Since that time, I’ve thought about the question more and have tried to analyze it and break it down into its components. So yes, I have mostly tried to lead or inspire by example. I will try to work the hardest, arrive the earliest and do the most work because I think it should be that way. As the founder of an organization, I expect nothing less of myself.
Another thing, I think communication is key. Communicating effectively to others is a big part of it. You have got to let your team and those close to you know what you’re trying to do and trying to get done – both verbally and in writing – and it must be clearly defined.
I also feel it’s important to be very honest and let your team know however good or however bad a situation is. It’s easy to talk about when good happens, but it’s the way you handle the bad stuff that says more about you than anything else. Sharing it with your team allows for feedback and group problem solving. This in turn builds trust and trust is an important factor for the success of any organization.
The other thing I feel a leader must do, is to chart a course. A leader has to provide a roadmap of where the organization is going. If you don’t know where you’re going, you’ll probably end up somewhere else. Call it a mission, or setting long term goals; they all fit. Some call it vision. How would I define vision? I would define it this way: it’s the ability to see things that don’t yet exist.
Now on questions of how to inspire others or how to motivate oneself and how to do so to where we exceed our own expectations, I don’t really know.
I know that I had super-heroes as role-models when I was younger and I think this was important. I know that later in life I drew inspiration from people like Mother Teresa. When I think of her life and the struggles she went through, that gives me the renewed faith to keep on keeping on. People like her give me the strength and courage to be better than I think I am.
So summing up, here are the key traits I feel that a leader must possess: I believe they must lead by example. A leader must be able to communicate his/her ideas effectively and also be honest and let everyone know the good, the bad and the ugly. And I believe that a leader must keep inspired in order to inspire others.
Over the years, I’ve tried to keep friends and colleagues and myself motivated with motivational poems and quotes. These I believe chip away slowly at complacency and mediocrity. Read enough of them and practice them even in small degree and you become a better person.
My friends I leave you with this quote from a former winning basketball coach, Pat Riley: “Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better.”
With faith there is hope . . and with hope there are better tomorrows.
PW
Patricia Wenskunas
