LEADERSHIP—THE CHARACTERISTICS—DO WE CARE?

The owner-manager of an entrepreneurial company is the company's leader. To most owner-managers, leadership is an abstract concept, one not easy to understand.

We've all heard people refer to someone as a good leader. But when asked to explain what that means, it usually boils down to: They seem to get the job done.

Okay, so leaders get the job done. Of course, the next obvious question is: What exactly is the job they get done? Looking at the literature we find countless books written about the great leaders of corporate America. Most of the information quantifies the innate characteristics of these great business leaders.

Here are those characteristics:

Successful Leaders Like What They Do: Is it possible to be successful if you don't like what you do? Yes, I've seen it happen, but the general rule is that the love of what one does breeds the greatest success.

Successful Leaders Have a Desire for Wealth: Wealth may not be the strongest motivation for success, but it sure does help. Many successful leaders find the love of what they do more of a motivating factor than the promise of wealth. The ideal situation is obviously loving what you do and making money at it.

Successful Leaders Are Curious: They always look for better ways to do things. They are curious about the future. They have very inquisitive minds.

Successful Leaders Have Courage: They have the courage to take reasonable risks. This may be the one area that separates the entrepreneur from all else. They are risk takers. Most people are not.

Successful Leaders Are Persistent: They tirelessly try to improve their business and themselves. They want to be the best at what they do. They persevere in their desire to solve problems. They rarely give up.

Successful Leaders Have the Ability to Motivate: They motivate employees to be more productive, bankers to lend more money, and customers to return. Effective leaders are focused on human values.

Successful Leaders Have the Ability to Persuade: They have great communication skills.

Successful Leaders Have a Strong Ego: Ego satisfaction can be the strongest motivation for success. Many of the most successful business people are driven by powerful egos.

How many of these eight characteristics do you possess? Can you be a successful leader if you only have two or three of the traits mentioned? What if you don't have any? If you're lucky enough to have all eight, does that guarantee success?

We, the leaders of our businesses, cannot run our companies on the theoretical notions of what leadership characteristics we should have. It doesn't matter. We are the leaders, like it or not. We are the people who must make things happen. We must get the job done.

Source: Don't Bust the Budget, Granville Publications

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