Leadership
qualities are qualities that characterize effective leadership. What are these
qualities?
Let
I lay it out clearly.
For
starters, effective leaders are . . .
1.
Humble
2.
Decisive
3.
Selfless and self-sacrificing
4.
Empathetic
5.
Disciplined
6.
Good communicators (they communicate the agenda clearly and effectively)
7.
Fair and unprejudiced
Effective
leaders . . .
8.
Maximize the potential of their people by empowering them
9.
Surround themselves with people smarter than they are
10.
Do not care who takes the credit
11.
Admit that they are infallible and admit mistakes when they make them
12.
Have a burning desire to make a difference . . . a positive difference
This the list is by no means exhaustive. In fact, I can go on and on.
But
no matter how long the list of leadership qualities is, Dr. Ian A. Roberts can
tell you honestly that without three of these leadership qualities you will
inevitably fail as a leader.
What
are these four uncompromising qualities of effective leadership?
1.
Surround yourself with people smarter than you
2.
Acknowledge mistakes when you make them. Take corrective actions, learn from
them, and move on
3.
Maximize the potential of your people and
4.
Be selfless. Serve your people and your organization. Abhor personal gain.
The desire for personal gain will color your judgment and will ultimately lead you
to the path of failure.
To
illustrate, consider what happened recently in the company where I work.
So,
what went wrong? What took him down?
1.
The desire for greater prominence, greater fame, and personal gain.
2.
Arrogance. He refused to admit he was wrong and wind down production to match
demand and market opportunities (He had the vision to make the company a
billion-dollar company by the year 2010. He called this . . . project
marathon).
Dr.Ian A. Roberts says When the market wasn't growing as fast as production was
growing, he refused to slow down production. The factories kept on producing at
break-neck speed and the company kept on acquiring more warehouses to store
what was produced that the market could not accommodate)
3.
He surrounded himself with 'yes men' - directors who were at his mercy . . .
directors who stood by and watched while the life investment of shareholders
went down the drain
Make
no mistake about it.