THE 21 INDISPENSABLE QUALITIES of a LEADER

#1 CHARACTER Remember: This is your most important asset. More than just talk It’s a choice Your words must match your actions Remember: This is your most important asset.

#2 CHARISMA Be more concerned of others than yourself Ability to draw people to you Look for the good and expect the best in everyone Share yourself

#3 COMMITMENT You must be committed to the goal (no one followers an uncommitted leader0 Commitment opens the door to achievement True commitment inspires others

#4 COMMUNICATION A good communicator takes something complicated and makes it simple Know your audience Show the truth Seek a response from your audience Remember: Inspire, motivate, guide, direct, and listen.

#5 COMPETENCE Say IT, Plan It, Do IT Don’t just show up, be ready to play Follow-through is essential to be a competent leader Accomplish more than what is expected Remember: You are only as good as your private standards.

#6 COURAGE Courage guarantees all other competencies Courage is fear that has “Said it Prayers” Courage is making things right, not just smoothing things over Remember: Leadership is the expression of courage that compels people to do the right thing.

#7 DISCERNMENT Smart leaders know only half of what they hear, Discerning leaders know which half to believe Discernment is a mixture of intuition and rational thought Listen to your GUT

#8 FOCUS Shift to strengths – Devote 70% of your time to your strengths Staff your weaknesses – determine how you can delegate these tasks Create an Edge – Rethink how you can do things better Remember: If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.

#9 GENEROSITY Generosity starts in the heart Nothing speaks more loudly than the generosity of a leader Put others first Don’t allow possessions to take control of you Giving is the highest level of living

#10 INITIATIVES The one thing a leader should fear is complacency A good leader is responsible for initiating a connection with their followers Initiators are always on the lookout for new opportunities Remember: You cannot be indecisive and effective at the same time.

#11 LISTENING An effective leader encourages his followers to tell him what he needs to know and not what he wants to hear 60% of all management problems are the result of faulty communications, including poor listening Remember: Start listening not only to the words but also for feelings, meanings and undercurrents.

#12 PASSION Reach out with passion to receive passion in return Passion is the first step to achievement Passion makes the impossible possible Remember: You can never lead something that you are not passionate about.

#13 POSITIVE ATTITUDE You can alter your life by altering your attitude Genius is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration People mirror a leaders attitude Remember: Your attitude is your choice.

#14 PROBLEM SOLVING The measure of success is not handling a tough problem but whether it is the same problem you had last year Don’t try to solve all problems at one time Develop a process to solve problems Time – spend time to discover the problem Exposure – check out what others have done Assistance – Have your team study all angles Creativity – Brainstorm Hit It- Implement the solution

#15 RELATIONSHIPS Being able to work with people is imperative to be an effective leader Improve your mind and strengthen your heart to be a good leader Remember – People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.

#16 RESPONSIBILITY A leader can give up anything except responsibility Responsible leaders do whatever it takes to get the job done If high quality is your goal, responsibility will follow Remember – If you can’t carry the ball you can’t be the leader.

#17 SECURITY A good leader can not do it all himself Insecure leaders can not provide security for others Insecure leaders hoard power and become more threatened as their people get better Remember – Know yourself, give credit where credit is due, share your knowledge and assist your team.

#18 SELF-DISCIPLINE The first and best victory is to conquer SELF Challenge your excuses Make a disciplined lifestyle your goal

#19 SERVANTHOOD A true leader serves people Love your people more than your position Put others ahead of your own agenda Serve out of love, it should not be motivated by manipulation or self promotion

#20 TEACHABILITY It is what you learn after you know it all that counts Teachability requires you to admit that you do not know everything Observe how to handle your mistakes Do you? Admit Apologize Take the defensive Remember – If you can not handle making mistakes you need to work on your teachability.

#21 VISION A leaders courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position Vision - Starts from within - Draws on history - Meets others needs

FINAL THOUGHT The only way to become the kind of leader that people want is to keep growing and learning about leadership.