Leadership leads to success

Leadership is not about being top-dog and barking out orders – it’s about being able to influence the people around you. And you can do this whether you are in charge or not!

So it's about getting consistently good results from your team, and to do this you need to be part of the team, and share the experiences of the team.

And anyone can do it. You may have heard the term ‘a born leader’. True, there are some people who have charisma and a natural attraction – but charismatic rulers don’t necessarily head in the right direction.

And some people just have authority thrust upon them – again, it doesn’t mean they will be good at the job.

But true headship comes from expert power – when your team looks to you for direction because they know you are capable of giving the right guidance. It is also about:

• Self-confidence: the ability to make a decision, take charge and see it through to the end.
• Courageous: the ability to do what is right because you know it’s right. The ability to make difficult decisions and admit when you are wrong.
• Empathy: the ability to identify with a person and build rapport.
• Initiative: readiness and ability to act. You see what needs to be done and you get it done.
• Integrity: behaving honestly and ethically.
• Loyalty: giving total support to your team, and loyalty cannot be expected if it is not given.
• Self-motivation: the inner drive to success. A leader’s energy gets transferred to the team.
• Sound judgement: the ability to form a valid opinion or conclusion.

But you can develop these skills by embracing the above characteristics – even as a team member. Headship is about exhibiting the traits of a manager and guiding from whatever position you’re in.

And here is a great resource to help you develop your leadership potential...

The “How to Lead: Discover the Leader Within You” self-study program teaches the 48 essential skills needed to be an effective, respected leader. It starts by helping you to evaluate you own leadership style, and learn to use your strengths and manage weaknesses. And it then goes on to teach you the key skill-sets needed to lead effectively: Creation of a robust vision of the future; motivation; execution and team member development.

This is a high quality program, developed in partnership with true world experts and includes tools, tips, tests and email courses helping you to be an exceptional leader.

And leadership and self-awareness go hand in hand, as do communications and self empowerment.