Do you have leadership qualities?

Do you have leadership qualities? Do you believe you have what it takes to be a good leader? Is your employer looking to develop potential leaders?
This article considers some general principles about what makes a good leader. It examines the fit - or sometimes the mis-fit - between company needs and individual talent.

What makes a good leader?

Although there are some generic leadership qualities that all leaders need to develop, the leadership qualities that are required to make a good leader can vary in different companies, teams and situations.
This can be illustrated in both art and modern leadership models. For example, the fact that leadership qualities are dependent on context is demonstrated in the play The Admirable Crichton and the film Twelve O'Clock High.
In "The Admirable Crichton", written in 1902, the Lord and butler swap their roles as leader and servant as the situation changes. On a desert island, the butler's practical skills are essential for survival, whereas the Lord's knowledge of English politics is of no value.
In the film "Twelve O'Clock High", produced in 1949, as a squadron starts to suffer increasing losses during the war, the leader's people-oriented approach starts to fail. He is replaced by a dictatorial bully who turns the squadron round and restores their pride (in a modern setting, such leadership behaviour would often be regarded as unacceptable).

Leadership Styles

In theory, the ideal scenario is for a leader to have infinite flexibility. That means you are able to adapt your leadership style according to the situation and/or the state of the team - eg: to be an executive leader when a team is Forming but to be a participative leader when a team is Performing (the different leadership styles for different situations are described on our leadership styles page).
This need to change one's leadership style according to the circumstances is one of the fundamental principles underlying popular models such as Situational Leadership (develop by Blanchard and Hersey in the late 1960s).
However, modern leadership theory has begun to realise that the perfect, flexible leader does not exist. Everyone has strengths and weakness, and there is a need to strike a balance using the individual's preferred styles and meeting the needs of the situation. The modern goal is to develop 'good enough' leadership.

Perspective

How you look to develop leadership qualities will depend on whether you are looking at the subject from the perspective of an organisation or an individual. The former is driven by need, the latter by talent. Organisations need leaders who will support the organisational culture and aims. For them, therefore, leadership development involves:

• identifying the leadership characteristics and/or profile of people who will enhance organisational performance
• selecting/recruiting individuals whose character, skills and potential closely match that profile
• developing the particular skills/abilities within those individuals so they can fulfil their leadership potential within the organisation

For example, leadership in the emergency services requires strong executive and management skills. However, if you, as an individual, are seeking to develop into a position of leadership then you need to build on your own natural talents - trying to be a type of leader that is unnatural for you can lead to stress, executive burnout and poor performance. That is, you need to:

• discover your natural leadership style and qualities
• develop those qualities into tangible skills
• find a role or organisation that matches your leadership talents, where what you have to offer will be valued

For example, leadership in a sports team requires physical fitness, sporting prowess and the ability to lead by example.

Conclusion

What makes a good leader depends on the organisational context. Developing leadership potential involves matching individual talents with organisational need, and building skills that both enhance performance and play to individual strengths. To investigate this topic further, here are some further readings and resources:

• A Leadership Qualities Checklist showing the common attributes required of all leaders
• A Leadership Styles and Qualities Questionnaire to help identify your individual leadership style, and match it against the leadership demands of various industries/disciplines.
• An article on the Difference Between Leadership and Management.