By Richard Brody
For those who wish to serve, in some position of leadership, wouldn't it make sense, for us, to consider and examine, the most desirable TERMS, the individual should understand, in order to, become the best leader, he might possibly be? Far too often, many of us, seem to take the many skills, duties, and responsibilities, of leading, somewhat, for granted! Potential leaders must be, individuals, who begin with a willingness, to develop and maintain, a positive, can - do, attitude, undergo professionally designed, leadership training, transform that into learning (As Paul Simon sang, And my life of education, hasn't hurt me none. I can read the writing on the wall), and are ready, willing and able to persist, and exhibit endurance, when the rest of the pack, gives up, and gives in! With that in mind, this article will attempt to review, discuss, and consider, using the mnemonic approach, what this means, and why it is significant.
1. Timely; trendsetter; trustworthy: If you hope to be a real leader, you must demonstrate, consistently, you are trustworthy, and deserve to be trusted and followed! Rather than following the path of least resistance, and remaining within the restraints of one's personal comfort zone, leaders must be trendsetters, and proceed, with an open - mind, to perceive and conceive of, create, develop and implement, well - considered, timely action, based on quality decisions!
2. Empathy; energy; emphasis; excellence: Meaningful leadership requires proceeding, by effectively listening, first, and addressing the needs, priorities, goals, and perceptions, of one's constituents, with genuine empathy! When this is combined, with inspiring energy, and an emphasis on providing the highest degree of personal excellence, and serving the common good, rather than any personal agenda, and/ or, self - interest, one begins to become worthy of leading.
3. Relevant; reliable; rationale: When the focus is on providing relevant, reliable leadership, it's important to take the time, to carefully, explain and articulate one's rationale, in a motivating and inspiring way, so, as, to transform constituents and stakeholders, to involved followers!
4. Motivating; make mark; mention: Until/ unless, one articulates and relates, to others, in a motivating way, how can he possibly hope, to make his mark, for the better? A true leader must understand, for most stakeholders, their favorite sound, is hearing their own voice, and thus, be willing to mention any contribution, or assistance, anyone performs, for the common good!
5. Strengthen; system; sustainable solution: The main responsibility of a leader, should be, to do, all he possibly can, to strengthen, both the group he serves, as well as the stakeholders, he represents! This does not occur, by chance, but rather, because of the quality and relevance, of the system, he introduces, and whether, he perceives and conceives of, creates, develops, and implements, a quality, sustainable solution!
Are you willing, to accept the TERMS of leadership? Will you be up, to the tasks and responsibilities?
Richard has owned businesses, been a COO, CEO, Director of Development, consultant, professionally run events, consulted to thousands of leaders, and conducted personal development seminars, for 4 decades. Rich has written three books and thousands of articles. His company, PLAN2LEAD, LLC has an informative website http://plan2lead.net and Plan2lead can also be followed on Facebook http://facebook.com/Plan2lead