Leadership....

This is really a continuing discussion about leadership, aspects of it and the qualities of what I would call great leaders. In reality, I think we all know the difference between blah leaders and great leaders. We may not be able to put our finger on it exactly but we tend to know it when we see it. As an example, we've all seen the leader who has the title but who we seldom see leading. Sometimes that person has gotten the job as leader by default, by design or by theatrics. Theatrics is an interesting concept. An example is spending time learning the names and important little tidbits about all the people you're supposed to be accountable to. By doing this well, the important aspects of your leadership role (content if you will) many times takes a back seat. Another aspect of theatrics that works well in very large organizations are presentations. These, done well, can be very effective tools. But enough on mediocre or blah leaders.

There are certain qualities that great leaders really must have. Some of these we know almost immediately, others are a bit more elusive:

Communication - It goes without saying that great leaders are great communicators. Not just in the spoken and written word but in the more subtle areas of body language, social networking, everything really. But communication is much deeper. It's empathy, counsel, storytelling and above all listening and processing. Storytelling is something you'll find in every great leader. Most have a wealth of historical knowledge that needs to be shared over and over. Not in a boring (there he/she goes again) fashion but with humor, charm and content that's meaningful and that makes people think. And the listening skills referenced are much more important in communicating than most people think. It includes reading other people's body language and taking cues. Skills that always need development but practice does make perfect.

Technology - Great leaders need to embrace it. Too often, people in leadership positions from my generation make statements like "I'm too old for this", "You can't teach an old dog new tricks", "I let the young folks take care of that", or "How do you turn this on". Many times it's said jokingly and in a self deprecating manner but ultimately it sends a bad message - This too will pass and I'm not that interested anyway. In the current environment, like it or not, great leaders have to reach out constantly and stay abreast of new technology. It's a requirement. If not, you will slowly fade away and do your organization a great deal of harm. Which brings us to the next principle.

Surrond Yourself With Young People - Again, absolutely necessary in today's environment. This is where you're going to get your current knowledge and information. This is where you're going to get your own enthusiasm. This is the audience for your story telling. This is where the challenge to ideas and concepts will come from. I'm certainly not saying this is easy. There's tremendous give and take necessary in this area but the positives are overwhelming.

Finally, at least for this segment, great leaders do lead. They aren't sheep who just follow the latest trend or their colleagues. Great leaders challenge the status quo (with caution if necessary). Great leaders don't ignore issues that need to be confronted. They measure options, bring people together and truly work at building consensus.

Obviously, more to come.