Leaders are always there to make things happen, to look for specific things having a unique vision, making strategic choices, finding the right right tool and people to do the job. Leadership is understanding people, and especially about the process of getting people pointing and acting in the same direction. . It is about listening, and making a real "connect" with your potential followers.. The unique role of a leader is then to provide the energy and commitment to see this job through, and ensuring execution of the plan. Leadership is not just about style, or charisma, or forcefulness, although those things can help. It is a process. Without a need for change, the concept of leadership is meaningless. Leadership is not an abstract, platonic concept-it is a practical activity, with a specific goal in mind. Many times we see persons with strong leadership ability and great potential that can bring positive changes to the society, but they are overlooked because the current perception of what leadership criteria should include needs serious readjustment. Competitive spaces undergo change, new technologies emerge, and customers change. However, companies sometimes fail to change and make the most of new opportunities. Instead, they choose the more convenient and less risky option of trying to get the best out of the old opportunities. Well-led organizations do not wait for leaders to emerge on their own, but actively seek out people with leadership potential and groom them into leaders, while exposing them deliberately to varied work experiences. The leadership process can be institutionalized with careful selection, nurturing, and encouragement. Leaders know what they value. They also recognize the importance of ethical behavior. The best leaders exhibit both their values and their ethics in their leadership style and actions. Your leadership ethics and values should be visible because these reflect in their actions every single day. The leadership job starts with a through understanding of the follower’s needs, aspirations and concerns which needs excellent listening and facilitation skills. Most importantly, it starts with a thorough understanding of the value system of all constituents. The leader’s value system must be congruent with that of the follower if the relationship is to prosper. Leaders must first understand and then communicate their own value systems if they are to be trusted and followed. Leadership comes from within us. It is always the leader’s personal value system that sustains them in their quest.
Questions
- What is leadership is all about?