QUALITIES
OF AN EFFECTIVE LEADER
*
CONFIDENCE:
Confidence in yourself, confidence in others,
confidence in your cause, confidence in God's assistance.
*
OPTIMISM: A belief that the goal is not only good
but that it will be reached.
* KNWOLEDGE:
An understanding of the underlying problems, what needs to be done and how to go
about getting it done.
* CONCERN
FOR OTHERS: A love and care that reaches out in God's name to every
human being.
* DECISIVENESS:
The ability to weigh option, make decision and gain the acceptance of the group.
*OPENNESS:
A respect for the opinions of all and a desire to work with people of divergent
views and personalities.
* GOOD EXAMPLE: A willingness to help
with even menial tasks, to be out in front, and to support
the members of the group in their endeavors.
* PATIENCE:
The willingness to get the ideas ripen, to plan adequately. to wait for the
right time for action.
*
COURAGE:
The courage to withstand the critics, to sacrifice self, to resist pressure and
to continue in the face of the
adversity.
* COMMUNICATION:
The ability to understand what others are trying to say and to convey decisions and action plans clearly.
LEADERSHIP
BEHAVIUORAL PATTERNS
L
Loyal- dedication and devotion
to his work.
A
Appreciative- Thoughtful, grateful,
and thankful.
D
Disciplinarian - Oriented on
self discipline than imposed discipline.
R Responsible-
builds honesty, trust and confidence.
H Humble-
faces life with truth rather than escapism.
I Ideal-
Sets good example for others.
P Patient
- tries to understand and to advise than to penalize.
A QUIZ ON LEADERSHIP
Indicate whether you agree (A) or
disagree (D) with the following statements on 'Leadership'.
1.
People
are not born- leaders, they become so. ................
2.
An
effective leader will always make all decisions for the group by himself/ herself. ................
3.
your
power and influence as leader comes solely from your position as a leader. ...............
4.
An
effective leader will not hesitate whenit comes to making a decision. ................
5.
A
good leader tries his/her best to prevent conflicts but onece a conflict has
arisen he/she will face it and resolve it.
...............
6.
An
effective leader will himself/herself solve all the problems of the group
members. ...............
7.
A
good leadre will never admit his/her faults and mistakes, let his/her followers
my displace him /her. ……...........
8.
It
is not possiblew to achieve the goals of the group as well as good relationship
among the members ...............
9.
An
effective leader has confidence in himself/herself in others and in God. ................
10. If you want to
achieve goals and maintain high standards, only autocratic style of leadership
will work. ................
11. A good leader will assume total responsibility
for all the decisions and activities
12. of the
group.
............
13. 12. An effective
leader makes great effort to bring in clarity of roles and goals. ..................
14. 13. A good
leader will be quick to priase and slow to blame.
................
15. 14. An effective
leader makes great effort to bring in clarity of roles and goals. ................
16. 15. An effective
leader talks less but listens and does more.
...................
17. 16. An effective
leader is willing to take risk and initiatives and accept challenges. ..................
18. 17. A good
leader is just and impartial.
..................
19. 18. An effective
leader involves his followers in planing, decision making and
20. implementation
of every activity
...................
21. 19. Reporting
and having recourse to higher authorities for every problem will
22. undermine yoour
own authority. ....................
23. 20. A good
leader is the one who knows the way, shows the way and goes the
24. way.
................
QUALITIES OF LEADERSHIP
LEADER: can be divided into two main
types: The one type dominates, drives and demands; those in the other type
inspire their followers to action while enriching their lives and developing
their personality. we will deal only with the second type:
GET ONE THING STRAIGHT: In order to be
successful you don't have to be a leader. all you hve to avoid, is being a
leader. So we shall deal only briefly with those qualities of leadership which
help most towards successin general.Here they are;
1. Be Enthusiastic:
Have a sense of Humour which enables you to
admit your mistakes without feeling that you have lost face. 'smile and the
world smiles with you; but laugh when the world laughs at you'. is good advice.
2. Be eager to learn:
If you are too old to learn, you are too
old to live, and certainly too old to lead. William has said that few of us learn
anything after 26. Does that bother you ? It shouldn't if you regard yourself
as among the few. Besides you do not want to learn anything new now; you just
want to do what you have neglected doing till you got hold of this book.
3. Share praise but shoulder blame: Be
prompt to praise. Always give credit to those who have helped you in any
project.It is well kinown that those persons are most successful who know how
to get other people to work for them. However, when anything goes wrong accept
the full responsibility. That is the privilege of a leader.
4. Enrich the lives of others: by
training them to become reliable and responsible. Help them to develop their
personality, by delegating important tasks to them and so help them to come
into prominance. you will thus win the loyalty of your followers and attract
new ones to join you. Accept their suggestions and praise them when good done;
improve their mediocre suggestioins by discussion; and when forced to reject
any, always explain hte reason.
5. Never ridicule, Nag or shout at
anyone: Many people think they are superior when they are sarcastic or make
others look foolish or redicule. They only expose their petty nature. Nagging
get you nowhere. Sit down with the offending party and find out the cause for
bad behaviour, low output or persistant indifference. Shouting goes well with
dictators. Leaders never shout; they give ordered with firmness and decision.
6. Develop dependebility: Glen Gardiner
states that the best definition of dependability is "doing more than what
is ecpected, befeore it is expected" . No one values a worker who has to
be reminded several times to do a thing, and then checked on to see if the work
is done right and on schedule. You will never get far if you adopt the attitude,
' I'll turn out better and quicker work, only when they pay me more".
7. Don't Over-reach: Browning spoke
truly when he wrote: A mans reach should exeed his grasp or what is a heaven
for ? but we should apply this with
care and prudence, especially in dealing with others. It is wisely said: "
We judge others by their actions, and ourselves with our ideals". So many
of us scold a servant or subordinate for not being able to do a job as well as
we can. We fail to note that if they were
that good they would not be servants or subordinates. And for yourself,
before you try to over-reach, make sure to provide yourself with the neccessary
prop.
8. Make few promises and keep them:
People lose faith in you if you can't keep your word. So make promises
sparingly, but keep them faithfully and loyally. When you are not sureof being
able to do something, use non-commital phrases llike " I'll see what can
be done." " that time is too short but I'll do my best". Also refrain form extracting promises from
those working under you. Teach them not to make promises lightly, for a promise
once given must be kept.
9. Work for the cause: why do pioneers
achieve the impossible? Why do missionaries reach the unattainable? Because
they work not for moneyor for people, or
for rulers, but for the cause. They know that God rewards the effort not the
result. Do your best and leave the rest
to
