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7 Traits of Great LeadersLeaders are made not born.
Everyone can name one leader that they feel made a difference in the world. Mother Teresa – sacrificed her life to the poor of India Steve Jobs – Entrepreneur, inventor, CEO of Apple Winston Churchill – British Prime Minister rom 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955 Angela Merkel – German Chancellor 2005 to present Richard Branson – Founder of Virgin Dalai Lama – Spiritual Leader of the Tibetan People Christine Lagarde – Managing Director, International Monetary Fund |
There are many more. Some you may aspire to be like, others you may recognise as leaders but disagree with their teachings or beliefs.
They are all different. Each has their unique style with their personal mission to accomplish, but if we look more closely there are personality traits that show through time and time again.
Here are seven of the most important traits for a leader. We all have some of each one, so if your want to emulate the greats, consider where you sit with the following.
SELF CONFIDENCE
In order for others to consider you as a great leader, they have to trust you. Trusting you is the first step to them following you. In order to trust you, people must feel you are confident – confident in your own abilities, in the mission ahead, in your team. It is essential you are comfortable in yourself, are crystal clear on your goals and unflinching in your commitment.
You communicate your confidence in many ways:
• Behaviour. Are you consistent in your decision-making, even tempered, considered.
• Body language. Is your posture open, strong, welcoming, or are you hunched over and closed?
• Diction. Is your voice steady and clear or are you muttering and shaky?
• Vocabulary. Do you use empowering words or self-defeating loser’s talk?
People must feel you are authentic, happy to be where you are in life, that you are not trying to live someone else’s life. Your actions must be coming from a place of truth and you are not just acting out what others want or expect you to do or say.
VISION
A leader must have a curious mind, capable of original thought, innovation and foresight. They need to be one step ahead with their thoughts and actions. In today’s world, with the pace at which we live, this is becoming more and more difficult. The vision of the leader must be compelling and inspirational. Great leaders tap into the emotions of their followers, engage them and bring them along on the journey.
COURAGE
A great leader must have courage and be willing to take risk and embrace responsibility. They must be comfortable with expanding their horizons, standing up for followers and for what they believe in.
The leader’s sense of accomplishment from venturing into unknown waters and being accountable is what propels them forward to new heights and in return builds more self-confidence.
COMMITMENT TO COMPLETE
A leader must ensure every project comes to completion, that they leave nothing and no-one behind. The journey that is embarked upon may not be as smooth as at first thought, but by soldiering on and showing commitment to find solutions and a satisfactory end the leader demonstrated his courage and integrity, building trust and confidence in his team.
FORTITUDE
No-one gets it right all of the time and nothing is smooth sailing. There are sure to be knocks along the way but it is how you deal with the knocks and recuperate that will show your strength of mind, your character and your resilience.
Admitting you are wrong, asking for help and moving forward not only shows your resilience but also your humility. By looking for solutions rather than scapegoats your team will rally around you and respect you.
FOCUS
When we talk about Leaders being focused, we tend to think of them being focused on themselves, on what they have to do - an external focus. New research in neuroscience however shows that if they concentrate their attention internally and constructively on others and the wider world it helps them broaden their horizons, cultivate an innovative environment and become more resourceful resulting in their teams feeling more valued and engaged.
CHARISMA
Charisma bundles together all of the above in one person – they are confident, intelligent, thoughtful, sharing, values driven and at peace with the world. They draw people to them, people follow them and want emulate them, hence making them natural leaders.
There are always more traits that can be added, but these seven give an excellent foundation to start with.
Next steps:
Please, feel free to share this article on your social media channels:
We would love to have you in our community, you can follow us on Instagram, FB, Linkedin and Twitter:
We would love to hear from you, please send us any issue or topics you would like us to cover.
They are all different. Each has their unique style with their personal mission to accomplish, but if we look more closely there are personality traits that show through time and time again.
Here are seven of the most important traits for a leader. We all have some of each one, so if your want to emulate the greats, consider where you sit with the following.
SELF CONFIDENCE
In order for others to consider you as a great leader, they have to trust you. Trusting you is the first step to them following you. In order to trust you, people must feel you are confident – confident in your own abilities, in the mission ahead, in your team. It is essential you are comfortable in yourself, are crystal clear on your goals and unflinching in your commitment.
You communicate your confidence in many ways:
• Behaviour. Are you consistent in your decision-making, even tempered, considered.
• Body language. Is your posture open, strong, welcoming, or are you hunched over and closed?
• Diction. Is your voice steady and clear or are you muttering and shaky?
• Vocabulary. Do you use empowering words or self-defeating loser’s talk?
People must feel you are authentic, happy to be where you are in life, that you are not trying to live someone else’s life. Your actions must be coming from a place of truth and you are not just acting out what others want or expect you to do or say.
VISION
A leader must have a curious mind, capable of original thought, innovation and foresight. They need to be one step ahead with their thoughts and actions. In today’s world, with the pace at which we live, this is becoming more and more difficult. The vision of the leader must be compelling and inspirational. Great leaders tap into the emotions of their followers, engage them and bring them along on the journey.
COURAGE
A great leader must have courage and be willing to take risk and embrace responsibility. They must be comfortable with expanding their horizons, standing up for followers and for what they believe in.
The leader’s sense of accomplishment from venturing into unknown waters and being accountable is what propels them forward to new heights and in return builds more self-confidence.
COMMITMENT TO COMPLETE
A leader must ensure every project comes to completion, that they leave nothing and no-one behind. The journey that is embarked upon may not be as smooth as at first thought, but by soldiering on and showing commitment to find solutions and a satisfactory end the leader demonstrated his courage and integrity, building trust and confidence in his team.
FORTITUDE
No-one gets it right all of the time and nothing is smooth sailing. There are sure to be knocks along the way but it is how you deal with the knocks and recuperate that will show your strength of mind, your character and your resilience.
Admitting you are wrong, asking for help and moving forward not only shows your resilience but also your humility. By looking for solutions rather than scapegoats your team will rally around you and respect you.
FOCUS
When we talk about Leaders being focused, we tend to think of them being focused on themselves, on what they have to do - an external focus. New research in neuroscience however shows that if they concentrate their attention internally and constructively on others and the wider world it helps them broaden their horizons, cultivate an innovative environment and become more resourceful resulting in their teams feeling more valued and engaged.
CHARISMA
Charisma bundles together all of the above in one person – they are confident, intelligent, thoughtful, sharing, values driven and at peace with the world. They draw people to them, people follow them and want emulate them, hence making them natural leaders.
There are always more traits that can be added, but these seven give an excellent foundation to start with.
Next steps:
Please, feel free to share this article on your social media channels:
We would love to have you in our community, you can follow us on Instagram, FB, Linkedin and Twitter:
We would love to hear from you, please send us any issue or topics you would like us to cover.
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