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SpinDistribute.com Article Directory

The following article was published in our article directory on January 24, 2014.
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Effective Leadership: Mastering Oneself

Article Category: Advice

Author Name: Cindy Jeffrey

According to John Maxwell, leadership is influence. This definition points to the leader's capacity to empower and direct people in achieving a desired goal. Effective leadership thus means successfully harnessing and managing people's potential strengths and weaknesses. In addition, it is about understanding how this mix of strengths and weaknesses can be tapped and synergized for advancement. Before a leader can be capable of inspiring others to push for more, however, a leader must first master oneself — leadership also means self-mastery.

Leadership begins with the self
Everyone is a leader in his own right. No one can take charge of his life but himself. This is clearly demonstrated in William Ernest Henley's Invictus, where he writes: "I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul." Leadership is holding one's life in one's hands.

Leadership is an endless process of growth
One cannot be an effective leader overnight, it will entail a lifelong commitment of seeking depth and growth. As Jack Welch puts it "Before you are a leader, success is all about growing yourself. When you become a leader, success is all about growing others." Growing oneself is the first step. This commitment will entail exploring new methods and opening oneself to failures and pruning. There are several areas that a leader needs to grow in if one is to be effective. First, leadership is growth toward self-awareness. A leader must be aware of one's current state (strengths and weaknesses) in order to move forward.

This also means an awareness of what leadership styles suit the leader and the situation he faces. For example, the leadership style will differ significantly when leading one's peers or one's child. Surely, when children are still very young, one should lead children differently from one's peers; a paternalistic style might be more apt than a democratic one.

Leadership is also a growth in clarity of vision. Public policy advocacy will be directionless without clear vision, and leadership will have no point if there is no destination.

Leadership will also mean growth in clear communication. Often, people fail to reach goals because of ineffective communication. A leader may have a clear vision, but if he is unable to communicate or articulate this effectively to his followers, public policy advocacy will lose focus.

Further, leadership is growth in planning and projection. Although a vision may be articulated, a clear and effective plan will help a leader realize his goal. Leaders should also become good managers. Finally, leadership is about growth in conviction and self-belief. Self-belief is a skill that can be developed. Conviction is, perhaps, the most important skill in leadership. If one is not convinced of his goal, people will not follow. One cannot be lukewarm in achieving his goal. One must be totally committed, not just interested. If the leader cannot believe in himself, no one will.

Leadership is about growing others
Although leadership is a lifelong process of growth, its duty is beyond mere self-development. It is a call to help others conquer their goliaths. In many cases, however, followers will dislike their leaders for pushing them to go beyond what is comfortable.

It takes maturity to recognize that leadership is not about the approval of people. Failure will be definite if a leader tries to please everyone. The task of molding and directing others is a noble one. But before reaching that, a leader must first master oneself. Leadership will never be effective if one does not lead by example.

Keywords: strategic planning, coalition building, leadership, leadership training, advocacy, media advocacy, policy advocacy, advocacy campaigns

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