What Makes a Good Leader?

"Sometimes you can't see yourself clearly until you see yourself through the eyes of others."- Ellen Degeneres 

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You might be asking yourself, "Why aren't the words highlighted?" Well let me tell you. Everyone's leadership philosophy is different than the next person's. Deciding what is important to you as a leader doesn't happen overnight. I had to search within myself and those around me to figure out what really matters to me. After many months of contemplation, I've realized what characteristics I find necessary in a leader. Through reading the book 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, I learned what matters to me as a leader.  

Now you may be thinking to yourself, "These aren't the same things I find important as a leader." That's completely okay. Everyone's leadership philosophy is different, and that doesn't mean they are wrong. If there are things you think need to be added into my word search, then keep searching. In the meantime, I will too, and who knows? Maybe we can both learn something new by doing so. The words that I chose to be in my word search are important to me currently. As I grow overtime, I will be able to learn more about my leadership philosophy throughout the experiences that I will encounter.

What's Important to me?

Planning

Planning is an important part of completing a task. Working in a group can be difficult at times, since everyone has different personalities. By planning ahead, everyone involved will know what is expected of them and know what the end result should look like. It is important to take into account the time frame you are working with and make sure your ideas are practical. It is good to push yourself to your limits, but only if it is something you will actually be able to achieve. Striving for something more than you think is possible is when you get the best results, but only if you will be able to execute your plans.

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Organizing 

Being organized for anything in life contributes to your success. It is especially important for a leader to be organized because it will help the group function better as a whole. Being organized helps reduce stress and allows you to work more efficiently. Time management is an important part of being a leader, and being organized is essential. 

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Implementing

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Implementing a plan is basically the follow through. It is really important to follow through and do everything included in the plan. This is especially important, because the majority of the time, there will be many people involved in this process. If you do not follow through, it will not only reflect badly on you, but also everyone else involved in this process. Communication is an important part of this, because everyone needs to know what steps are being taken to implement the plan. It is necessary to know the senders and receivers in order to have successful communication. Also, the medium is an important aspect to be aware of when communicating with group members. For example, an email is a better way to have a set schedule, instead of verbally saying it. This is because it is put down in writing and everyone can follow along, so when you implement the plan, it is exactly how you want it to turn out. 

Put First Things First

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As a leader, it is important to put first things first. Prioritizing what needs to be done right away is a good way to go about doing this. Some things can wait until later on in the process and it is important not to jump ahead of yourself. Procrastination is something to avoid, because in order to see the results you want, you need to put forth full effort. Knowing what is most important will help lead you to success. It can be difficult to decide what is most important, but you need to think about what is crucial to the task at hand. 

Interview Activity

By doing this activity, I learned how to interview someone for a job. Something that stood out to me was that people on an interview committee do not always agree on what you are looking for in your employee. It is important to come to some sort of agreement before bringing in the candidates. This way, everyone is on the same page which is beneficial to everyone in the process. Interviewing can be a big part of leadership, so these are skills I will take with me wherever I go in my future.

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 Positive Motivation

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A good leader needs to know what motivates the people they are working with. Everyone is motivated by something different, and it is beneficial to know what that thing is. It is important to build a foundation with the people you are working with because you can work better together by doing so. Even if it is just acknowledging someone's hard work, they will appreciate that you notice and be willing to continue working to the best of their ability. Negative motivation may work better on others, depending on their personality, which is why it is important for leaders to build personal relationships to understand what works best to motivate those you are working with.

Interviewing a Leader

As a leader, I found this activity really interesting. I interviewed my dad and I learned a lot about his leadership philosophy and it was very thought provoking. One thing that stood out to me the most is that he uses a different leadership style based on the situation he is dealing with. Typically I use a democratic leadership style because I feel like everyone in a group is essential and should have a say in what is happening. On the other hand, if a decision cannot be reached, I would step up and do what I think is best for the group. This activity really highlighted the fact that it is not black and white, it depends on the situation you are in.

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"I work really hard at trying to see the big picture and not getting stuck in ego. I believe we're all put on this planet for a purpose, and we all have a different purpose... When you connect with that love and that compassion, that's when everything unfolds."- Ellen Degeneres 

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