In this final instalment of the 4-part blog, I bring you the final 4 “facts” about leadership. There are many more cliches and beliefs that shape how we lead and how we view our leaders. The important thing to remember is that we each bring our own style to our leadership roles and we can only lead if we have people willing to follow us.
My personal view is that we each have an opportunity and the ability to be a leader ; some will do it with a public profile, some will quietly be leaders in their own lives. We are all members of a community (sometimes many communities), each of us has a responsibility, in our own way, to help make our communities function well – that is my definition of leadership.
13. It is lonely at the top
I think this comes from an old-fashioned view that you need to keep yourself aloof from your team. As I mentioned earlier, as a leader, you both lead the team and are part of the team. A team is created to support each other, including the leader. As a leader you can nurture the culture of shared responsibility, of helping each other out and of everyone stepping up as needed.
14. Leaders are visionary
We all talk about a key attribute of being a leader is their ability to develop and articulate the vision. An inclusive leader will inspire the team to develop their shared vision. Once developed, they will have the ability to hold that vision and to maintain the momentum to strive to achieve it. The key to success is that it is shared.
15. You need to be an extravert to lead
An extravert is someone who gains their energy from others, they are often louder and talk more than their introvert colleagues. Talking and thinking are the same action, so they will often begin talking before they have a fully formed thought.
Introverts recharge their energy when alone; they think before they talk and can therefore be thought of as being shy and quiet.
Either personality type can be an effective leader.
16. The team must like the leader
As with many of the previous 15 “facts”, there is some truth in this statement – it is much easier to be in a team when you like the leader. However, this should not drive the actions of a leader. Sometimes you must make a hard call; one that people will not like. A team must be able to understand the context of decisions, they should be able to hold their respect for the leader regardless of whether they like the decision or not.
