Principled Innovation LLC

Becoming a Leader: Jeff’s Top Three

April 10th, 2009

My good friend and blogger extraordinaire Jamie Notter published an excellent post today explaining his top three attributes and capabilities for effective leadership.  I love the three ideas that Jamie shared, and I want to contribute to advancing this important meme by offering three of my own.  I think the trio of leadership imperatives presented below builds well on Jamie’s ideas.

1.  Take responsibility–As we look around at what’s been going on in our society in recent years, it certainly looks as though many leaders want to hold positions of responsibility and enjoy the benefits those positions confer, without the inconvenience of being responsible for what happens (and what doesn’t happen) on their watch.  It is critical to understand that leadership must never be a vanity exercise, especially when it is undertaken on a voluntary basis.  In fact, I would argue that without an affirmative choice to take responsibility, there can be no leadership.  Not in the boardroom, the CEO’s office or anywhere else in the association.

2.  Be courageous–Courage is a critical ingredient of authentic leadership.  On the one hand, leaders need to have the courage of their principles and convictions, as well as the the courage to openly advocate for them, even when those beliefs are controversial or unpopular.  On the other hand, leaders need to have the courage to listen, and to seriously consider alternative points of view, even when doing so means admitting a mistake.  Courageous leaders understand the value of taking risks, and will never blame others for failure.  When it comes to leadership, taking responsibility and being courageous are intimately connected.  Leadership is not for the faint of heart.

3.  Embrace learning--Leaders believe deeply in building capacity, for themselves, for the people they work with and for their organizations.  It is actually difficult to imagine how one can function effectively in a leadership role if you believe otherwise, especially during this period of revolution and paradigm shift.  Today’s complex and dynamic leadership challenges demand a flexible and creative learning mindset.  Curiosity, inquiry and reflection help to nurture both insight and foresight, good judgment and wise decision-making.  These capabilities are the building blocks of more effective leaders and more successful organizations.

What do you think?  As always, I welcome your thoughts and, in this case, I’d like to challenge you to share your three essential leadership attributes or capabilities.  Let’s get a good conversation going!

Entry Filed under: Principled Innovation Blog, What's New?, Social Media, Associations, Extreme Makeover, The Association Innovator, Simplicity, We Have Always Done It That Way, Garage Memes, Governing for Innovation, Embrace the Revolution