Managing For Dummies®, 3rd Edition

Chapter 2. Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way

In This Chapter

• Comparing leadership and management

• Becoming a leader

• Zeroing in on key leadership traits

• Leading collaboratively

What makes a leader? Experts have written countless books, produced endless videos, and taught interminable seminars on the topic of leadership. Yet despite all the discussion on this important topic, the quality of leadership eludes many who seek it.

Studies show that all effective leaders have two primary traits in common: a positive outlook and forward thinking. They're sure of themselves and their ability to influence others and impact the future. Although leadership and management are similar, leadership goes above and beyond management. According to management visionary Peter Drucker, leadership is the most basic — and scarcest — resource in any business enterprise. Good leadership is thus particularly valuable to an organization, as well as to those who work within it.

Everyone in an organization wants to work for a great leader, yet a leader means many things to many people. In this chapter, we discuss the key skills and attributes that make good managers into great leaders. Leadership requires applying a wide variety of skills; no single trait suddenly makes you an effective leader. However, you may notice that some of the leadership skills this chapter details are also key functions of management — ones that we review in Chapter 1. This similarity is no coincidence. By the way, for an in-depth look at ...