Many people put in a leadership position assume their title will win the respect and loyalty of others. They quickly learn that title alone will not do the trick. Think about how many people have been put in charge of you that you didn’t respect. If you’re a leader, you must win others’ loyalty. Who are the people you respect? What about them are you responding to? I have found that effective, admired leaders demonstrate many of the following qualities:
Honesty: people appreciate the truth
Trust: people will respect you if they know they can count on you, and if they feel you will count on them.
Reliability: no one likes a flake.
Honor: no one can criticize you for doing what’s right
Integrity: be true to yourself and what you believe in
Kindness: treat others with care
Confidence: we believe in people who believe in themselves.
Vision: give your followers something to believe in
A Plan: know how to make positive change
Successfulness: people notice how you behave and what you achieve
Public Speaking Skills: to motivate, you must be able to communicate
Listening Skills: people want to know they’ll be heard
Commitment: if you’re willing to hang in there until the job is done, so will your followers
The more of these qualities you have, the more people will want to follow your lead. They’ll not only be willing; they’ll be honored.
To learn more about influencing others, read the article Influencing People: Catch Them Doing Something Well or check out the Jump Start Leadership Workbooks.
