How the Best Leaders Lead: Proven Secrets to Getting the Most Out of Yourself and Others

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CHAPTER ONE

The Heart of

a Leader

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‘‘Character may be manifested in the great

moments, but it is made in the small on es.’’

—WINSTON CHURCHILL

Leadership is the single most important factor in the success or

failure of a company or business. Your ability to step forward and

lead your enterprise to success in competitive markets is both

essential and irreplaceable.

The better you become as a leader, the better you will be in

every area of your enterprise. Fortunately, leaders are made, not

born. As Peter Drucker wrote, ‘‘There may be such a thing as a

natural born leader, but there are so few of them, that they make

no difference in the great scheme of things.’’

Leaders are primarily self-made, self-developed. They work

on themselves continually, learning, growing, and becoming

more capable and competent over the years.

Leaders usually emerge to deal with a situation that requires

leadership skills. A manager can work successfully at fulfilling his

responsibilities and getting the job done for many years. Then a

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HOW THE BEST LEADERS LEAD

crisis occurs, and leadership is required. At that time, the leader

steps forth and takes charge of the situation. He or she becomes

a different person and fulfills a different role.

Follow the Rules

General Norman Schwarzkopf tells about his first experience of

leadership at the Pentagon. His senior officer told him that to do

his job well, all he had to do was to ‘‘Follow rule 13.’’

When he asked, ‘‘What is rule 13?’’ his commanding general

said, ‘‘When placed in command, take charge!’’

When then Colonel Schwarzkopf asked, ‘‘But after I have

taken charge, how do I make decisions?’’

His commanding officer said, ‘‘Simple. Use rule 14.’’

When Colonel Schwarzkopf asked, ‘‘What is rule 14?’’ he was

told, ‘‘Do the right thing!’’

These are excellent ideas for you, as well. When placed in

command, take charge, and if ever you are in doubt about what

to do, simply do the right thing.

Leadership Requires Character

Leadership is more about who you are than what you do. Your

ability to develop the qualities of effective leadership, the essence

of what it takes to be a leader, is more important to your success

as an executive than any other factor.

One of the great principles of personal development is,

‘‘Whatever you dwell upon grows and expands in your experi-

ence and personality.’’

You become more effective, day by day, when you think and

act on the basis of the key qualities of effective leaders through-

out the ages. You program these qualities into your personality

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THE HEART OF A LEADER

and behavior by dwelling on them continually. You learn these

qualities by practicing them in your daily activities as a person

and as a leader in your organization.

The more of a leader you become in the inside, the more ef-

fective you will become in all your leadership activities on the

outside. You become more of a leader by thinking the same way

that top leaders think.

The Seven Qualities of Leadership

There have been more than three thousand studies conducted

over the years aimed at identifying the qualities of successful

leaders, especially successful military leaders who have won im-

portant battles against great odds in turbulent theaters of war-

fare—which very much describes succeeding in the marketplaces

of today.

More than 50 qualities have been identified that are impor-

tant to leadership. But there are seven qualities that seem to

stand out as being more important than the others. The good

news is that each of these qualities can be learned, and they must

be learned by practice and repetition.

1. Vision: The Most Important Single Quality

of Leadership

Leaders have vision. They can see into the future. They have a

clear, exciting idea of where they are going and what they are

trying to accomplish. This quality separates them from manag-

ers. Having a clear vision turns the individual into a special type

of person.

This quality of vision changes a ‘‘transactional manager’’ into

a ‘‘transformational leader.’’ While a manager gets the job done,

a true leader taps into the emotions of his people.

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