However, Leadership is the ability to inspire and influence a group of people to achieve worthwhile goals. I’ll want you to take note of these six words underlined, and to be observed critically, without these words leadership is incomplete and irrelevant. I discovered that one of the quickest route to leadership is problem solving. Leadership is the ability and willingness to recognize, reconnect, refine, release, replicate or reproduce skills, talents, abilities and potentials in people, irrespective of their present problems to make them a progressive people, producing preferable result.
One of our greatest gurus in leadership Dr. Myles Munroe said, genuine leadership is one’s internal disposition, which relates to a sense of purpose, self worth, and self concept.
A leader takes people where they want to go, but a great leader take people where they don’t necessary want to go but they ought to be. (Roseline Carter)
How to become a leader….
Anyone that must become a great leader must observe the following points;
1.Solve your own problem first.
2.Help others solve their own problems by the things you have discovered when solving your own problem. (we all follow the leadership of Jesus today because he solved the problem of sin)
4.Diagnose and define the source of the problem.
5.Generate alternative solution to solving the problem.
6.Evaluate and select best alternative solutions.
7.Implement and follow up on the solution.
In our discussion on the practice of leadership it’s necessary for me to mention a few characteristics of a great leader and then what leadership is not.
Characteristics of a leader…
When we talk about characteristics of a leader we are talking about attributes, nature, originality, quality, mannerism, the virtue, flavor, trade mark and personality of a great leader. A study at Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Management found that compassion and building teamwork will be two of the most important characteristics business leaders will need for success a decade from now, but I think that is not enough. Follow me closely as I expose the critical aspect of leadership.
The word characteristics I derive from the word character. Any leader without character cannot produce characteristics, in other words character is what gives birth to characteristics.
Character I say is everything, it’s easy to get to the position of leadership but that which can easily destroys you at the top of leadership if not in place is character. Reputation is what people feel or think about you but character is what God knows about you, here is what we teach in leadership that, the heart of the matter is the matter of the heart. In other words character is within and reputation is without. If your heart is right your act will be right.
The characteristics or character of a great leader is,
Ability to initiate change:
Leaders help where to attain to the next experience and they are always dissatisfied with their current level. The ability to initiate change is what makes the difference between the leaders and the followers. Change is risk, but irrespective of what people will say, a leader will always initiate change. Strategically, there are many elements to a campaign but leadership is number one and everything else is number two.
Leaders have sense of divine timing:
The person who knows what to do, how to do it, where and when will always take the leadership position. Leaders don’t move after God has move, leaders move when God is moving. When the leadership is right and the time is right, the people can always be counted upon to follow to the end and at all costs.
Leaders know and focus on what is important:
A leader knows what is urgent, more so what differentiate the leader from follower is that followers want to do everything, but leader focus on what is important.
Leaders have vision:
The ability of a leader to see clearly is what makes people follow him.It is your sight that determines your size,and without vision you may be going everywhere without going somewhere. But there are three dimensions to a leader’s vision,
1. Hindsight: seeing yesterday difficulties or activities, those who cannot remember the failure of yesterday, will repeat them.
2. Insight: knowing today possibilities, seeing beyond the obvious. In every difficulty there are opportunities.
3. Foresight: seeing tomorrow’s opportunity. It is what your eyes can see that your hand can cease, and what your eyes can’t comprehend your heart can’t comprehend.
Leaders have commitment:
There is a difference between commitment and involvement. Leaders are dedicated to continuous improvement; anyone that will lead must be a reader because leadership and learning are indispensable to each other. A good leader develops through a never ending process of self study, education, training, and experience.
Leaders connect with people:
A good leader touches people with love and emotion. People will first buy into you before they buy into your vision. Henry Ford said, “Coming together is the beginning, keeping together is the progress and working together is success.” Leadership effectiveness is more of relationship development and management than goal setting and accomplishments. And the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers, though the first step to leadership is servant hood.
With basics understanding on leadership and characteristics we can now inspect what leadership is not…..
-Leadership is not only becoming a person of celebrities but a person with great responsibilities.
-Leadership is not about status but about service.
-Leadership is not about power but about people.
-Leadership is not about position but about operation.
-Leadership is not about title but about task.
-Leadership is not about aptitude but about attitude.
-Leadership is not about demanding for respect but about delivering respect.
-Leadership is not about personal achievement but people’s development.
-Leadership is not about charisma but about character.
-Leadership is not about being satisfied but more of willingness to sacrifice.
-Leadership is not about party but about personality.
-Leadership is not about principle but about life style.
-Leadership is not about structure but about culture.
-Leadership is not about pursuit but about result.
-Leadership is not about “come” into but about “call” into.
Leadership as said by Dr. Myles Munroe is not an exclusive club for the elite. Everyone is called into leadership.
Practical leadership,It is an attitude of the heart. Sincerely speaking, leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. Leadership is about inspiration of oneself and of others. The great leadership is about human experiences, not processes. Leadership is not a formula or a program, it is a human activity that comes from the heart and considers the hearts of others. “Blessed is the leader who seeks the best for those he serves.”
It is an attitude, not a routine. It is the heart before the act. Let’s get it right that leadership should be more participative than directive, more enabling than performing.
Leadership development is self development!!!
hincyte….
+2348030803499
oluwole.joseph@ymail.com
Leadership is about the heart.Gr8!
ReplyDelete