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Leadership Exposed: Things You Thought You Knew About Leadership
 

By Morgan Upchurch  November 2, 2009

Much has been written about leadership: rules, pointers, styles, and biographies of inspiring leaders throughout world history. But there are certain leadership ideas that we ourselves fail to recognize and realize in the course of reading books. Here is a short list of things you thought you knew about leadership.

 

1. Leaders come in different flavors. There are different types of leaders and you will probably encounter more than one type in your lifetime. Formal leaders are those we elect into positions or offices such as the senators, congressmen, and presidents of the local clubs. Informal leaders or those we look up to by virtue of their wisdom and experience such as in the case of the elders of a tribe, or our grandparents; or by virtue of their expertise and contribution on a given field such as Albert Einstein in the field of Theoretical Physics and Leonardo da Vinci in the field of the Arts. Both formal and informal leaders practice a combination of leadership styles. Lewin’s three basic leadership styles – authoritative, participative, and delegative Likert’s four leadership styles – exploitive authoritative, benevolent authoritative, consultative, and participative Goleman’s six emotional leadership styles – visionary, coaching, affiliative, democratic, pacesetting, and commanding.

 

2. Leadership is a process of becoming. Although certain people seem to be born with innate leadership qualities, without the right environment and exposure, they may fail to develop their full potential. So like learning how to ride a bicycle, you can also learn how to become a leader and hone your leadership abilities. Knowledge on leadership theories and skills may be formally gained by enrolling in leadership seminars, workshops, and conferences. Daily interactions with people provide the opportunity to observe and practice leadership theories. Together, formal and informal learning will help you gain leadership attitudes, gain leadership insights, and thus furthering the cycle of learning. You do not become a leader in one day and just stop. Life-long learning is important in becoming a good leader for each day brings new experiences that put your knowledge, skills, and attitude to a test.

  

3. Leadership starts with you. The best way to develop leadership qualities is to apply it to your own life. As an adage goes “action speaks louder than words.” Leaders are always in the limelight. Keep in mind that your credibility as a leader depends much on your actions: your interaction with your family, friends, and co-workers; your way of managing your personal and organizational responsibilities; and even the way you talk with the newspaper vendor across the street. Repeated actions become habits. Habits in turn form a person’s character. Steven Covey’s book entitled 7 Habits of Highly Effective People provides good insights on how you can achieve personal leadership.

 

4. Leadership is shared. Leadership is not the sole responsibility of one person, but rather a shared responsibility among members of an emerging team. A leader belongs to a group. Each member has responsibilities to fulfill. Formal leadership positions are merely added responsibilities aside from their responsibilities as members of the team. Effective leadership requires members to do their share of work. Starting as a mere group of individuals, members and leaders work towards the formation of an effective team. In this light, social interaction plays a major role in leadership. To learn how to work together requires a great deal of trust between and among leaders and members of an emerging team. Trust is built upon actions and not merely on words. When mutual respect exists, trust is fostered and confidence is built.

 

5. Leadership styles depend on the situation. How come dictatorship works for Singapore but not in the United States of America? Aside from culture, beliefs, value system, and form of government, the current situation of a nation also affects the leadership styles used by its formal leaders. There is no rule that only one style can be used. Most of the time, leaders employ a combination of leadership styles depending on the situation. In emergency situations such as periods of war and calamity, decision-making is a matter of life and death. Thus, a nation’s leader cannot afford to consult with all departments to arrive at crucial decisions. The case is of course different in times of peace and order—different sectors and other branches of government can freely interact and participate in governance. Another case in point is in leading organizations. When the staffs are highly motivated and competent, a combination of high delegative and moderate participative styles of leadership is most appropriate. But if the staffs have low competence and low commitment, a combination of high coaching, high supporting, and high directing behavior from organizational leaders is required.

Now that you are reminded of these things, keep in mind that there are always ideas that we think we already know; concepts we take for granted, but are actually the most useful insights on leadership.

Kim and Charles Petty,experts in Real Estate Market. For FREE Special Report and CD and to schedule strategy meeting on how you can make Six or Seven Figures A Year Buying and Selling Propertiesacross the USA & overseas go to VirtualRealEstateInvestingProfits or call1-800-311-9228

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   

 

 

   

Position Yourself for Success

 By Michael Benifez | July 8, 2009

“Just like in a race or game of chess, you must position yourself to make the right move. By being in the right place at the right time, you can dramatically increase your chances for success in any endeavor.”

In the spring of 1940, Winston Churchill was asked to lead Great Britain in its defense against Germany. Few could argue that Churchill was the right person for the job.

He later wrote, “I felt as if I were walking with destiny, and that all my past life had been but a preparation for this hour and for this trial.” The new Prime Minister became one of the greatest statesmen in world history. He helped England successfully resist and (with the help of the U.S.) eventually defeat the Nazi war machine.

He was prepared for leadership.

We don’t have control over what happens to us. We do have a great deal of control over how we prepare ourselves and position ourselves for reaching our goals.

 

There may be times in our lives when the path ahead is unclear-when we’re not quite sure of which direction we should choose. If this is the case, we can always prepare for that time when we are clear and we do know exactly what to do. This can be a valuable time of preparation. And it can pay big dividends. Oftentimes, merely the process of preparation-the activity itself-will provide clarity and certainty as to our plans.

 

I recommend you use the following checklist to improve your personal positioning. How do you rate in each area? What can you do to enhance your preparedness?

1. Health and Vitality. You can’t have get-up-and-go if you don’t have a reserve of energy and good health. We must take care of ourselves in order to have the drive and strength to go after our dreams. You know what to do. It’s common sense. Eat right, get adequate rest, and take good care of your body. It’s the only one you get.

2. Education and Skills. What you know and what you can do in terms of skills is a big part of your positioning. What skills do you need to work on? What do you need to learn? Take some classes. Do some research. Read. Make a commitment to a life-long search for knowledge and upgrading your skills. It will not only increase your preparation quotient, but it will keep you feeling stimulated-even young.

3. Contacts. The people you know and the relationships you’ve developed over the years can be a virtual gold mine to you. It’s imperative you cultivate and build your associations in order to obtain help and round up talent for your projects.

4. Self-Image and Self-Esteem. How you feel about yourself comes across to others. It can’t be faked. You increase your self-esteem by doing the right thing-always. You improve your confidence by doing what you say you’ll do-whether you say it to yourself or to others. Every time we lie, we chip away at our self-image.

There is no status quo. We either build or tear down our self-esteem. Integrity is the essence of everything successful.

5. Finances and Credit. Most opportunities involve an investment of money as well as time and energy. Having money in the bank and good credit on which to borrow can go a long way toward tipping the scales in your favor. In the world of business, “cash is king.” Pay off those debts and create some savings (if you haven’t already) and get ready.

6. Attitude. People with good attitudes not only get more done, they attract opportunity and people who can help them.

Are you someone people like to be around? Would you consider your attitude to be one of your strongest assets? Regardless of your answer, you can improve your attitude and along with it, your success.

Read good books. Listen to good tapes. Stay around positive people. Study people you think have good attitudes and emulate that part of them.

It’s not easy, I know. As Coach Bear Bryant said, “It’s not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes the difference.”

http://SuccessNet.org

 

 

 

 Personal Communication Is Critical to Deterring Rumors and Soothing Employee Concerns

By Wendy Mack | December 4, 2009

If you want to dispel the anxiety growing in your workplace, build a foundation of trust built on communication. When times are tough, the workplace rumor mill swings into action act quickly. Therefore, managers need to communicate openly and honestly with employees to stop rumors in their tracks. Here are five tips to help managers ease employee anxiety.

1. Open Door Policy

As a senior leader, you need to be accessible and visible to your employees. When there is a problem, don’t wait until all the details of the solution have been fleshed out before informing your workers. Instead, inform them of your progress along the way as the decisions are being made. In uncertain times, it is more important than ever to be accessible. You’re not just there to share information with the workforce, but to build trust with them along the way, and dispel rumors as they spring up.

2. Don’t Hide From Bad News

Your workforce knows times are rough and that the company will need to make changes to adapt, so there is no reason to keep bad news from them. Trying to pretend that all is well will only result in a distrustful workforce, and communicating with them will become even more tough. The best course of action to stop rumors and gossip is to communicate openly with your employees about the changes that are planned. If they trust that you will give them the updates and information they seek, your employees will stop gossiping and wait to hear the truth from you.

3. Aim to Give Personal Information

All too often, leaders communicate bad news via e-mails and memos. All leaders are busy, but your first priority must be the productivity of your workforce. Research has shown that face-to-face or voice-to-voice conversations build up trust in a relationship and also improve the clarity of your message. You may find yourself stumped by a question that you didn’t expect, but don’t worry. Your people don’t expect you to be perfect, but they will appreciate the time you took to talk to them.

4. Listen

The two-way conversation in face-to-face communication is a huge advantage. Many employees will be able to give you solid suggestions to resolve the challenges the company faces, but this is not the only advantage to listening to your workforce. The mere knowledge that senior management values their ideas and reactions to the situation enough to listen and speak with them can propel your employees to re-commit to the company and to you as a manager.

5. Acknowledge the Unknowns

Talk as honestly as you can about what you do know and what you don’t. Your employees will recognize that you can’t know everything, and it will help to build trust and clarity if you explain why some details are still uncertain. Don’t make promises you can’t keep – if you are unsure, talk about probabilities and possibilities instead.

Communication is the foundation of a good management team, and the only way you will get your employee’s best performance. Above all else, make it a priority to communicate truthfully, candidly, and without hesitation.

Wendy Mack  is a professional advisor, trainer, and author with a focus in leading and communicating change. Contact Wendy at, or Download her free e-book, Transforming Anxiety into Energy at www.WendyMack.com.

 

  

 Successful Teamwork

By Article Manager | May 13, 2009

Building successful teamwork can be a tough challenge but this does not mean it is impossible. No matter what kind of team it is, it is always possible to bring about effective teamwork.

More often than not, successful teamwork necessitates clear and open lines of communication, building one-on-one relationships among individuals that make up the team, accomplishing ordinary things in an exceptional manner, giving close attention to details, and again, constant communication. Summing this all up would bring you to three factors that facilitate successful teamwork: communication, cooperation, and coordination.

 

Successful teamwork truly necessitates constant and effective communication. Individuals who make up a team that regularly ask each other where they are going and how they can get there tend to be more successful in working together. This also allows them to be constantly reminded of their team goals. A team is able to function well as a unit when its people have a clear understanding of the team objectives and strategies on how to achieve these are clearly communicated among team members.

 

Coordinated actions and interactions also facilitate successful teamwork. Team members must know the next steps that need to be done once they have accomplished one task. They must also be aware of who they can seek help from when things do not turn out as expected. Coordinating with fellow team members helps one to have a good grasp of the series of events that need to take place, as well as fallback plans. In addition, coordination also improves the communication process among team members.

 

Most importantly, team members must cooperate so their team can work together effectively. They must work collaboratively in an environment where there is shared assistance and support. Without cooperation, team effort becomes meaningless. Team members must have a good grasp of the value of each of their fellow team members so they can fully cooperate with one another.

 

Other important elements that contribute to successful teamwork include showing concern for other people’s accomplishment, willingness to help teammates reach their objectives, and listening to what other people think and say, collectively giving commitment to the success of the team, co-existing with teammates with positive relationships, having harmonious, congenial, and understanding relationships with teammates, and constructive coaching.

 

Having all these elements in one team might prove to be a difficult task, but if a team does not want to fall short of its expectations and results, they must learn to effectively coordinate, cooperate, and communicate with each other.

 

CMOE has been providing companies with business leadership training since 1978. Through executive leadership training and other innovative business techniques CMOE has established themselves a leader in the business world. Visit www.cmoe.com for more information.