The Top 10 Leadership Qualities

A leader with vision has a clear, vivid picture of where to go, as well as a firm grasp on what success looks like and how to achieve it. But it's not enough to have a vision; leaders must also share it and act upon it. Jack Welch, former chairman and CEO of General Electric Co., said, "Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision and relentlessly drive it to completion."

A leader must be able to communicate his or her vision in terms that cause followers to buy into it. He or she must communicate clearly and passionately, as passion is contagious.

A good leader must have the discipline to work toward his or her vision single-mindedly, as well as to direct his or her actions and those of the team toward the goal. Action is the mark of a leader. A leader does not suffer "analysis paralysis" but is always doing something in pursuit of the vision, inspiring others to do the same.

Integrity is the integration of outward actions and inner values. A person of integrity is the same on the outside and on the inside. Such an individual can be trusted because he or she never veers from inner values, even when it might be expeditious to do so. A leader must have the trust of followers and therefore must display integrity.

Honest dealings, predictable reactions, well-controlled emotions, and an absence of tantrums and harsh outbursts are all signs of integrity. A leader who is centered in integrity will be more approachable by followers.

Dedication means spending whatever time or energy is necessary to accomplish the task at hand. A leader inspires dedication by example, doing whatever it takes to complete the next step toward the vision. By setting an excellent example, leaders can show followers that there are no nine-to-five jobs on the team, only opportunities to achieve something great.

Magnanimity means giving credit where it is due. A magnanimous leader ensures that credit for successes is spread as widely as possible throughout the company. Conversely, a good leader takes personal responsibility for failures. This sort of reverse magnanimity helps people feel good about themselves and draws the team closer together. To spread the fame and take the blame is a hallmark of effective leadership.

Leaders with humility recognize that they are no better than other members of the team. A humble leader is not self-effacing but rather tried to elevate everyone. Leaders with humility also understand that their status does not make them a god. Mahatma Ghandi is a role model for Indian leaders, and he pursued a "follower-centric" leadership role.

Openness means being able to listen to new ideas, even if they do not conform to the usual way of thinking. Good leaders are able to suspend judgment while listening to others' ideas, as well as accept new ways of doing things that someone else thought of. Openness builds mututal respect and trust between leaders and followers, and it also keeps the team well supplied with new ideas that can further its vision.

Creativity is the ability to think differently, to get outside of the box that constrains solutions. Creativity gives leaders the ability to see things that others have not seen and thus lead followers in new directions. The most important question that a leader can ask is, "What if....?" Possibly the worst thing a leader can say is, "I know this is a dumb question..."

Fairness means dealing with others consistently and justly. A leader must check all the facts and hear everyone out before passing judgment. He or she must avoid leaping to conclusions based on incomplete evidence. When people feel they are being treated fairly, they reward a leader with loyalty and dedication.

Assertiveness is not the same as aggressiveness. Rather, it is the ability to clearly state what one expects so there there will be no misunderstandings. A leader must be assertive to get the desired results. Along with assertiveness comes the responsibility to clearly understand what followers expect from their leader.

Many leaders have difficulty striking the right amount of assertiveness, according to a study in the February 2007 issue of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, published by the APA (American Psychological Association). It seems that being underassertive may be the most common weakness among aspiring leaders.

A sense of humor is vital to relieve tension and boredom, as well as defuse hostility. Effective leaders know how to use humor to energize followers. Humor is a form of power that provides some control over the work environment. And simply put, humor fosters good camaraderie.

Intrinsic traits such as intelligence, good looks, height and so on are not necessary to become a good leader. Anyone can cultivate the proper leadership traits.

Taken from HRWorld.com  

Experimenting with New Presentation Styles

Like a lot of folks, I was inspired by Dick Hardt's presentation in the Lessig style of presenting. It was my first introduction to this fast-paced, minimalist approach - and far cry from the denser presentation style I usually use.

I probably wasn't alone in thinking: I could do that with my next presentation and bask in the glow of my audience's admiration. Stephen O'Grady at Red Monk seized the opportunity and put together a great example of a Lessig-style presentation. At Juice, we're always looking for new and better ways of communicating with our clients and have been paring down the visual complexity of our presentation recently. After trying this approach with my last couple client presentations, I thought I'd share a few thoughts on my experience.

• A Ying to the prevailing Yang. The dominant style of presenting, the one that Cliff Atkinson tenaciously rails against, can be best identified by its long lists of bullets and mind-numbing detail. The Lessig/Hardt camp offers a diametrically-opposed alternative - one that requires the presenter to focus on the flow of the story. Trying this approach was a great reminder that you should be telling a compelling story, first and foremost. It also asks you to break the ingrained habit of throwing everything you know on each slide.
• Dazed and confused. From my experience, you have to be careful not to leave your audience in a Roadrunner-esque cloud of dust. The Lessig/Hardt style starts off fast and doesn't slow down. Particularly if you are well known to your audience, there is an implicit contract between you and your audience. The audience has expectations about your communication style and it is jarring to them when you change. On the other hand, if you bring the skill and commitment of a Dick Hardt, the audience is likely to recover from the initial shock and quickly get into the flow of the presentation.
• Be your own stylist. All of which made me wonder. Is the value in Dick Hardt's presentation popularity asking us to reconsider how we present information - rather than suggesting we simply copy his approach? There isn't one right style for playing a song, making a movie, or writing a book - why do so many presentations look alike? Some would blame it on the tool, but I think it stems from basic corporate conservatism.
• Fit style to the story. After trying pure Lessig, I wondered whether we were trying to force a style of presentation that needed something different? Maybe each presentation - and even parts of presentations - have a best approach for imparting the information. Remember when MSFT had presentation "starter packs" that would build a 15 page presentation for you with stubs on different pages? Interesting that the content varied for the different presentation objectives, but the presentation style/approach didn't. The default style in PowerPoint becomes the "right way" even if it isn't. A better way to present is to consider the characteristics of the information. High-level, conceptual points may be well-suited to a single word, phrase, or picture. In contrast, a rich display of data can be equally compelling if you need to impress the audience with your homework and deliver a foundation to support your case. We have even started to experiment with using separate handouts with the important raw data to supplement a sparse, story-telling style of presentation.

Taken from JuiceAnalytics.com