Leadership Prep

So you want to be a leader? Or you want to be a better leader? It can be done, you know. No matter where you are in your leadership journey, you CAN move forward. You CAN lead better. You CAN lead more people. You CAN lead your organization to higher ground.

Yes, you CAN!

But let me tell you this: You won't do it via osmosis! It won't just "happen." Growing in your leadership is not something that comes from the fairy godmother of leadership. You can't touch the hem of Jack Welch's garment and become "Super-Leader!" Oh, that it were that easy!

So what does it take?

Time.

Experience.

Training.

Hard Knocks.

A Mentor.

Discipline.

And a few others.

But let's start at the very beginning. You want to be a leader. That's good. You want to be a better leader. That's good too. But what comes first? Preparation. Leadership Prep. What is it? What needs to happen in order to get yourself ready to become a leader? As you get ready for 2002 and you want to take the next step in your leadership, take these last days of November and go through a little reflection on Leadership Prep.

Before you become the leader you want to be:

Count the cost. Leadership is hard. There will be times that you say, "Leadership isn't worth it. These people are crazy and I don't deserve this." It is true. You don't deserve it. But you choose it. You choose it because you want to lead people. You want to improve their lives. You see the higher ground that they cannot see and you desire to take them there. It will take time. It will take money. It will sap your strength and energy. Count the cost, my friend. Leadership is not for the weak and timid. Yes, the rewards are great, but so are the sacrifices. Prep yourself for the cost of leadership.

Assess your strengths and weaknesses. Too many people dive into trying to lead and end up dying out because they were not honest with themselves about their strengths and weaknesses. They get going and realize that they should have strengthened themselves in certain areas because now it is killing their ability to lead. If you know your strengths, then you can focus yourself on them and allow yourself to be successful through them. If you are aware of your weaknesses you will be able to stay away from them, or hire to cover them, and thus allow yourself to become even more successful as a leader. So prep yourself by becoming exceedingly clear on your strengths and weaknesses.

Settle in for the marathon, not the sprint. Very few - I mean VERY few - people get big leadership assignments at early ages. And when they do, even fewer of the few see things happen fast in their leadership. No, usually things happen slowly. Why do we think they will happen fast then? Because those are the only stories we hear on TV and read about in magazines. "Twenty-five year old starts business that grows to $20 million a year in sales in JUST TWO YEARS," Sells a lot better than "Forty-five year old works hard for twenty years and builds lasting business that makes a difference in her community." Right? Right. So, unless you are one of the chosen few, you will need to prep for a marathon, not a sprint. This is both a mental and emotional adjustment that needs to be made. Prep for the long haul!

Develop a learning attitude. You have perhaps heard it said, "Leaders are readers." It is true. Even more so, leaders are learners. I don't know any leader who has attained any level of leadership who doesn't keep him or herself on the edge of learning. One of my mentors runs a company that you would all know by name - in fact, you probably used one of their products today, no matter where you live in the world - that does billions of dollars a year in revenue (Yes, with a "b") and he still takes time each year to go to a school of leadership! He is already a tremendously successful leader yet he is still working on it! THAT is a learning attitude! If you want to lead, prep yourself for it by developing a learning attitude.

Acquire a love for people. In reality, we do not lead organizations or businesses. No, we lead people. We are successful if we know how to lead people. People are the name of the game. And the best way to become a leader of people is to love people. Others can tell instinctually whether or not we love them and have their best interests at heart. If they do not know that we care for them they will not follow. Leadership is the art of directing people who we care for and desire to help. In other words, we love people. If you have an issue with people, chances are you are not ready to lead them. To prep yourself for leadership, acquire a love for people. If the other things are in place, then they will want to.. missing rest of article...

About The Author:

Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and achieve their dreams.

To see Chris "live" at the upcoming Jim Rohn Weekend Event as he speaks on the subject of Secrets of Influence go to http://Chris-Widener.InspiresYOU.com/ or call 800-929-0434.

---

The Leadership Talk As A Living Hologram

The hologram is a three-dimensional photograph made on a flat surface with laser beams.The three-dimensionality of such an image is not the only remarkable characteristic of a hologram. If a hologram of your... Read More

Two Leadership Traps: How To Get Out Of Them and How To Avoid Them (Part 1)

You've heard of the Peter Principle: "People are promoted to their level of ultimate incompetence". But what the Peter Principle doesn't tell you is the nature of the incompetence. For the most part,... Read More

The Flexible Leadership Workshop

The Leadership ChallengeLeaders in today's society are faced with an increasingly complex challenge: To deliver business results in the face of rapidly changing conditions, while building team members' capacity to address the future.... Read More

Leadership Is Action?Not Position!

People respond to good leadership! Period! It is in all aspects of our lives, not just business. A mother is a leader in her home; a son may be leader of a team... Read More

Leadership for the Successful Entrepreneur!

Why talk about leadership?"Leadership is important whether you a leader of a team or are a sole proprietor with no one working for you. Effective leadership is actually a way of thinking, a... Read More

The Compassion Paradox

Effective leaders are comfortable with paradox. They can call on skills and work in ways that seem to be contradictory.Dictionary.com defines paradox as "a seemingly contradictory statement that may nonetheless be true." As... Read More

Birth Order - Understand How It Affects Your Personality

"Know thyself" is a powerful principle that leaders, managers and effective people intuitively know.When you understand your own strengths and preferences you are in a position to maximise those strengths and compensate for... Read More

Being Other Focused

In the Wall Street Journal, Franklin Lavin, U.S. Ambassabor to Singapore wrote the Manager's Journal column about some of the things he learned from the late President Reagan while working on his staff.********... Read More

Supervisor Training: Helpful Tips to Lead Your Pack

A new supervisor is hired to anchor a gardening project that has fallen apart. The last supervisor walked out on the job because he was overwhelmed with the high expectations of the project.... Read More

Dont Be a Complainer

Complaining. There's room for legitimate complaining, but if you let this deadly disease of attitude - complaining ? loose, it will conquer you. Complaining can take over your life. Destroy you and leave... Read More

Always Be Open To Learning

"We should not only use all the brains we have, but all we can borrow." -Woodrow WilsonLeave it to a child to remind you of the importance of humility and the willingness to... Read More

Stepping Into Leadership and Being The Source Of Your Success

Why is it that we often wait until we have achieved a level of success in network marketing before we feel as though we have earned the right to step into a leadership... Read More

Ten Steps To Effective Leadership

Many people end up in a supervisory position or SOHO ownership almost by default. In today's workplace, if someone stays on their job long enough, they will probably be promoted as others, more... Read More

3 Cs Leaders Must Communicate!

"Of every noble work the silent part is best, Of all expression that which can not be expressed" - William Wetmore StoryWhat we intend to communicate are the meanings our listeners hear.Every leader... Read More

Leadership - Passion, Purpose, Profit - Its Not That Hard

Go to any educational institution, look at airport bookshelves, shopping centres and open your eyes to the myriad of products available today and you could be forgiven to thinking that the art of... Read More

Tough Times Demand Resilient Leaders

The stock market gyrates with unpredictable and heartburning results. Icons of solid companies become straw figures before balance sheets. Children are abducted from their front yards and networks of terrorists spiral throughout the... Read More

Celebrating Successes: The Power Of Compliments

Years ago, when I was new in management circles, a veteran administrator decided to share his self-described secret of success. He said: You have to be careful, Bill. I*ve learned not to compliment... Read More

Take the Road Less Traveled

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference." - Robert FrostI watched Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will, a... Read More

The Defining Moment: The Straw That Stirs The Drink Of Motivational Leadership (Part Two)

In Part One, I described the importance of establishing deep, human connections with people you lead. I said there were three ways to do that, by communicating information, by making sense, and by... Read More

Leadership and Change in a Holographic Universe

Have you ever noticed that since the early part of the 20th century, nearly every new scientific theory manages to sound more and more like the same sort of metaphysical philosophies science once... Read More

Elements of Timeless Leadership

Great leadership is timeless, always in vogue. The world has been hungry for great leaders from time immemorial. In times of chaos and war, environmental and social upheaval, great leaders often emerge pointing... Read More

Introduction to the The Enneagram as a Leadership Tool

The Enneagram is a fascinating tool of nine orientations that enables us to gain insight into the depths of our true potential. It seeks to provide insight into how we fund our foundation... Read More

Leadership - Connect to Engage!

It's been said many times that true leadership is measured by ones ability to motivate and influence others.Leaders must work hard at motivating people to take action necessary to drive change and to... Read More

Lead People...Manage Things

Master The Five Key Facets of High Performance LeadershipMany people in leadership positions struggle with understanding what makes a great leader. While billions of dollars are spent annually on leadership development, quality leadership... Read More

It Begins Like This

Jonathan was drunk multiple times before ever completing elementary school; his father fed him bourbon so Jonathan would resist less while being sexually molested. On the night his mother was released from jail,... Read More

7 Core Elements Of Your Vivid Vision!

What you are about to read may be found in the Bible but it also applies to your professional life.Most leaders neglect to provide a statement of vision to the people they lead... Read More

5 Tips to Help You Win Big & Become a Village Hero

A few years ago, I returned to my impoverished village in Haiti. Many in the village came to see me-the tiny and diseased child they didn't expect to make it. Some of them... Read More

The Defining Moment: The Straw That Stirs The Drink Of Motivational Leadership (Part One)

Decades ago, as a rifle platoon commander in the Marines, I saw leaders who could motivate troops to do extraordinary things -- and leaders who couldn't get the troops to do much at... Read More

Mentor? Who Needs A Mentor?

Who needs a mentor. . .everyone who is truly serious about achieving more of their true potential, personally and financially. In fact, Richard Brooke says:"If you're someone who wants to break out and... Read More