Being a Great Leader – Do You Have It?

Do you have what it takes to be a Great Leader?

In my life, I have been fortunate. I have had the opportunity to work for some Great Leaders. I have been impacted by, learned from and aspire to the characteristics below. The Leaders in my life have taught me to:

• Think Strategically
• Always say “Thank You”
• Listen to Others
• Use Knowledge with Humility
• Find my Passion – and guide it
• Give to others – always

Perhaps you don’t consider yourself a leader – but I believe everyone has leadership qualities within them. It just takes a mentor to demonstrate how powerful each of these qualities can be. So, whether or not you consider yourself a leader, read on…reflect, share and learn! You will more than likely find that you have many, if not all of these characteristics.

There are certain traits that I always seek out in a mentor. I tell them they have these qualities and I want to learn from them. Some of the most successful people that I know carry these with them all of the time.

Vision – A great leader has a clear direction on where he or she wants things to be going. Not only do they have this Vision – they have the ability to see what their end goal will look like and will be.

Passion – Have you ever wondered why Bobby Jones was one of the greatest golfers to ever live? (Sorry Tiger). An amateur to the end, he was one of the best at the game. He played because of his PASSION. This created a following that still exists today – and his legacy – will never die. Do you take the road less traveled because it is what you love to do? Do you create passion within those around you?

Integrity –Be honest, predictable, approachable and trusted. If I know where I stand, that I can approach you and trust you, I will stand BY you as my leader when the going gets tough. Believe me – the going ALWAYS gets tough. Great Leaders keep their people during these times due to the loyalty of the team.

Humility – Be humble in all that you do. No one knows everything and hard as it is to admit it – we will never be an expert in everything. If you have a Leader that says, “I told this team where we should be headed. Then, I made sure I followed through on everything and because of this, we increased revenue by 10%”. ?? What? I think that would cause tension in a team…so, how about this: “Honestly, I did not have much to do with the increase in revenue, I have surrounded myself with a team, working towards a common goal – and they executed flawlessly!” I know which leader I would want to follow!

Fairness – A great leader always gives credit where credit is due. This creates a following of individuals that know you have their back. Great leaders acknowledge those that have done the work, set up the meeting, put together the presentation, assisted with the strategy, etc. I often forget how important that this is. When someone has worked hard – don’t forget to let everyone know about it. It will instill a sense of self-esteem in that person that they will only receive from you.

Openness – Good leaders are able to suspend judgment while listening to others’ ideas, as well as accept new ways of doing things that someone else thought of. Openness builds mutual respect and trust between leaders and followers, and it also keeps the team well supplied with new ideas that can further its vision.

Dedication – Show your team that you are dedicated to the effort! Your passion, drive and dedication to the work, team elevates your level of respect. There is nothing more frustrating than a leader that cannot dedicate them self to the cause that they portray!

Creativity – Ah Yes! The ability to think differently and to get outside of the walls that constrain complete solutions is imperative in a great leader. This instills in your followers and team the ability to know that they can generate new ideas – thus, creating a larger value proposition to your customer as well as a little healthy competition.

Sense of Humor – Above all, Lighten Up! A sense of humor is a vital component to release any tension within your team and energize the entire team! A sense of humor fosters good teamwork – and will defuse a hostile environment.

“Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision and relentlessly drive it to completion.”

….and you thought great leaders were just born this way!

So I ask you – how many of these traits do you have?  Want to have?  Just think what your team can accomplish if you have them all!