Whatever the context (sports, business, community, or whatever), leadership consists of sound decision-making and inspirational performances by individuals to whom people naturally gravitate. Throughout my career I had the pleasure of working for, with, and observing many highly effective leaders. Of the many things I learned about leadership, the most important was that it’s not defined by title or position. Leadership can be found at all levels of an organization.
Leaders have both the ability and the desire to develop other people’s skills and talents, and are always willing to take the time to do so. They’re approachable and easy to talk to, always giving the impression they have lots of time to spare. Even when over-taxed themselves, leaders will never brush off a person seeking advice or needing help. If they’re not able to deal with a situation right away they’ll explain why and do so as soon as they can. Leaders are good listeners who don’t hesitate to ask questions non-leaders tend to avoid, such as whether someone is having a personal problem the leader might be able to help with.
Because they know how to motivate, leaders are able to get ordinary people to do extraordinary things. They always remember that results are achieved through reason and persuasion, not by bullying. As a result, people tend to try harder for effective leaders. It’s the rope principle: pull a rope and it will follow you, push it and it will curl up and go nowhere. The same applies to people. Another thing leaders always remember is that even people who don’t mind sharing credit still appreciate getting their fair share, and leaders make sure they do.
Leaders help teams reach their collective potential by convincing colleagues to make the most of their strengths, to work on overcoming weaknesses, and to understand the importance of working together.
Leadership also produces new leaders. One of the important particulars of this leadership characteristic is the effective delegation of responsibility. Leaders know the most constructive way to delegate is to let people know they are trusted, not by micro-managing. They will also tell people how they’re doing without being asked. Leaders, in addition to being self-confident themselves, also inspire others to believe in themselves.
Leaders are, of course, supremely adept at solving problems. They don’t worry about possible negative reactions to their decisions and understand that the burdens of leadership sometimes include being unpopular. Leadership is doing what needs to be done, even if some people don’t like it. As difficult as it is at times, leaders are able to keep their preconceptions in perspective and personal biases out of their decisions. They also recognize that the occasional disappointment is the price of progress, so they’re able to deal with setbacks without becoming discouraged. They’re also able to deal with disagreements without being disagreeable, never equating disagreement with disloyalty.
Keeping cool in emergencies is a critical hallmark of leadership, and is often demonstrated by making difficult things seem simple rather than making simple things seem difficult. Leaders know how to communicate not only to be understood, but to be incapable of being misunderstood.
When the effective leader’s work is done, everyone says, “We did it!”