After more than thirty years of identifying, qualifying, training, and advising thousands of individuals in leadership positions, obviously I have come up with my own set of requirements, qualities and traits that differentiate someone who merely is in a leadership position, from someone who is a true leader.
Unfortunately, I have discovered that far more individuals have fallen into the first category than the latter, but I continue to strive to increase and improve the number and quality of leadership, so that there are far more effective leaders in the future.
One of the tell- tale signs that differentiate the run of the mill, from the elite, is their behavior and attitude in office.
Are they in the minority that is willing to initiate and take action on a timely basis, analyzing an organization's needs and limits, as well as its potential, or are they the type of person who puts off decisions, uses micromanagement and delegating as an excuse or shield, and then, after the fact, resorts to blaming and criticizing others? 1.
Blame should never be a part of leadership! Perhaps of all the things that inadequate leaders do or don't do (that they should be doing), blame is the most counter- productive.
Since a true leader always accepts and takes responsibility for everything that goes on under his watch (as Harry Truman's famous sign on his desk said, 'The Buck Stops Here.
"), one of the responsibilities of a true leader is oversight and review.
In an ideal situation, a leader should strive to delegate responsibility (since it is both impossible and inefficient to do everything one's self).
However, the greatest leaders realize that delegating something does not mean that leader absolves himself of responsibility, but simply that he has assigned specific duties, tasks or projects to others.
Therefore, it is impossible to properly delegate anything until a leader is certain that the other person understands what's needed, any deadlines and/ or requirements, and is capable, trained, experienced and possesses the expertise, knowledge and wisdom required to perform the task.
The goal of delegating is to multiply a leader's abilities, so if something is merely delegated without either controls or addressing concerns, it is unwise to delegate.
I have come across far too many in leadership positions who protest that they do not believe in micromanagement, but they often confuse micromanagement with proper management and leadership.
While a great leader should avoid getting bogged down in minutia and minor, unessential details, he must be certain that all details are, in fact, being handled effectively.
In almost all cases when someone brings up either delegating or micromanagement, it is as a built in, advance excuse, for less than stellar results and performances.
These same people are generally the first to then complain and blame others! 2.
Great leaders take timely, decisive action.
They have trained and learned the techniques and gained the knowledge needed to be a leader.
They have parlayed their experiences and training into expertise.
They objectively view situations and decide what to do, and formulate detailed action plans to accomplish what's needed.
They avoid blaming others, but rather learn from adversity, and become better leaders.
Which type of leader are you? What steps might you take to become a more effective leader?
Unfortunately, I have discovered that far more individuals have fallen into the first category than the latter, but I continue to strive to increase and improve the number and quality of leadership, so that there are far more effective leaders in the future.
One of the tell- tale signs that differentiate the run of the mill, from the elite, is their behavior and attitude in office.
Are they in the minority that is willing to initiate and take action on a timely basis, analyzing an organization's needs and limits, as well as its potential, or are they the type of person who puts off decisions, uses micromanagement and delegating as an excuse or shield, and then, after the fact, resorts to blaming and criticizing others? 1.
Blame should never be a part of leadership! Perhaps of all the things that inadequate leaders do or don't do (that they should be doing), blame is the most counter- productive.
Since a true leader always accepts and takes responsibility for everything that goes on under his watch (as Harry Truman's famous sign on his desk said, 'The Buck Stops Here.
"), one of the responsibilities of a true leader is oversight and review.
In an ideal situation, a leader should strive to delegate responsibility (since it is both impossible and inefficient to do everything one's self).
However, the greatest leaders realize that delegating something does not mean that leader absolves himself of responsibility, but simply that he has assigned specific duties, tasks or projects to others.
Therefore, it is impossible to properly delegate anything until a leader is certain that the other person understands what's needed, any deadlines and/ or requirements, and is capable, trained, experienced and possesses the expertise, knowledge and wisdom required to perform the task.
The goal of delegating is to multiply a leader's abilities, so if something is merely delegated without either controls or addressing concerns, it is unwise to delegate.
I have come across far too many in leadership positions who protest that they do not believe in micromanagement, but they often confuse micromanagement with proper management and leadership.
While a great leader should avoid getting bogged down in minutia and minor, unessential details, he must be certain that all details are, in fact, being handled effectively.
In almost all cases when someone brings up either delegating or micromanagement, it is as a built in, advance excuse, for less than stellar results and performances.
These same people are generally the first to then complain and blame others! 2.
Great leaders take timely, decisive action.
They have trained and learned the techniques and gained the knowledge needed to be a leader.
They have parlayed their experiences and training into expertise.
They objectively view situations and decide what to do, and formulate detailed action plans to accomplish what's needed.
They avoid blaming others, but rather learn from adversity, and become better leaders.
Which type of leader are you? What steps might you take to become a more effective leader?