No better time to talk about this other than now with elections nearing…
The timing of this blog’s publication could not have been better given the upcoming elections. I want to know who is your preferred presidential candidate and who is your favorite leader. It can be from a fictional piece or a real-life person and I’m all ears so feel free to send a response later.
Anyway, we are living in a democratic country so vote wisely and vote for someone who features these traits. But let us begin first by defining what a leader is.
Waters (2021) defines a leader as someone who ignites their followers’ passion and motivation. He or she is also someone that has a vision and a concrete roadmap to actualize that certain goal and also ensures the well-being of their members and maximize their potentials.
However, we will be looking at leaders from the perspective of a follower and with the upcoming National and Local elections in the Philippines on May 9, 2022 which is arguably the biggest election that has yet to transpire in Philippine history.
WHY SHOULD WE HAVE A LEADER?
A leader is a key component in any form of group. Whether it be in a small group project, a restaurant or a nation, there always must be some sort of leader to regulate disputes and conflicts that may arise among the party’s members hence a leader is elected. He or she is similar to a rallying point that people gather around and follow. Fundamentally speaking, a leader is elected in order to have a sense of security, a sense of purpose where members of a certain party feels belongingness and having a clear goal which can help stir the group into a certain direction.
A group can only thrive if there is a leader. A car can only go to its destination if it has a driver.
CHARACTERISTICS THAT MAKE A LEADER GREAT
What then makes a leader great? We can put anyone on that podium and a group or community will collapse if the leader does not do well. Therefore, it is important that we identify the makings of a great leader.
A LEADER IS COMPETENT
Regardless of what field one is in, the leader must be competent in that specific field in order to qualify as a leader. Depending on the circumstances (as other factors are taken into consideration) leaders are naturally competent at their craft. It is a must we look at the track record of the individual to gauge in his line of work especially on much larger scales such as the presidency, big businesses and others. To be a leader, you also have to be a doer and a good one at that.
STRONG & EMOTIONALLY INTELLIGENT
A leader must not be easily swayed by emotions as acting on impulse more often than not will lead to disastrous results. To elect a leader, make sure he or she is emotionally intelligent and strong; one that is open-minded, determined, willful, persevering and flexible in his or her position. You never know what may happen no matter how well-thought out a plan is; you might just bump into a dead end and leaders must be adaptable and mentally strong in order to overcome inevitable speedbumps in leading.
A GOOD LEADER DELEGATES
There is a reason a community is composed of numerous people. As a leader why shouldn’t you maximize the skills and human resources available to achieve a goal? A great leader is one that delegates and acknowledges the capability of others to do the job. As much as it is for the leader to be trustworthy, he or she has to be able to trust others as well. We talked about earlier that a leader is able to maximize the potential of his or her members and being able to delegate and entrust tasks to others is one of the
LOOK AT OUR LEADER MAN, SO INSPIRATIONAL
Of course, a great leader has to be able to inspire and rally his or her troops together and ignite their passion in achieving a goal. Getting the best out of the members a leader is handling includes being able to boost their morale and spark a newfound passion to achieve their goal. Followers that go out of their way to do their best not only to achieve the vision the community aspires to meet but as well as give their best to their leaders is a hallmark of a leader who is inspirational and leads his or her party whole-heartedly. Before we discussed how leaders should not act emotionally but there are times that it is okay to be emotional (maybe even better) and inspiring their followers’ morale is one of those times. Just take a look at this clip of Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors cheering up his teammate who just missed a dunk and other clips of him encouraging his teammates.
We can definitely the reason why he is the glue that holds the stability of this team together. Having a voice like that can definitely go a long way especially during pressure situations and a leader who knows how to inspire is a leader who can make it worth to perspire.
A GREAT LEADER IS ALSO A GREAT SERVANT
We always hear the saying that “Great leaders are also great servants” and in whatever field that person may be, when one is leading, he or she must always take into consideration the well-being of his or her members and willing to do the most important tasks, no matter how tedious, to achieve the goal. A great leader can act in a variety of ways but they are for the most part (in both figurative and literal senses) drive the bus together with his or her bus riders to the destination to get to. If the members give a 100%, the leader gives 120% and it is the way it is.
A great leader can only be great if he or she is trusted by the people and to gain that trust, a leader must be selfless. He or she does not think for his or her own sake; great leaders think about their goal and the troops that are waiting to march to his or her tune.
Overall, here are the things that separates a good leader from a great one: One, a good leader is competent in the field he or she is working in. Two, a true leader is not easily swayed by his or her emotions and is intelligent with it. He or she is flexible and strong enough to discipline his or herself from acting on impulse. Three, a great leader is also trusting of others; knowing when to delegate, knowing how much to eat on his or her plate and sharing it with others. Four, is that a leader inspires because if he or she doesn’t why would the followers even ride on his or her bus? Last but not the least, is that a leader must also be selfless. He or she does not think that he is above anyone else, rather he is among his or her peers.
These are the markings of an exceptional leader. So, who are your favorite leaders? Let me know below by inputting your answers in the field below. Remember, the elections are nearing so choose someone that fits into these five characteristics, so decide correctly.
REFERENCES:
Sandling, J. (2021, February 22). 3 Reasons Why We Need Leaders. JONATHAN SANDLING. https://jonathansandling.com/3-reasons-why-we-need-leaders/
Waters, S. (2021, March 29). What Is a Leader, and How Do You Become One? BetterUp. https://www.betterup.com/blog/what-is-a-leader-and-how-do-you-become-one
Comentários