Leadership

Qualities of Great Leaders

Honesty

Honesty is at the heart of character. If you are not honest with yourself in terms of your own strengths and weaknesses or honest in your dealings with others, you will never create trust or rapport with people. Trust and rapport are two of the foundation blocks of effective leadership.

Decision-Maker

Being able to extract the core issues from vast amounts of information. Focus on the heart of the matter and the ability to make decisions quickly and accurately are vital leadership skills.

Hard (And Smart) Worker

With very few exceptions, the most successful individuals (and teams) are the hardest working, though most of the work is done in private behind closed doors. As Michelangelo said 'if people knew how hard I worked, they wouldn't call me a genius.'

Surround Yourself With Great People

You cannot be a leader without followers. Great leaders are able to build enduring teams and they surround themselves with talented individuals who can compensate for the leader's lack of skill in specific areas. Nothing great was ever achieved without the involvement of others.

Great Communicators

Leadership is the 'art of inspiring others to do that which they wouldn't normally do.' Great leaders are great communicators because without the ability to communicate your ideas to others, you will never be able to inspire them.

Maximise Talent

Great leaders do not cap the potential of those they work with, they create an environment or company culture that allows individuals to maximise their talent. Staff in organisations today are seeking a specific quality of life, they want an environment where they can grow and enjoy what they are doing. Employees only volunteer their enthusiasm and their talents, great leaders know this.

Interested In People

Leaders learn to help other people with more than their jobs; they help them with their lives. Great leaders are interested in people in general, not just what they can get from them.

Visionary

Leaders inspire their teams with a vision that is exciting enough to follow. The vision is based on a passion and compelling belief and it is this passion and enthusiasm that is contagious.

Their Own Person

Great leaders may have a small number of trusted advisors, but ultimately they make up their own mind based on their own initiative, wisdom, faith and self-belief.

Set Their Own Standards

Leaders must lead by example and 'walk the talk.' They set their own standards and are consistent in the pursuit of their highest ideals.

Don't Assume A Thing

Leaders trust those working closest to them, but don't rely solely on information that is reported to them They get out of their offices and see things for themselves, so they know first hand what is going on.

Organised

Time is a leader's most precious resource. They know their priorities which stems from their vision. They prepare relentlessly and know the importance of the ´critical non-essentials´, ie. those minor details which together can make all the difference between success and failure.

Manage Expectations As Well As Results

Great leaders never make promises they cannot keep. They don't just manage expectations by under-promising and over-delivering; they make new promises and then exceed them.

They Are Not Managers

Things are managed, people are led. Managers help people see themselves as they are. Leaders help people see themselves better than they are. Managers talk about what is, leaders talk about what could be.

Control The Ego

The challenge of leadership is to be strong but not rude; kind but not weak; bold but not a bully; thoughtful but not lazy; humble but not timid; proud but not arrogant; have humour but not be a joker. Bad characteristics are the good ones but just taken to extremes for ego and selfish reasons.

Action-Oriented

There is the phrase ´knowledge is power´. Great leaders know this is not totally true as 'knowledge is only potential power.' It is when you take action both swift and persistent that knowledge becomes power.

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