Why Should Anyone Want To Follow Your Leadership?
This is an article I received from our City Administrator.
It was from the Twin Cities Business Journal and written by Mark W. Sheffert.
In limited space I can only highlight portions of the article, but this truly made me reflect on my role as an individual responsible for employees and our community's enterprise operation.
Finding leadership is kind of like trying to find the Holy Grail: It would be a heck of a lot easier is someone would just show us where it's at.
A great leader can be leading a Girl Scout Troop or a Fortune 100 company. However, if you want to earn the right to be called "leader" as yourself if you?
Inspire a vision:
Leaders are intuitive risk takers with the ability to see things as they could be.
They are also rooted enough that they can inspire others to understand how the vision is attainable with current resources and competitive advantages.
Leaders appear to be confident at all times, and in crisis, morale and productivity improves.
Act with honesty and exhibit solid values:
Leadership is about how to be, not how to do.
And the number one action to model is absolute honesty.
If there is even a scent of dishonesty in the air, people with turn away.
With a high level of trust an organization will achieve more than it dreamed possible.
Display passion:
Peter Drucker, the granddaddy of modern day management, said a leader's job is not to provide energy, but to release energy.
A leader's passion, pushes followers to overcome their fear and doubt, and inspires others to take risks that lead to new strategies.
Remain authentic and transparent:
Followers watch what leaders do more closely than listen to what they say.
They may be nodding in agreement when you talk, but as soon as you walk away they observe whether your actions match your words.
This is important because if a leader's personal values are not predictable, his or her followers will not know what to expect or how to act.
Most excellent leaders also have a good sense of humor and can laugh at mistakes and mishaps.
Can tell a good story:
Leaders with the right stuff are good communicators.
When they speak about their vision, they are inspiring and convincing.
Oftentimes, these points of view are explained with parables, anecdotes and metaphors.
Just as important to storytelling is the ability to listen.
Are competent in all functional areas:
Effective leaders don't need deep expertise in every function of their organization, but they do need a basic competency to make sure all elements of an organization are pointed in the same direction.
First-class leaders are able to establish priorities, make decisions in a reasonable amount of time and delegate appropriately.
One Final Note:
I have listed competency, or skill, as the last important characteristic.
That's because at the heart of good leadership is the heart of someone who truly wants to make a difference in the lives of others.
It's not about what you do but who you are.
Sometimes leadership can be a burden, but leaders with the right stuff believe it's a load worth bearing because they have a strong sense of purpose.
And that's the most important characteristic to earn the right to be called a leader.
From my point of view, this was one of the best articles I've ever read.
It not only made me reflect upon position in this community, but my supervisors as well as those I supervise and delegate too. Just hope others can find the information useful.
Have a great Easter Weekend all!
Brenda Visnovec
Lakeville
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