30 Leadership Qualities
"How do we define a Leader? If you ask a 9-year old, which I did with my son when he just woke up one Saturday morning, he told me a Leader is a Ruler. Then I pressed him for some examples which he said Martin-Luther King Jr, Nelson Mandela, Joe Biden (who was current USA president). Was I impressed!! Then a brief reflection, wait, he didn’t say daddy. If you ask me, I would think of my boss. If you ask my direct reports, some may say me. There are different perceptions of what what this is.
Several great minds throughout history have defined this in multiple ways, highlighting certain profound qualities. But one thing we all agree is that Leaders have a POSITIVE impact to their community and the world at large, they make the world a better place.
“A leader is someone who inspires passion and motivation in followers. A leader is someone with a vision and the path to realizing it. A leader is someone who ensures their team has support and tools to achieve their goals”. – Betterup.com
“A leader is someone who can see how things can be improved and who rallies people to move toward that better vision…” Jacob Morgan
“Leadership is communicating to another person their worth and potential so clearly they are inspired to see it in themselves.” — Stephen R. Covey.
“Leadership is about empathy. It is about having the ability to relate to and connect with people for the purpose of inspiring and empowering their lives.” – Oprah Winfred
If we look back in history, there are several generally acceptable great leaders listed below This is why I was impressed, as two of the three that my son listed are on the list below. I am sure you will have quite a few to add to that list.
- Julias Caesar (100B.C.-44B.C.)
- Asoka (304 BC – 232 BC)
- Alexander, The Great (356 BC – 323 BC)
- George Washington (1732- 1799)
- Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)
- Maharaja Ranjit Singh (1780 – 1839)
- Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
- Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)
- Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
- Franklin D Roosevelt (1882 – 1945)
- Mother Teresa (1910-1997)
- Nelson Mandela (1918-2013)
- Martin Luther King Jr (1929-1968)
- Dalai Lama (1935-present)
- Bill Gates (1955 – Present)
Simply put, you are being a leader whenever you are in a position or situation where one or more people follow or emulate you. How many times are you in this position? How many times is everyone in this position?
A lot of times, when you come to think about it. How do you conduct yourself in these situations? What are the qualities that you reflect? How much do you know about these qualities?
Now that we can say everyone in one way or another, at one time or another is leading, imagine a world where everyone understands these qualities and seek to emulate them. Yes, imagine how better the world will be. And this is what we at Leadership Pursuits believe…that everyone is a leader and everyone can bring out and develop the leader in them. We start by understanding the qualities of a great leader and then consciously practice these in how we live our lives hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly.
There is an extensive list of essential leadership qualities. Our research guided us to 30 of these and then we created this 30-day journey for you to learn and understand these qualities. Look at this as your pathway of bringing out or developing the leader in you one quality at a time. Focus on one quality a day and ensure that you understand and look for opportunities that day to practice this, and then move to the next one.
Are you ready? Let’s begin……
Abundance Mentality
This is a mindset or believe that there is plenty out there for everybody. This was initially coined by...
Growth Mindset
There are those who believe that their talents are innate gifts and they don’t have anything to do to...
Patience
This is the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. “The journey...
Exemplary
“Example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.” – Albert Schweitzer “A leader is...
Fairness
“It is not fair to ask of others what you are unwilling to do yourself” – Eleanor Roosevelt This...
Goals Setter
Being a soccer player and a soccer coach, I really like starting this section with this quote: “Life is...
Passion
This is a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something or about doing something. This is often displayed...
Problem Solving
“The problem is not that there are problems. The problem is expecting otherwise and thinking that having problems is...
Resilience
This is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. It is toughness, both mental and physical. It is the...
Inquisitive
This is a question or sentence worded to solicit information. In most situations in life, your direct observation will...
Feedback
Feedback is defined as information about reactions to a product, person’s performance of a task, a service etc. which...
Conflict Resolution
This is another essential quality of a leader. In interactions with other people, whether family, friends, co-workers, classmates, acquaintances...
Empowering Others
Empowerment is authority or power given to someone to do something. It is the process of becoming stronger and...
Active Listening
This is a BIG one, and is truly at the core of a leader. This is listening to people...
Transparency
This is another important characteristic of a good leader. It speaks into the concept of Trust. This is about...
Respectful
This is a feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements. Being...
Courageous
This is the ability to do something that scares or frightens you. It is the desire or willingness to...
Decision-Making
This is the ability to settle on an issue or produce a definite result or decide on something that...
Possess Self-Control and Self-Discipline
Before we discuss this, remember this quote by Robert Tew “You are always responsible for how you act, no...
Stay Motivated
This is the desire to act in service of a goal. Some people think that motivation is something that...
Delegating
This is the assignment/transfer of authority to another person to carry out specific activities. It is the process of...
Honest
This is being free of deceit and untruthfulness; sincere. Not engaging in or involving cheating, stealing, or lying. Honorable...
Emotionally Intelligent
Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive, express, understand and regulate emotions. Dr. Goleman who popularized this concept described...
Always Humble
This is the quality or act of being humble. Being humble is having or showing a modest or low...
Accountable
This is the personal requirement or expectation to justify actions or decisions. I like to use word responsible. Accountable...
Creative
This is relating to or involving the imagination or expression of original ideas. A leader should have the ability...
Reflecting Integrity
This is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. Some will use the term moral uprightness....
Demonstrate Self-Confidence
This is a feeling of trust in one’s abilities, qualities, and judgment. Self-confidence is an attitude about your skills...
Showing Empathy
This is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. It is the ability to sense other...
Effectively Communicate
This is the ability to convey a message thoroughly through the use of clear, direct and easy to understand...