True Meaning of Leadership

Over the next couple of days or weeks I will be discussing Leadeship.  The term is very basic.  What does it really mean.  Well, I'll tell you what I think and give you the tools to teach it or to learn from it and become one yourself.

The True Meaning of Leadership

Do you guys think you have a good definition for what it takes to be a good leader?  Do you think leaders are born or can they be created?

Leaders take people from where they are, to where they have never been.  Bosses manage, leaders innovate.  Bosses rely on systems.  Leaders (rely on) people.  Bosses need control.  Leaders trust.  Bosses work on getting things right, Leaders on the right things.  A boss is concerned with how decisions are made, and what he/she communicates.  For a boss, it's often style over substance, and process over reality.

Leadership flows to those whose vision can inspire their team members.  True leaders do not demand loyalty -- they create loyalty.  A good leader inspires a team to have confidence in him or her.  A great leader inspires a team to have confidence in themselves.....They extend accountability and responsibility as far from the centre and as close to the customer as possible.

In their simplest form, the best way to identify a leader is to examine the people who work for him or her.  Are they happy at what they do?  Do they seem competent - even extremely so?  Are they trusted in their jobs?  Do they feel their ideas are valued?  Are they committed to the leader, and his or her vision?  Do they spend their time teaching and motivating, not backbiting and gossiping?

The business world or "The Corporate World" as it were is filled with bosses - and unfortunately, starving for leaders.  Often that's because a leader doesn't really fit into a particulat mold, as Apple learned when they first tried to find a replacement for founder Steve Jobs years ago....Who's laughing now!?  Their choice for the slot - Jobs' choice by some accounts - was an executive from Pepsi, but he seemed to just be the boss.  Under his administration, Apple cut back, laid off, lost market share, and became a shadow of its former self.  After he was canned, jobs came back, Apple regained its leadership vision, and the company turned around...(duh!) - even though Jobs wasn't the "business school teacher" that companies tend to choose nowadays.

For people that know me - I'm no scriptorian, but the Bible has a scripture that reads, "Where there is no vision, the people perish."  Well, companies are like that, too - where there is no vision, the company perishes.

In some cases where companies commit fraud in valuating their company so as to protect the "Management Team" customers and employees wind up paying for the mistakes of the bad business school management - because there are noe leaders, or if they exist in the company, they are ignored, overlooked, or downsized, or even quit because they are not seeing the same vision that was promised when they were hired.

So - let me ask you this - Are you a leader?  Perhaps you're a follower (which is not a bad thing), but even then, you should still be setting up a path toward being a leader.  Your future, and the future of your company - or family - will depend on it.  Courageous leadership, inspired movements, visionary paths - all these things are the marks of a true leader - and they should be your marks as well.

keep check ing in for more about Leadership and other topics that will help you to succeed!