What leadership means to me
Leadership is defined by different individuals according to their ways of understanding. The most important is that leadership demands establishment of a following. A leader must command a following. Leadership styles differ, and this results in their subjects seeing them in different ways.
Working and living demand better environments. A leader should focus on bettering both the living and working environment. In our homes pollution and interferences from neighbors are expected, a leader in the community must focus on ensuring cleanliness and mutual understanding in the community. Understanding and purity will guarantee his/her subject a better home environment. At workplaces, leaders are expected to ensure employees are working in the best environment. For example, employees working in hospitals, the leaders must ensure the hospital administration gives the employees better facilities of doing work. The leaders can also bring understanding amongst workers to provide a peaceful environment in the workplace.
A leader must know himself and the subjects. A good leader should be aware of the weaknesses and strengths of the team. Knowing the strength and weakness of your team as a leader gives ideas of how an issue can be approached to get success. The team feels appreciated by knowing that their leader knows their abilities. Production of the team is also improved as every member will be given duties according to his/her ability. Instances of scolding are also minimized to a high level.
A good leader in any organization must be humble, courageous and confident. Leadership can at times be challenging because the leader deals with individuals of varied characters, origin and having different religious and social beliefs. The great diversity of people needs humility to melt them down to do as the leader wants. The leader must learn to step down and occasionally join the subjects in doing their work. Joining the subjects in doing work will improve not only the quality of work but also the relationship between the leader and the subjects. At times the subjects might fear to take some crucial decisions; the leader must be courageous enough to tell people to go on. The courage will convince people that they have a good leader. A good leader must be confident both in front of the subjects and other people. Leaders are expected to exhibit the best face of an organization; anywhere the leader is representing a group the leader must be confident. For example in explaining projects so far achieved by the group and proposals of the group the head must appear to know what is on the ground.
In cases where there is no solution, a leader must be the solution. At work, there can be challenging situations that need critical thinking and fast decision making, in such circumstances the leader is expected to step in and provide a solution. Also at home, there can be conflicts amongst the community members; a leader must help in finding satisfying conflict resolution mechanisms to solve the problem permanently. Good decision making will influence a leader’s subjects to always believe in the leader’s leadership approach.
A leader must be a good listener. A leader is expected to deal with all kinds of situations and provide an effective solution e.g. in providing an amicable solution to a conflict; a leader must listen keenly to both parties involved in the conflict. Since a leader is expected to be a solution to problems affecting the subjects, a leader must listen to the subjects with great wisdom. The subjects will feel the leader values them, and in return, the subjects will respect their leader.
Leadership is good both for organizations and communities, for their success. A leader must have excellent leadership skills to lead effectively.
