Qualities of a Leader

Do you have the qualities of a leader?

I'm sure you know that leadership is not just a title. Leadership is what we bring to the organizations we lead in order to develop our people and achieve our goals. That's easier said than done and it doesn't necessarily come naturally.

When I think about the qualities of a high performance leader I notice similarities with what I would consider to be a high quality, high character person: curious, brilliant, adventurous, determined, attentive, focused, ambitious, strong, kind, worthy, ethical, resilient, spiritual, healthy...the list is long.

I've also come to believe that while many qualities are important, there are five that are absolutely essential. You could lead without these qualities, but the job is much harder that way and the outcomes are more volatile.

The five qualities I aspire to are: courage, clarity, creativity, compassion, and centeredness.

I define centeredness as the skillful use of the other four qualities in harmony with the situation, people involved, and balanced in a mindful way. Centeredness provides a sense of balance, focus, and presence.

What's on your list?

doug smith

Leadership Actions:

Create your own list of leadership qualities. Make it a long list.
When your list is complete, read thru it and add any additional qualities that occur to you.
Circle the five on your list that you consider to be the most important.
Reflect on how you live those five qualities and consider what development opportunities they present for you.
Plan your next leadership development and goal.

Oh, and I'd love to hear from you on how this works for you.

Keep developing -- the world needs better leaders!

Comments

Build and Connect

The world is full of "buts" in search of more "ands." In improv. In leadership. In life. Let go of the fear and build on what's here. -- doug smith

Better Feedback

The trouble with feedback is that we don't want it, or if we do we don't know how to give it, and don't know when to start or stop it. Ah, but what if we did? What if we could build a high-feedback culture where people were open to feedback and knew how to put it to immediate use? We can. It takes practice. It takes experience. It takes caring about how we do feedback and who we share it with. Here's one thing you can change immediately that will dramatically improve the feedback frequency on your team: ask for advice more often...and then really listen. Don't even call it feedback. Ask for advice and not only will everyone have some, once you show that you're open to it, they'll ask for advice in return. What's your best tip on giving and receiving feedback? -- doug smith

Are We Perfect Yet?

I've said it often and it is still true: there are no perfect people, there are no perfect processes, and there are no perfect products. Nothing in this life is perfect. In a way, isn't that perfect? It means that it is completely up to us to make things better. It is within our need to improve processes, to develop people, to create new products. If we don't do it, who will? That means we might need to overcome our ego's need to feel perfect by examining exactly where we stand. How are we doing? What does the feedback say? Where are we on this road of improvement? Critical thinking requires some self-evaluation. Not to hurt our feelings, but to develop our capacity. Are we perfect yet? Of course not, but it's ever so much fun to be on the road headed in that direction. -- doug smith

Pause First

Falling behind might not mean catching up. It could also reveal change and opportunity. Would you rather chase, or lead? Has one moment or movement gone leaving room for something new? Don't let a treadmill turn into a dread mill. Haul that rock up the hill if it is part of your future, not just because it was part of your past. -- doug smith

Better Traditions

It's easy to tear down the past and wreck the present. It does not take much thought to condemn what seems to be ill-suited for our present needs. We might even take glee in crushing part of our past. But before we do, we should ask a question or two. What if we improved our traditions instead of destroying them? What if that's a better solution? -- doug smith

Wrong Is Wrong

There may be more than one right way to do something but that does not make the wrong way right. -- doug smith

Practice

If practice was easy we wouldn't need it. -- doug smith

Speedy, Pause

Speed is great. It overcomes indifference, it outruns hesitation, it gets things started. It can also lead to mistakes. Sometimes a mistake comes from moving too fast. Pause. Practice patiently to filter out the flaws. -- doug smith

In Search of the right steps...

Three step processes. Four step processes. Seven step processes. Even more. A problem is a dynamic in search of a dance. Follow the science, of course, but also find the dance. -- doug smith

Centered Selves

When we are off center it impacts our results. Our solutions will seem off-center as long as we are. In order to lead, to coach, and to guide our teams need the confidence of knowing that we have a sense of balance, a grounded approach. Let's start by centering ourselves. Restoring confidence. Maintaining balance. Grounding ourselves in the values we drive and live by. Centered problem solving requires centered selves. -- doug smith

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