Today I asked myself this question…am I a leader? Not positional or pastorally, but in deed and duty. It lead me to this list of qualifications that I believe must be in every leader:
VISION
“Good business leaders create a vision, articulate the vision, passionately own the vision and relentlessly drive it to completion.”
My God given vision, to walk in Christ, to love my wife as Christ loved the Church, make disciples of my children and lead a church that is recklessly reaching Rural America and the World.
INTEGRITY
“I must be the same on the inside, as I am on the outside.”
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
“Dedication is making me irrelevant within the task and Jesus prevalent!”
Dedication means spending whatever time or energy is necessary to accomplish the task at hand. 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
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.
OPENNESS
“Able to listen to new ideas…even if they are not my 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 mutual respect and trust between leaders and followers, and it also keeps the team well supplied with new ideas that can further its vision.
CREATIVITY
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. As I have heard it said and will repeat, God has made all of us creative geniuses.
FAIRNESS
“Fairness means dealing with others consistently and justly.” A leader must check all the facts and hear everyone out before passing judgment. When people feel they that are being treated fairly, they reward a leader with loyalty and dedication.
ASSERTIVENESS
“Assertiveness is not the same as aggressiveness.” 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. A common weakness in leaders is overassertiveness or underassertiveness…”and that’s all I have to say about that.”
HUMOR
A sense of humor is vital to relieve tension and boredom, as well as to 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. HA, HA!
WHAT DO I LACK? WHAT DO I NEED TO WORK ON? I am asking these questions today. What about you? Let’s talk about it here!
Derek Simpkins says,
I agree that each of those are very important qualities that should be possessed by leaders in most any vocation. I’d really like to think that where I lack in one area, I compensate with another, but I don’t know how possible it is to make up for lacking in openness with excessive humor – kind of one of those apples and oranges situations. Very good list. I can’t think of anything to add.
on 17 March 2010 / 9:59 PM
Sheila Rogers says,
Shannon,
I have a hard time on integrity. My emotions get in the way of my reaction. I need help in that area of my life. Is that something taught or practiced? Also, you said in fairness that the facts and all related parties need to be heard in order for there to be a judgment passed. Are we allowed according to scripture to pass judgment? “judge not for you shall be judged ten times fold”? I may not understand that verse correctly. I have been called to jury duty and that verse along with the one that says “to obey the laws of the land” leaves me in such turmoil that I sure could use some advice. I feel like being on jury duty goes against my religous believes. I don’t pass judgement, I love unconditionally and I don’t gossip-again, I love unconditionally. I am at a crossroad and would really would like some guidence from my pastor. What kind of leader would I make if this is such a worry. I have prayed, yet haven’t heard an answer or maybe I have, and I’m not setting an example to other jurors that God is what the choice at hand is all that matters. How can I work on this?
on 18 March 2010 / 3:59 AM
Phillip Taylor says,
My favorite part…”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.”
May God continue to give us vision that propels us out of our own little worlds!
on 18 March 2010 / 8:00 AM
Daniel K Talburt says,
well that describes everything I’m not and in the past when I tried to lead it exploded in my face
on 18 March 2010 / 9:56 AM
Lisa says,
If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.
– John Quincy Adams
I think you are definitely a leader, your actions inspire as noted above by John Quincy Adams
on 20 March 2010 / 7:28 AM