and operational matters
• If the vision becomes too intertwined with the
personality of the leader, it can turn into charismatic
leadership, which has substantial adverse effects
Examples of Visionary Leaders
Henry Ford, Elon Musk, and Nelson Mandela are examples

of Visionary Leaders.
Take the opportunity to learn more about this great style in

our article available here: Visionary Leadership.
6. Commanding Leadership Style

Sometimes, and I want to underline the word sometimes, a
leader needs to be decisive and take fast decisions that even
go against the will of the team members. That is where
commanding leadership should be used. Commanding
leadership can have the same advantages as the autocratic
style but without the disadvantages, if applied right.
What is the Commanding Leadership Style?
A commanding leader makes all the decisions and gives

orders to his or her team. Tight control and follow-up
combined with high clarity in rules, roles, and expectations
are key elements of Commanding leadership. This style can
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be efficient in low-skilled teams and when decisions must be
made very quickly. This style can lead to micromanagement,
which is detrimental to employee engagement, especially in
highly skilled teams in complex environments.
The commanding leadership style was presented as one of the

six leadership styles by Daniel Goleman back in 2000 and is
also known as coervice or directive leadership. This style is
similar to autocratic leadership but with a foundational
difference: it is meant to be applied rarely and in a controlled
fashion, whereas autocratic leadership is more of a permanent
state and behavior. There are relatively many similarities with
the telling leadership style from the Situational Leadership
model, although the long-term intent is different. Houses
Path-Goal Theory from 1971 also contains a directive
leadership style.
Advantages of the Commanding Leadership Style:
• Increased clarity on roles, expectations, and rules,

beneficial for low skill teams
• Confidence and decisiveness, especially useful in times
of crisis
Disadvantages of the Commanding Leadership Style:
• High dependency on the leader, who also need to know

how to perform all jobs and tasks in detail
• Morale, motivation, and engagement are low, and work
climates can become toxic
• Creativity and participation is minimal
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Examples of Commanding Leaders
Vince Lombardi and John Chambers are examples of

commanding leaders.
Learn more in our detailed article on directive/commanding

leadership.
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Servant Leadership
7. Servant Leadership Style

The well-known Servant leadership style sticks out from the
rest of the styles in this list. Despite being relatively modern,
it does not build on a situational approach involving the
switching between styles, but instead stays with a strict focus
on servant leadership in a framework separate from all others.
What is the Servant Leadership Style?
Servant Leadership focuses on improving people, society,

and organizations. In Servant Leadership, the leader serves
others, which leads to strong ethics, and engaged, motivated
employees. However, a Servant leader with too much focus
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on serving others can lose track of organizational goals and
purpose.
Servant leadership was first defined in 1970 by Robert K.

Greenleaf in an essay where he outlined that there were two
types of leaders: Servant-First and Leader-First. The first type
focuses on the success of others, and the second type cares
more about themselves and their personal success. Servant
leadership stands out and is difficult to compare with the
other styles, but transformational leadership comes the closest
in my mind.
Advantages of the Servant Leadership Style:
• Participation and a common cause leads to high

engagement
• Strong ethical behavior
Disadvantages of the Servant Leadership Style:
• It does not work for all companies and organizations

since an overarching cause is at the core of servant
leadership
• True servant leaders are challenging to find since they
need to have a complete lack of ego
• Business and organizational goals might be lost in the
struggle for the long-term cause
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Examples of Servant Leaders
Mother Teresa, the Dalai Lama, and Cheryl Bachelder are

examples of Servant leaders.
Read more about this style in our article here: Servant

Leadership.
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The Full Range Leadership Model
The upcoming Transformational and Transactional leadership
styles are part of the Full Range Leadership Development
framework together with the Laissez-Faire leadership style.
Sprung out of the late 70s, this framework has been
developed additionally since then.
Full Range Leadership Model and the eight approaches

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8. Transformational Leadership Style
Transformational leadership is one of the most well-known
and popular leadership styles available, and many articles
have been written on the subject.
What is Transformational Leadership?
Transformational leadership creates substantial change for

team members as well as organizations. Expectations,
aspirations, perceptions, and values are transformed into
something better. Transformational leadership develops the
team members and motivates and inspires them to reach
extraordinary success.
Transformational leadership was first defined by James

MacGregor Burns in the late 70s as part of Full Range
Leadership. Bass and Avolio developed transformational
leadership and the Full Range Leadership Model further in
subsequent years. The transformational leadership style
compares well to a combination of democratic, visionary, and
coaching leadership among the six leadership styles by
Goleman. Transformational leadership also have some
commonalities with Servant leadership.
Advantages of the Transformational Leadership Style:
• Excellent fit for change management and growth

• High transparency and strong communication builds
participation and engagement
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• The shared vision results in inspiration, motivation,
and collaboration
Disadvantages of the Transformational Leadership Style:
• Transformational leadership can be very time

consuming and long term
• It does not work well without a strong change element
or vision
• Can result in too much risk-taking and overlooking
short-term requirements
Examples of Transformational Leaders
Sir Richard Branson and Lee Iacocca are examples of

transformational leaders.
Want to know more? Read our article on transformational

leadership.
9. Transactional Leadership Style

Transactional leadership can be seen as the more autocratic
and less visionary sibling of transformational leadership.
What is the Transactional Leadership Style?
Transactional leadership is built on a clear structure of reward

and punishment for different levels of performance. It is
focused on results, efficiency, and performance rather than
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people and relationships. Transactional leadership is often
seen as the opposite of transformational leadership.
Transactional leadership is an expansion of the bureaucratic

leadership style and it was conceptualized by Burns together
with the transformational leadership style. The two styles
were seen as mutually exclusive, until Bass and Avolio
developed the model further, adding that a leader can use
both styles as appropriate while also adding Laissez-Faire to
the mix.
Advantages of the Transactional Leadership Style:
• There is a clear connection between performance and

rewards
• It can be very productive, especially when it comes to
short-term results
• Clear order, structure, and rules, enabling repetition
and swift onboarding of new team members
Disadvantages of the Transactional Leadership Style:
• The sole focus on performance can be demotivating

and disengaging
• Rewards have a limited impact on peoples
performance; at some point, other factors start to
matter more
• The strict structure hampers creativity and innovation
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Examples of Transactional Leaders
Charles de Gaulle, Joseph McCarthy, and Sir Alan Sugar are

examples of transactional leaders.
Read more in our detailed article on this style here:

transactional leadership.
10. Laissez-Faire Leadership Style

Sometimes a leader needs to back off a bit and let employees
handle things on their own. That is not laissez-faire; that is
just empowering others. Just because you avoid
micromanaging, it does not mean you are a laissez-faire
leader. Do avoid the laissez-faire leadership style and bear in
mind that it is sometimes referred to as “the absence of
leadership”.
What is the Laissez-Faire Leadership Style?
Laissez-faire leadership is a hands-off leadership style where

team members are free to make all decisions. Laissez-faire
leadership leads to low productivity and a perception of a
disengaged leader. Laissez-faire leadership can work with
highly-skilled, capable, and self-motivated teams.
Laissez-Faire is the opposite of autocratic leadership and was

first defined by Kurt Lewin and his colleagues in the late
1930s. Laissez-faire leadership is also known as hands-off
leadership, free rein leadership, the absence of leadership or
simply zero leadership.
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Advantages of the Laissez-Faire Leadership Style:
• A highly skilled and experienced team can do great

when making all the decisions themselves
• Team members get an abundance of creative freedom
Disadvantages of the Laissez-Faire Leadership Style:
• Teams lacking the right maturity level can quickly fall

apart
• The leader is seen as uncaring or absent, leading to
lower engagement and motivation
• It can lead to confusion and often to drops in
productivity
Examples of Laissez-Faire Leaders
Warren Buffet and Ronald Reagan are two examples of

Laissez-Faire leaders.
More information is available in our article on Laissez-Faire

Leadership.
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The Lewin Leadership Styles
In the 1930s, Kurt Lewin and his colleagues performed a set
of leadership experiments. These were based on a theoretical
approach which is nowadays referred to as the Lewin styles.
The Lewin styles consist of Democratic Leadership
(mentioned previously in this list as part of the Goleman
styles), Laissez-Faire leadership (mentioned above as part of
the Full Range Leadership Model), and Autocratic
Leadership, which is the next one coming right up.
11. Autocratic Leadership Style

The autocratic leader is sadly too common even these days.
The Autocratic leader is the typical despotic “Boss” who has
the “My way or the highway” approach. Unfortunately, the
internet is flooded with articles making this style sound like a
legitimate choice when nothing could be further from the
truth. Good leaders are not autocratic leaders.
What is the Autocratic Leadership Style?
Autocratic leadership is when the leader holds all the decision

power and rarely consults others. Autocratic leadership is
unpopular, has many disadvantages, and leads to low
engagement and sometimes to a toxic environment.
Autocratic leadership is useful in a crisis when control and
fast decisions are crucial.
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Autocratic leaders have been around for a long time in the
shape of tyrants, dictators, monarchs, etc.. Still, the
Autocratic Leadership Style, or rather leadership behavior, is
first mentioned by Kurt Lewin et al. in their 1938 leadership
experiment. The autocratic style is not defined as
interchangeable, i.e., a leader is either an autocratic leader, a
democratic leader, or a laissez-faire leader, with no
switching, no situation dependency. It is the personality of
the leader.
Advantages of the Autocratic Leadership Style:
• High clarity on structure, roles, and expectations

• Quick decision making and improved crisis handling,
with the right autocratic leader, that is
• Can lead to increased productivity in low-skilled
environments, at least temporarily
Disadvantages of the Autocratic Leadership Style:
• There is a lack of empowerment in the team, which

leads to low engagement and accountability
• Too strong dependency on the leader; after all, if only
the leader can make decisions, not much happens
without the leader’s involvement
• Intimidation, punishment, or threats are common ways
of ensuring obedience. This is, of course, not
sustainable and can lead to a toxic work climate
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Examples of Autocratic Leaders
Napoleon Bonaparte, Howell Raines, and Martha Stewart are

examples of autocratic leaders.
Read more in our detailed article: Autocratic Leadership.
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The Ohio State Leadership Studies
Task-oriented and Relationship-oriented leadership, the two
upcoming styles, are part of the Ohio State Leadership
Studies framework.
Ohio State Leadership Studies Leadership Styles
31
12. Task-Oriented Leadership Style
Task orientation is referred to as a leadership style in some
leadership models and a behavior in others.
What is the Task-Oriented Leadership Style?
The task-oriented leadership style is all about getting the job

done, task execution, quality, output, and other non-human
aspects. The task-oriented leader puts a second priority on
relationships and people.
Task-oriented leadership is part of Fiedler’s Contingency

Model of Leadership from the 1960s. It has similarities with
the authority-obedience style of Blake and Mouton, the
transactional leadership style from the Full Range Leadership
Model, or a combination of commanding and pacesetting
leadership styles from the Goleman leadership styles. In
extreme cases, a task-oriented leader might even be using
an autocratic leadership style, which is worth avoiding, as
you know by now.
Task-Orientation is referred to as a leadership behavior under
the name of Initiating Structure (Ohio State Leadership
Studies) and job-oriented behavior (Michigan State
Leadership Research).
Advantages of the Task-Oriented Leadership Style:
• A clear focus on production and output related

parameters
• Can result in short-term productivity gains
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Disadvantages of the Task-Oriented Leadership Style:
• The lack of people focus results in low engagement,

motivation, and dedication of the team members
• It can go too far and lead to high amounts of stress or
illness among team members
13. Relationship-Oriented Leadership

Style
Relationship-Orientation is seen as a style in some models,
and as a behavior in other leadership models.
What is the Relationship-Oriented Leadership Style?
A relationship-oriented leader has strong focus on developing

bonds and relationships with team members and other
stakeholders. Relationship-oriented leadership leads to trust,
friendship, and a supporting team climate.
Relationship-oriented leadership is one of two styles in

Fiedler’s Contingency Model from the 60s, and it can be
compared with transformational leadership from the Full
Range Leadership Model or a mix
of democratic, affiliative, visionary, and coaching
leadership from the six leadership styles by Goleman.
Relationship-oriented leadership can also be compared to
Consideration behavior (Ohio State Leadership Studies) and
employee-oriented behavior (Michigan State Leadership
Research).
33
Advantages of the Relationship-Oriented Leadership
Style:
• People focus builds engagement, unity, and loyalty

• Develops people in the long-term and allows for
creativity and innovation
Disadvantages of the Relationship-Oriented Leadership

Style:
• Can result in a lack of performance

• Less clarity in what to do, and when and how it should
be done
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The Situational Leadership Model
The following four leadership styles: Telling, Selling, Participating, and

Delegating leadership belong to the Situational Leadership Model
from the 1980s.
Styles, situations and behaviors of Situational Leadership
35
14. Telling Leadership Style
The telling leadership style, also known as the directive or
guiding leadership style, is specifically intended for
inexperienced and immature teams.
What is the Telling Leadership Style?
The telling leadership style is when the leader tells team

members what to do and when to do it. Telling leadership is
intended as an early step in the development of a team, and it
should be done in a guiding way so that the team members
can actively learn from the leader, making telling leadership
superfluous in the near future.
Telling leadership, also referred to as directing or guiding

leadership, comes from the Situational Leadership Model and
is its most task-oriented style. As the team learns and grows,
the leader moves on to move empowering leadership styles.
Telling leadership is similar to directive/commanding
leadership when it comes to detailed instructions, the
decisions being made by the leader, and the style being
applied on a temporary basis. Telling leadership is very
different from autocratic leadership since it is intended to be
used in the early development of a team and then be replaced
by other styles, an ambition the autocratic leadership style
completely lacks.
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Advantages of the Telling Leadership Style:
• High clarity in structure, tasks, processes, and

instructions
• Low skilled teams can become productive while also
learning from the leader
Disadvantages of the Telling Leadership Style:
• There is little participation and engagement on the part

of the team members
• It rests entirely on the knowledge of the leader, which
must be skilled and experienced in all the team
members’ roles
Examples of Telling Leaders
Telling Leadership is a temporary style in the Situational

Leadership Model. Steve Jobs and Colin Powell are examples
of Situational Leaders.
15. Selling Leadership Style

Selling leadership is pretty much what it sounds like: the
leader sells the team members on a direction, idea, decision,
or something else.
What is the Selling Leadership Style?
Selling Leadership is when a leader decides what, when and

how to do things, but convinces and inspires the team to
37
perform by explaining the underlying purpose. A selling
leader tries to build commitment and interest and let the team
members influence who should be involved in executing the
decision.
The Selling leadership style, also known as coaching or

explaining leadership, is the second phase approach in the
Situational Leadership Model by Hershey and Blanchard.
After the leader has gone through the first maturity stage
with the team, where telling leadership is needed, it is time
for Selling leadership. The selling leader builds more
engagement and continues to provide learning opportunities
for the team by involving them in why decisions are taken
and let them participate in shaping the execution. Selling
leadership is difficult to compare to the other styles, but
perhaps it would correspond to a significant portion of
commanding leadership with some additions of pacesetting,
visionary, and coaching leadership.
Advantages of the Selling Leadership Style:
• Fast decisions with slightly more engagement

• Facilitates learning in an inexperienced team
Disadvantages of the Selling Leadership Style:
• Still lacking full engagement

• It takes more time than directive styles
38
Examples of Selling Leaders
Selling leadership is a temporary style in the Situational

16. Participating Leadership Style

Participating leadership is used in the third maturity phase of
the Situational leadership model, going from selling
leadership to a new and more participative level.
What is the Participating Leadership Style?
Participating leadership focuses more on people and

alignment rather than giving detailed instructions to them.
The team members are mature enough to execute tasks but
still need the leader to drive purpose, engagement, and vision
to provide alignment and context.
Participating leadership is sometimes called facilitating, or

collaborative leadership and it is the third style in the
Situational Leadership model. Having passed through the
telling and selling leadership situations, the team is now
experienced and skilled enough to handle the execution as
well. The leader is still needed to provide overall context and
motivation. Participating leadership might seem closely
related to democratic leadership, but I think coaching and
visionary leadership is even more comparable. It would not
be a stretch to say that participating leadership also resembles
portions of transformational leadership.
39
Advantages of the Participating Leadership Style:
• Team members are empowered to handle operational

tasks
• It provides alignment and collaboration between team
members through facilitation and coaching
Disadvantages of the Participating Leadership Style:
• Collaboration can be time-consuming

• It can lack in performance
Examples of Participating Leaders
Participating Leadership is a temporary style in the

Situational Leadership Model. Steve Jobs and Colin Powell
are examples of Situational Leaders.
17. Delegating Leadership Style

The pinnacle of the situational leadership model, delegating
leadership, is a sign of a mature, experienced, and skilled
team. If it works properly, that is.
What is the Delegating Leadership Style?
Delegating Leadership is when a leader of a mature and

experienced team focuses on building higher empowerment
and autonomy in the team. The leader stands back and gets
involved if the team members need it, but not for leader-
initiated monitoring purposes.
40
The Delegating Leadership style is the most evolved style in
the Situational Leadership model. It is the last phase in
developing the team, and it compares well to a
Transformational or Visionary leadership style where the
leader can genuinely focus on the overarching topics rather
than operational issues.
Advantages of the Delegating Leadership Style:
• Combines strong performance with lots of focus on

people
• It is highly empowering, engaging, and effective
Disadvantages of the Delegating Leadership Style:
• Only works in highly experienced and skilled teams

• It takes time to implement and can lead to bad results if
implemented in the wrong situation
Examples of Delegating Leaders
Delegating Leadership is a temporary style in the Situational

41
Max Weber’s Classification of Authority
The following three styles, bureaucratic, charismatic, and
traditional leadership styles belong to the framework of Max
Weber, which originated in the 1920s.
18. Bureaucratic leadership Style

Bureaucratic leadership was called rational-legal leadership at
its inception. Rational principles built on laws, rules, and
regulations are the foundation of bureaucracies. In turn,
bureaucracies themselves have enabled central governing and
larger national agencies, a cornerstone of building society.
What is the Bureaucratic Leadership Style?
Bureaucratic leadership is characterized by rigid rules, high

standardization, and stiff division of labor. Bureaucratic
leadership works best in organizations where regulations and
standards are of great importance. Bureaucratic leadership
hampers change, creativity, competition, and development.
Bureaucratic leadership, or as rational-legal leadership as it

was called back then, was one of the three types of authority
defined by Max Weber in the 1920s. The other two were
traditional leadership and charismatic leadership.
Advantages of the Bureaucratic Leadership Style:
• Clear definition of roles, expectations, processes, and

tasks
42
• Enables adherence to strict rules, allowing objective
judgment
• Drives efficiency through specialization and
transaction volume
Disadvantages of the Bureaucratic Leadership Style:
• The reliance on rules limits creativity and innovation

• Slow and poor adaptation to change due to structural
rigidness
• Competition and collaboration suffers due to the high
specialization and silo structure
Examples of Bureaucratic Leaders
Sir Winston Churchill, Alfred Sloan, and Shinji Sogōare

examples of Bureaucratic Leaders.
Read more in our detailed article: Bureaucratic Leadership.
19. Charismatic Leadership Style

The Charismatic Leadership Style is not just about being
charismatic as a person and a leader, it is all about charisma
and not much else.
What is the Charismatic Leadership Style?
Charismatic leadership is based on the leaders personal

charisma to a very high degree. Charismatic leadership can be
very inspirational and motivational, leading to unity and
43
engagement. Charismatic leaders risk becoming autocratic
one-man shows, which can lead to manipulation, bad deeds,
and disasters.
Charismatic leadership forms the three types of authorities, as

defined by Max Weber in the 1930s, together with traditional
and bureaucratic leadership.
Advantages of the Charismatic Leadership Style:
• Inspirational and unifying

• Builds strong commitment and purpose among the
followers
• Can help deliver a long term plan, or even a “cause”
Disadvantages of the Charismatic Leadership Style:
• The complete dependency on the personal

characteristics of the leader, making succession
planning difficult
• Risks becoming a cult where the leader stands above
everyone else, perhaps even above society and laws
• The high expectance on obedience limits transparency,
creativity, and innovation
Examples of Charismatic Leaders
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Sir Winston Churchill, and

Charles Manson are examples of charismatic leaders.
Read more in our subject article: Charismatic Leadership.
44
20. The Traditional Leadership Style
This old approach to leadership is what the kings and queens
of history relied upon. However, given its foundation, it is
debatable whether it belongs on this list of leadership styles at
all.
What is the Traditional Leadership Style?
Traditional Leadership is when established tradition, culture,

and order, give a leader the authority to rule. Traditional
Leadership mainly builds on autocratic or paternalistic
principles, giving the leader absolute powers. Kings, Queens,
Princes, Chiefs, and Elders are examples of Traditional
Leaders.
The traditional leadership style is part of the three types of

authorities defined in Max Weber’s book “Classification of
Authorities” of 1932. Traditional leadership has many
similarities with autocratic leadership; the main difference is
that the traditional leader has more substantial legitimacy.
Nevertheless, the pros and cons are similar between the two
styles.
Advantages of the Traditional Leadership Style:
• Empires were built through the use of traditional

leadership
• Quick decision making, just like the autocratic
leadership style
45
• The leader’s authority is complete, and orders are
followed
Disadvantages of the Traditional Leadership Style:
• The leader is selected out of tradition rather than

capabilities, performance, and passion
• The autocratic part leads to low performance, low
engagement, and even a toxic climate
Examples of Traditional Leaders
Czar Peter the Great, King George, Emperor Wilhelm II,

Ashoka the Great, and Alexander the Great are examples of
Traditional Leaders.
46
Paternalistic Leadership
21. Paternalistic Leadership Style

The paternalistic leadership style is one of the oldest styles in
human history. It was all that mattered back in the days of
troglodytes and dangerous predators.
What is the Paternalistic Leadership Style?
Paternalistic leadership is when an autocratic leader makes all

the decisions for the good of the group. A paternalistic leader
has the best intentions for the followers, and act as a parental
figure with high authority, even if they are left out of the
decision-making.
Paternalistic is as old as humanity with the village elder,

alpha leader, top caveman acting as the pack leader, and in
most cases, it was a male. Good paternalistic leaders ensured
group survival, with all that entailed in terms of food, shelter,
reproduction, and defense. Some theories see paternalistic
leadership as a specific type of autocratic or authoritatian
leadership, rather than a distinct leadership style of its own.
Paternalistic leadership is used in some parts of the world but
is relatively uncommon in the west.
Advantages of the Paternalistic Leadership Style:
• Quick decision making and fast execution
47
• Genuine care for the followers can build engagement
and empowerment, despite the autocratic streaks
Disadvantages of the Paternalistic Leadership Style:
• Succession planning can be difficult

• The leader becomes a bottleneck since all decisions
need to flow through one person
• A paternalistic leader with bad intentions can cause
severe damage
Examples of Paternalistic Leaders
Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, is an example of a

paternalistic leader in business.
48
Spiritual Leadership
22. Spiritual Leadership Style

The Spiritual Leadership Style truly sticks out among other
leadership styles with its heightened focus on well-being, the
mind, and perhaps even the soul.
Spiritual Leadership Style
What is the Spiritual Leadership Style?
Spiritual leadership is when workplace spirituality is at the

top of the agenda, specifically focusing on vision, hope or
faith, and altruistic love. In addition, spiritual leadership
involves developing the inner lives of team members and
achieving meaningful objectives as an organization.
49
Louis Fry developed spiritual leadership in the early 2000s as
part of the intrinsic leadership theory. The need for spiritual
leadership increases due to global challenges, and employees
that look for more meaningful occupations.
Advantages of the Spiritual Leadership Style:
• It can provide a strong sense of belonging

• Corporate Social Responsibility is often a cornerstone
Disadvantages of the Spiritual Leadership Style:
• Non-spiritual people might not fit in

• It can lead to a too nice of an environment and losing
sight of business objectives
Examples of Spiritual Leaders
Barry Garapedian, MD at Morgan Stanley, and Julie Weber,

VP and CPO at Southwestern Airlines are examples of
spiritual leaders.
For more information, refer to our in-depth article on spiritual

leadership.
50
Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid
The following five styles belong to the Blake and Mouton

Managerial Grid framework: Impoverished, Country-Club,
Authority-Obedience, Team, and Middle-of-the-Road
leadership.
Blake and Mouton's Managerial Grid
51
23. Impoverished Leadership Style
I hope that very few leaders aim to use the impoverished
leadership style on purpose. No sane leader would, and the
name of the style itself implies that it should be avoided.
What is the Impoverished Leadership Style?
Impoverished Leadership is when a leader shows little

concern for people and production, indicating low interest in
both relationships and performance. In impoverished
leadership, the followers don’t care enough even to try to
perform since the leader shows no interest in the team or
organization.
The Impoverished leadership style originates from the Blake

and Mouton managerial grid from the 1960s and can be seen
as a bad case of Laissez-faire leadership, which is a
somewhat comparable style present in several other models.
Advantages of Impoverished Leadership
There are no pros of Impoverished leadership. Removing a

leader using this style would lead to better results than if the
leader remains.
Disadvantages of Impoverished Leadership
• The absence of concern for people leads to low

engagement and high turnover
52
• The absence of concern for production leads to a lack
of performance
Additional information can be found in our article on

Impoverished Leadership.
24. Country Club Leadership Style

Country Club leadership must be the leadership style with the
loveliest name of them all. This style is sweet, but sadly, it is
not sustainable due to its low performance.
What is Country Club Leadership?
Country club leadership is when a leader focuses too much on

the employees, combined with a severe lack of concern for
performance and output. The Country Club leader ensures a
friendly environment, with low expectations on people. As a
result, employees enjoy themselves but get little done in
terms of performance.
The Country Club leadership style originates from the Blake

and Mouton managerial grid which was created in the 1960s.
The overly strong focus on people and the lack of focus on
production can be compared to an extreme version of
affiliative leadership to connect to more modern leadership
styles.
Advantages of Country Club leadership:
• Friendly and harmonious team environment

53
• Low staff turnover
• Very little anger, stress and conflict
Disadvantages of Country Club leadership:
• Little to no performance
• The lack of output risks the existence of the
organization or business
Read more about it on our site right here: Country Club

Leadership.
25. Authority-Obedience Leadership

Style
Authority-Obedience leadership is also referred to as Produce
or Perish leadership, which is more descriptive of what this
leadership style is about.
What is the Authority-Obedience Leadership Style?
Authority-obedience leadership puts a very high focus on

production with little to no concern for the involved people.
A leader that uses Authority-Obedience leadership gives
orders and directs people to execute them without emotion
since performance is the only thing that matters.
Authority-obedience leadership, or Produce and Perish

leadership, is part of the five styles included in the Blake and
Mouton managerial grid which was created in the 1960s. The
strong autocratic direction makes it comparable to autocratic
54
leadership, which is one of the Kurt Lewin behavioral
leadership styles or the more modern and situational style of
Commanding/Directive leadership or the performance-
focused pacesetting leadership.
Advantages of Authority-Obedience leadership:
• High production output

• Quick decisions since the leader makes all the
decisions
• A high clarity of expectations, jobs, and tasks
Disadvantages of Authority-Obedience leadership:
• High turnover due to the lack of people focus

• The lower levels of initiative, creativity, and
engagement among employees
• If used for a long time, productivity will suffer due to
the two disadvantages above
Examples of Authority-Obedience Leaders
Napoleon Bonaparte, Howell Raines, and Martha Stewart are

examples of autocratic leaders. (Same as for the autocratic
leadership style.)
Read more in our detailed article on Authority-Obedience

Leadership.
55
26. Middle-of-the-Road Leadership
Style
The Middle-of-the-Road leadership style is a compromise of
focus on production versus people, which is also known as
organizational leadership.
What is the Middle-of-the-Road Leadership Style?
Middle-of-the-road leadership includes a medium focus on

both people and production, respectively. A Middle-of-the-
Road leader balances performance with consideration for
employees. The compromise of Middle-of-the-Road
leadership ensures a good work environment but provides
less than maximum output.
Middle-of-the-Road leadership, or organizational leadership,

stems from the Blake and Mouton managerial grid theory of
the 1960s. There is no good comparison to a single modern
style since the compromise is created by the appropriate use
of several different leadership styles. Suppose you have a
good mix of democratic leadership and affiliative leadership
from the six leadership styles by Goleman. In that case, you
might reach a similar result as with the Middle-of-the-Road
leadership style.
56
Advantages of Middle-of-the-Road leadership:
• The balanced approach is better than the extremes of

Authority-Obedience, Country Club, or Impoverished
styles
• It is sustainable in the longer term
Disadvantages of Middle-of-the-Road leadership:
• Great performance is highly unlikely

• A compromise approach can be problematic in extreme
situations that call for a complete focus on people or
production, even temporarily
Examples of Middle-of-the-Road Leaders
There are no good examples since these leaders rarely stick

out and become famous. However, I think we all know one or
two from our own lives and careers.
27. Team Leadership Style

This is the best of the five leadership styles of the Blake and
Mouton managerial grid theory as it combines great care for
people with strong performance.
What is the Team Leadership Style?
Team Leadership is when the leader shows a high level of

concern for both people and production. Team Leadership is
a very effective leadership style and leads to great
57
performance goals and fantastic employee engagement and
well-being. However, it is difficult and time-consuming to
implement Team Leadership.
The Team leadership style is the best pick from the Blake and
Mouton managerial grid which was created in the 1960s. This
is the only style in the managerial grid that reaches high
performance and high people engagement and involvement at
the same time. Team leadership can be seen as an optimum
mix of the Goleman leadership styles, since that should have
the same result of strong output with a retained focus on
people.
Advantages of the Team Leadership Style:
• Strong engagement leads to creativity, innovation, and

collaboration
• Strong output and performance
• Robust and sustainable from a performance as well as a
people perspective
Disadvantages of the Team Leadership Style:
• Very difficult to reach, perhaps impossible for some

leaders and teams
• Time-consuming and investment heavy
• Requires an exceptionally skilled leader as well as the
right team members
58
Examples of Team Leaders
Larry Page and Jack Dorsey are examples of Team leaders.

(I have used the same examples as in the democratic
leadership style since they fit the requirements very well.)
59
Sources
Refer to our blog for more information:

https://www.leadershipahoy.com/leadership-styles-list/
Join our Newsletter here:

https://www.leadershipahoy.com/newsletter-signup/
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What is a leadership style?

A leadership style is a process by which a leader involves

By reading this article, you will learn about 27 leadership

History of Leadership Styles

• Max Weber’s Classification of Authority from the

Leadership styles history

The 25 leadership styles are grouped in connection with the

The first six leadership styles belong to the Goleman

What is the Pacesetting Leadership Style?

Pacesetting leadership is when the leader sets an example of

The pacesetting leadership style is one of the six leadership

• It can substantially increase performance for a limited

Disadvantages of the Pacesetting Leadership Style:

• Overuse leads to stressed team members with low

Examples of Pacesetting Leaders

Jack Welsh and Virat Kohili are examples of pacesetting

Read more in our in-depth article: Pacesetting Leadership.

2. Democratic Leadership Style

Democratic leadership builds on empowering team members

The Democratic Leadership style was introduced in the 1930s

Advantages of the Democratic Leadership Style:

• Creativity and innovation are encouraged

Disadvantages of the Democratic Leadership Style:

• Collaborative decision-making is time-consuming

Examples of Democratic Leaders

Larry Page and Jack Dorsey are examples of democratic

3. Affiliative Leadership Style

Affiliative leadership is completely focused on the people and

The Affiliative Leadership Style is one of the six leadership

Advantages of the Affiliative Leadership Style:

• The team feels that the leader genuinely cares about

Disadvantages of the Affiliative Leadership Style:

• Underperformance might be accepted (Country Club

Examples of Affiliative Leaders

Read more in our in-depth article on this style here:

4. Coaching Leadership Style

What is the Coaching Leadership Style?

Coaching leadership focuses on improving employees to

Coaching Leadership was coined by Daniel Goleman in 2000

Advantages of the Coaching Leadership Style:

• It leads to high engagement and low turnover within

Disadvantages of the Coaching Leadership Style:

• Coaching is difficult and time-consuming

Examples of Coaching Leaders

Andrew Carnegie and Red Holzman are examples of

Improve your leadership by learning more in our article on

5. Visionary Leadership Style

Visionary Leadership is when a leader inspires others to

The Visionary Leadership style is also known as the

Advantages of the Visionary Leadership Style:

• A clear vision creates motivation, inspiration, and unity

• The strong emphasis on the long-term can lead to

Examples of Visionary Leaders

Henry Ford, Elon Musk, and Nelson Mandela are examples

Take the opportunity to learn more about this great style in

6. Commanding Leadership Style

What is the Commanding Leadership Style?

A commanding leader makes all the decisions and gives

The commanding leadership style was presented as one of the

Advantages of the Commanding Leadership Style: