What is Leadership? – Components of effective leadership
What is Leadership?: Wikipedia defines leadership as follows: “The process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”
Here the ‘common task’ depends upon the circumstance. In corporate or in business it can be sales, company targets, revenues or human resource management etc. In simple way, the leadership is a skill to contribute and make others to contribute towards a common goal.
Components of effective leadership:
It is untrue that leadership is hereditary and it should be from birth. Leadership can be acquired by proper training and practice. If we know the qualities of an effective leader then we can strive to be effective leaders. This also explains the components of effective leadership. Following are the nine qualities of an ideal, effective leader:
- The effective leader has a clear goal in his life or predefined target for his work. He does all activities aiming at the goal. He also has ability to set goals for the group he leads.
- He has excellent interpersonal skills. More than a leader he thinks himself as the servant of the group and his attitude is always service and good-will towards the people in the group. After all everyone is a person and unless the leader treats them as persons no one would like to live or work under the leader. Thus the effective leader takes care that he treats his people the way he likes the people to treat him.
- He makes his group understand the goal and encourages them to give their constructive ideas. Thus he is a good listener. He has ability to make the group think like him and sees that people in his group set his goals as their goal.
- He motivates the group to achieve the goal. He identifies and solves the problem associated in the path of fulfilling the goal.
- Apart from setting the targets the effective leader sees that he meets the target. He never forgets to appreciate the contribution of each and everyone in the group.
- He expertly handles the conflicts among the group. He is moral, ethical, empathetic and friendly.
- He is quick at decision making. He knows well as to what is favourable to the preset goal and what is unfavourable. Thus he quickly decides what to do next to achieve the desired goal.
- He sets himself as an ideal or an example to follow for his group.
- Effective leader is honest, responsible, transparent and productive. And the most important trait of effective leader is that he likes/ loves to see everyone in his group to be leaders like him.
