Tag Archives: Leadership Potential

Leadership

6 Truths You Probably Didn’t Know About Leadership

I’m sure you’ve heard both of these questions at least a 1000 times. Are leaders born? Or are they made? The answer is simple. Both. Leaders are born and they are made. Yes, some people are born with a natural propensity to lead while most people are born with some leadership ability. But both types of people still have to learn how to lead. Being the loudest, most aggressive and domineering person doesn’t necessary mean you’re a leader. I believe many people believe that the traits I just listed are what makes some people leaders and others not leaders. Not true. Leadership has nothing to do with being bossy, pushy or commanding. You can be a leader and have these personality traits but it’s not required.

You can be a quiet but yet be a strong leader like Tom Landry or Tony Dungy. They were not your traditional yell and scream type coaches/leaders but they were effective in motivating and empowering their players. Strong leadership is a process of finding out what you’re gifting and then perfecting your gifting or strengths. Everyone was born with some leadership ability.

The challenge is going through the process to BECOME a leader. Everyone was put on this earth to solve a problem. A problem is basically meeting a need that hasn’t been met. What need you were put on earth to meet? That’s the question you need to through a process to find out.

Although everyone was put on earth to become a leader, becoming a leader is a difficult process. It’s difficult because it takes time, money and energy to find out your leadership gift or talent. And it takes equally as much time, money and energy to improve upon your leadership gift. I will go onto say that finding and improving upon your gift is never-ending process.

To give you a better understanding of leadership, I want to share these six truths with you. Hopefully, it will change your thinking about leadership:

1. Trapped in every follower is a hidden leader. Not everyone has the leadership ability to lead a fortune 500 company but everyone has some leadership ability. And everyone has some influence on someone.

2. Every human was created to lead and designed for dominion. Don’t get this statement confused with dominating and controlling people. What I mean by this statement is that every human was created to use his leadership gift to have power in your area of influence.

3. Leadership potential resides in every individual. However, it’s up to the individual to tap into the hidden leadership potential and develop that potential. Again, everyone has different leadership skills and abilities.

4. You were born to lead but you must become a leader. Everyone is born with some a leader but the process of becoming a leader is difficult. To become a leader, you must read, continually learn and consult people who are leaders.

5. True leadership is self-manifestation. Most people equate leadership to ruling over people. Actually, leadership is about finding what you were put on this earth to do. After you find your gift or leadership talent, people will follow you.

6. True purpose for true leadership is the production of leaders. Your most prolific leaders are those leaders who create leaders not to look for followers. True leaders don’t need followers, they teach other people to become leaders.

If you like this article, read my other articles that discuss leadership, education and entrepreneurship at [http://www.roberttaylorandrews.com]

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Robert_T_Andrews/1625696

 

Leadership

5 Steps to Developing Your Leadership Potential

Leadership development is defined by Wikipedia as “any activity that enhances the quality of leadership within an individual or organization.” As one might expect from this definition, what constitutes leadership development is highly dependent upon the definition of leadership. We define leadership as follows:

Leadership occurs when one person determines, undertakes, and sustains a favorable and/or productive direction and others follow. It’s not the nature of the direction that determines leadership; it’s the presence of a direction and the existence of a reciprocal relationship between leader and follower.

From this perspective the two primary things that one must develop in order to become a leader are the ability to “determine, undertake, and sustain” a direction and the ability to attract and hold followers. That these are the two main factors in leadership development is nothing new. What is new is our belief that the way one perceives the world determines a great deal of how and in what types of directions one chooses to lead, and how one attracts and holds followers.

While most leadership development focuses on the most obvious and popular definitions and descriptions of leadership characteristics, at Your Talent Advantage we take a different approach. We identify six distinctly different leadership profiles. Each leadership profile supports a set of natural leadership skill potentials that “belongs” to it.

Developing leadership skills is a process that at the macro level is the same for any of the six leadership profiles. But while the process is the same, the specific content – what skills and behaviors are to be developed – changes depending on which profile is being developed. In addition, the type of activities used to develop the skills chosen with each person must be customized based on their specific circumstances. This is true even for people who share the same leadership profile and who need to develop the same skill. This is because no two people will be in the same place in terms of their development nor will their life circumstances be identical.

Everyone has the innate potential to lead, but obviously not everyone undertakes the efforts necessary to turn potential into behavioral skills. While each leadership profile describes a distinctly different type of leadership that varies in approach, values, focus, communication, strengths, and blind spots, each represents an expansion of an individual’s skill that has gone beyond the scope of personal development.

To be a leader requires that an individual step beyond an understanding of themselves and a claiming of their own natural skill base. Development beyond the individual level is what leadership development is about. As such people who aspire to leadership or who represent themselves to others as leaders are held to a “higher standard” than those who do not seek leadership. For this reason, the five skills that all highly effective leaders must develop require more from an individual than other types of personal development. An effective leader must not only understand themselves, but must understand others as well. They must know the skills and blind spots of others, not just their own, and they must be able to adjust and accommodate their behavior to the multitude of differences between themselves and their followers while not losing the distinct leadership profile that makes them effective.

Effective leadership development is driven by these five universal leadership skills. Each builds upon those that come before it, and an individual’s skill as a leader increases as each is developed.

It is these five skills that drive leadership development:

 

  1. Leaders’ build on their natural strengths.
  2. They are aware of their limitations, and seek input from people with perspectives different from their own.
  3. They are aware that any group of followers contains people who see the world differently than they do, and they find ways to communicate effectively to each of them.
  4. They recognize the talents of others, and seek to build teams based on complementary skill sets and perspectives.
  5. They learn to accept/own their natural limitations and develop techniques to mitigate them.

 

Each of these skills and how to apply them will be discussed individually in a series of five articles.

Gary Jordan, Ph.D., has over 32 years of experience in clinical psychology, behavioral assessment, individual development, and coaching. He earned his doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the California School of Professional Psychology – Berkeley. He is co-creator of Perceptual Style Theory, a revolutionary psychological assessment system that teaches people how to unleash their deepest potentials for success. For more free information on how to succeed in life and business doing more of what you love, visit http://www.YourTalentAdvantage.com.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Gary_M._Jordan/22166

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Leadership

Leadership Strategies – 3 Ways to Maximize Leadership Potential

CEOs and managers can maximize their leadership potential by breaking three common myths. Few leadership strategies are as important as uncovering the potential within the organization to maximize the leadership potential of the executive leadership. Break these following myths and leadership skills within any organization will increase.

Are you a real student of leadership? How effective is your leadership? The answer boils down to breaking three main myths to increase leadership ability.

Myth 1 – Many believe falsely that ability alone is enough for leadership. This myth causes some to not fully develop their potential. Practice is key in strengthening talent in arts, music and sports, so why not in leadership? Most artists develop their talent by taking art lessons in drawing, sketching or painting. The musician learns how to play beginner levels of music before he/she can play advanced. The athlete practices for hours before he/she runs in the Olympics. Therefore, a leader must practice his/her leadership to advance to the next level.

Myth 2 – Smart people are leaders. If only smart people were leaders then how come many lead without any formal education? Now, this point is controversial because of how leadership is defined if defined only by having a degree. In the political arena of leadership most leaders hold degrees. For example, Past President George W. Bush had an MBA from Harvard Business School, Cheney a M.A. in political science, Colin Powell a Bachelor’s degree in geology, etc. Therefore, this provides strong evidence that leaders are educated, so that leadership is the mastery of smart people. However, in the celebrity arena many are leaders without the same level of education. For example, Barbara Streisand only completed high school, Cher dropped out in 9th grade and Julia Roberts only completed high school. Yet, each of these celebrities led others.

The controversy comes from the idea that a degree is equivalent to being smart. Does not experience also account for an increased emotional awareness? Obviously, the answer is yes because leadership is a combination of many factors. The underlying point from the contrast of political leadership and that of celebrities is what one does with his/her smartness. Both the political and the celebrities had to break myth 3 for successful leadership.

Myth 3 – Leadership is handed out and comes naturally. Some people will point to those who inherit money, position and power and state that they were natural-born leaders. Yes, these were born into a position of leadership but that does not necessarily mean that they had the attributes to lead. Each had mentors, intelligence-gatherers and fact-finders to discern their landscape to position or leverage themselves and their followers.

A real student of leadership will accept three keys to advance their leadership potential from these broken myths.

Key 1 – Leadership qualities need to be strengthened with practice. This requires dedication. The leader must lead, must have conviction that his/her way is right. Others can question, become disillusioned, reject the leadership but the leader remains steadfast and knows the way.

Key 2 – Leadership is maximized with information gathering, fact finding and thorough understanding. Persuasive arguments are won with facts. A leader knows how to convince others without threats or violence but with the arm of truth.

Key 3 – Leadership potential can be built. To desire to lead is to desire a desirable end. Leadership is respected. Leadership is applauded. Leadership is required to help others. Leadership is required to make this a better world. Leadership is required to provide hope. Leaders must want their role. Leaders must live their role.

Corporate executives gain when they learn new strategies and techniques because new information provides additional insights which helps make stronger decisions. When leaders learn new leadership skills to strengthen their executive leadership they gain a strong competitive advantage because these new skills help them be better communicators. Leadership skills helps them build on their potential and develop techniques to add to their talent pool.

Loreen Sherman is an expert on organizational leadership development. Get your Modular Skills Package at [http://www.star-tingpublishing.com]. Invite Loreen to speak on leadership development today.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Loreen_M_Sherman/1120880

 

Leadership

10 Appeals to Your Leadership Potential

Everyone is a leader. What differs is the number of people you are leading. By virtue of your existence you are leading someone every day. That person is you. Others choose to increase in leadership when they start leading a family, leading in a company department or at the very top (CEO) or a government ministry, to presidents. At each level of leadership there is a need for situational sensitivity. By this I mean that you need to adjust and be flexible to realize that the way you lead yourself or your family differs to the way you may want to lead a project team.

The situations are different, the setting, the expectations and time-lines are totally different. It is important to note that it is how much of the leader in you that you would like to expose and maximize that determines the extent to which your leadership grows. The greater the team in terms of size and responsibility, the bigger the decisions and risks you would have to make for the organization. Personally, I have experienced leadership at various levels in my life. In my school days I was class monitor for a season and then became a prefect. In College I was Chairman of Technology Club, in Church I have been head of ushers, sound, music etc. At each of the positions or roles, different leadership styles came in handy. I am making an appeal to the leader in you to awaken and rise to the occasion. The world is not in need of more money but more leaders with wisdom and integrity. You could be the one hiding when your chair awaits you in the decision making meeting already underway.

My appeals to you

– Stop Complaining – Start Leading – Have you ever stopped to ponder on why you are always quick to point what is going wrong and yet you drag your feet when asked to set things right? The leader in you is quick to find faults and even knows what should be done but chooses not to do it. You were created with enough ability to identify, point out and comprehend any diversion from the ideal. I am challenging you to move from being an problem identifier to being part of the solution (problem eliminator). The next time you are tempted to complain about the leader, ask yourself what you are doing about helping the leader to lead better or offering yourself as the alternative. Start leading from where you are. Provide solutions from where you operate from and people follow where issues are solved not where choruses of murmuring are sung in harmony. Shouting from the terraces usually has no impact on the game’s outcome. You can have all the solutions as to how the game can tilt in your favor but if you do not make your hands dirty by getting involved in the birthing of a solution then keep your frustrations to yourself. You actually deserve them.

– Master your own fears and insecurities associated with leadership responsibility – Fear and insecurity sometimes freezes every potential that generations could have benefited from. One would rather create numerous excuses to ensure they are not the one in the fore-front. “I am not fluent, I am too young, I don’t have a degree, and I am not rich enough to lead”. All these are flimsy excuses. All the excuses above can actually be true but they do not qualify as reasons for not taking responsibility. I am so determined to make a difference in my generation hence I don’t deny that I have shortfalls or limitations but I choose to step on them for the sake of leading others. Put me in any situation, “intimidating” as it can
be, I am drawn towards either taking a leading role or actively support the one at the top. If it goes well at the top; the rest of the body prospers. I will always do all I can to support the head to the best of my ability for that reason. Once the head masters his/her insecurities, fears and feeling of inadequacy only then will the leadership potential in them be maximized.

– Leadership is about risks – and so is life in general – Get used to making risky decisions. Don’t focus on “what if it doesn’t turn out well?”, but in the same vein consider “What if it turns out well?” The pessimist is always subject to the optimist. Rather be optimistic and hopeful and miss than shy away totally. The beauty lies in the fact that you tried your best. Risks form the daily diet of those who desire and aspire to lead at higher levels. There is a risk of being rejected and risk of failure and so on. As a leader in my family (first born), I made a number of risks that someone in their “right state of mind” would not have done. At a time when private sector was considered the worst place to hedge your future on, I took a dive into it. That risk has taken me to places where I have never been, meeting people I have never thought I would meet. As a result, those that are after me have also looked outside the box of “Government is the best employer” to studying such areas as Electronics, Computer Engineering, and Social Studies etc.

– Identify your dominant leadership styles and appropriate each style accordingly– I will do a separate article on various styles of leadership as it is a wide and important subject. Know that as a leader you need to know yourself, Are you autocratic (it’s what you say that goes, no suggestions or objections), are you transactional (focus on getting things done), are you transformational (focus on change in self, others, groups and organization) or are you a servant leader (serving others). It is important to note that there is no style considered the best over others. Different styles apply to different scenarios or situations. They have different results depending on where they are applied. I have noticed that within me I am
more of a people person. I tend to focus more on the comfort of those I lead sometimes at the expense of getting the job done. I am a servant leader to a large degree and I exercise situational sensitivity. You must know your predominant style. Are you drawn towards people or towards the task? I appeal to the leader in you to awaken and self-identify.

– Go ahead of those you lead – You cannot take your team to areas you have never encountered with confidence. If you have to grope in the misty cloud of uncertainty at the same time with your team, they lose confidence in what they are trying to achieve. If you are ahead of them you are able to paint a picture of what lies ahead and it keeps them wanting to push more. As a leader you cannot afford to be well read, researched, articulate of modern and current issues. You cannot be rigid when it comes to change and development. The moment you stop progressing as a leader, you are setting limits for those behind
you. They will have a false sense of arrival. I am amazed at my mentors who after achieving their first Doctoral degrees went on to study for another one. Now I am stretched to think deeper. One of my mentors, Dr. Makoni (author, chairman of Rapha Trust, convener of the Champions Turf Dinners) does not only have a Doctor of Dentistry Degree but an MBA and Doctoral in Business Administration. The other significant mentor is Dr. John Stanko (author and Chairman of PurposeQuest) who completes his second Doctorate Degree in 2010. The two are both interested in creating and nurturing champions to live lives of
purpose.

– Leadership is about influence not how many you beat into submission – Leadership is about making an impact in others, making the best out of those you lead. As leader you need to provide an avenue for those below to give their advice and suggestions. It is not a sign of weakness but it brings a sense of belonging to those you lead. It does not mean every suggestion is what you will run with but you give people room to contribute even though you and other leaders have a final say on what suggestions are in line with the organization’s vision and goals. When you encourage, teach, coach and counsel those in your team, you are increasing your reach. When you provide psycho-social support to those you come into contact with you are building a stronger network and enlarging your sphere.

– Leadership hinges on your credibility and integrity – Those following you rely on your word. Is your “Yes” actually a Yes and your “No”, no? As soon as leadership loses integrity, it loses grip on its own followers. Followers have capacity to exercise some level of grace as they know leaders are also humane enough. However, they can only stretch so far. The more signs of lack of integrity they see in you as leader, the less they want to hear you speak to them. This is where you as a leader have to work hard not only to preserve your reputation and how you are perceived (your name) but also on your actual character. A leader has enough power to lead multitudes astray on the basis of his/her character. I am always watchful on what character traits I am duplicating or imparting in others due to the influence I have. Your character can be seen in those you lead. The people below you usually do what they see their leader doing. Be careful not to set the wrong example. Your credibility is far more important that money and fame.

– You can never realize your full leadership potential until you step up and step out – Leadership is active not passive. It calls for you to look past your limitations. I am not guaranteeing that leadership will be easy, as that would constitute a lie. It will certainly build you to become stronger, more resolute in decision making and more responsible (over those you lead). As the old adage goes “The taste of the pudding is in the eating”. Why should you wait for the next person to lead when you too can do it? Why should you look outside you for leadership when you can step up and step out to do it? Start somewhere, whether taking up leadership in your family, community, church etc. Every president has a track record, they did not wake up to realize they had been elected to office; they stepped out to lead in other areas and gained leadership muscle and experience. You need a leadership resume (CV) too. The small victories and achievements you make in life will certainly count for something when you now contest at higher levels. Do not take for granted the humble beginnings. For as long as you sit on potential, you are wasting it. I noticed one thing about me, even when I lose a loved one; I step up and organize everything and mourn later. My first reaction is to bring order, in the midst of pain. When I lost my dad, while everyone was crippled, I rose to the occasion and led my family. I usually let my leadership stand taller than my emotions. I grieve when I have put order in the camp.

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Leadership

Business Leadership Development For Managers

Business leadership development plays an integral part in the metamorphosis of a good manager into a great one. Many believe the terms leadership and management to be synonymous, though nothing could be farther from the truth. They are as different as night from day, and a good leader might not make a good manager and vice versa.

However, business leadership development planning can be used to improve the capability of managers to lead and become competent in dealing with people and persuasion rather than position and power. A good leader will have followers as distinct from the subordinates of managers, yet the two need not be mutually exclusive: A good manager can become a good leader, and the development of leadership will not only enhance your ability to lead people and organizations, but also to lead yourself.

Leading oneself is a concept that many find difficult to visualize, but to lead others you must first be able to successfully lead your own life. You must be aware of your strengths and weaknesses, possess self-confidence, but also display humility and not only accept criticism but learn from your successes and failures. You need people to follow you, and not only motivate teams to get things done that need to be done, but also get them to want to do what has to be done. To persuade rather than to order, and to lead them to want to do the right things rather than to do things right.

Although a business needs both management and leadership, it is sometimes necessary to focus more on one than on the other. A business might have a good management structure but little leadership, so will tend to stagnate over time. On the other hand it might have plenty of leadership and energy behind it, but because of poor management is unable to convert that leadership energy into results.

As previously stated, then, business leadership and management are not mutually exclusive, and not only does a business need both but a leadership development program can be used to combine good management skills with good leadership capabilities. Leadership can be learned. The concept of the ‘born leader’ is outdated, and leadership can be defined as forms of behavior in terms of skills that can be learned. Leadership development involves changing a candidate’s behavior to acquire these skills, and achieve competence in leadership.

Being a good manager is not a prerequisite for a good leader, but neither is it a drawback, and the same person can possess both leadership and management skills. That is because both are learned and not innate in a person’s character, so that managers can be developed by their businesses or corporations into leaders. In fact, the best managers are also good leaders.

Nevertheless, good leaders have often been found to possess a higher than average drive and more than the normal share of positive qualities. These traits are also frequently found in good managers, although the competencies needed for leadership can be taught by means of a well designed leadership development program.

Waiting for a leader to emerge naturally is neither economical nor desirable, and certainly not an effective way of planning the leadership structure of a business. If we take a military example, more leaders come out of a military academy than are promoted on the field by virtue of displaying strong leadership potential.

Good leaders should communicate well with those they are leading. Their thoughts and perceptions can help others to follow them. They should also have a positive and confident attitude and be able to instill their confidence in others. With that confidence should also come commitment, and leaders should be able to commit to their actions – committing with confidence breeds confidence in others.

It has also been said that leaders should have high moral standards because people will not follow those they do not respect. Furthermore, good leaders do more than just supervise or manage their teams: they feel a sense of responsibility, and in return the team members know that their leader cares for them and cares for the business. This renders it easier for people to follow rather than be led.

Business leadership development is an important concept for businesses to take on board, and by taking on such a program, managers will find people following them rather than having to be managed. Managers can focus their management efforts on the processes and procedures, and employees will follow them to help convert their ideas and visions into reality. That’s leadership!

Further information on business leadership development is available on [http://www.successanddevelopment.info] where you will also find details of personal development programs and others that will benefit both yourself and your company.You can also get inspirational documentary films in the ‘Giving Back’ section.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Mohammed_Tanko/552699