It is interesting as I look back over my life how many leaders I learnt from:

• From Glyn I learnt a habit of purposefully saying Good Morning.
• From Dave I learnt the importance of structured sales calls.
• From Jeff I learnt heaps about strategic thought.
• From Bruce I learnt about the importance of process and detail.
• From Jim I learnt to think outside of the things I already know.

There are also a number of leaders who inflated into their roles, whose ego was more important than the people they lead. From them I learnt what not to be.

I would often have disagreements with my bosses. But if they made a decision I would generally do my level best to support them and own the decision like it was my own. I can think of a couple of examples where I didn’t and I learnt less and annoyed the crap out of my boss along the way.

I would not be the person I am today if it were not for these men and many many others inside and outside of the business world.

It stands to reason then, that to become a leader you must first become a follower.

A great follower.

A point understood by those who grow, a point lost on those who inflate.

I wonder sometimes if I don’t over complicate leadership.

Maybe the most important, most necessary, most essential attributes of a leader could be summed up in these two ideas;

Communicating Stunningly

to

Implement the Future.

Maybe these two ideas are all that leadership is!

The problems arise when you try to explain what these ideas really mean. At this point you need a whole set of attributes for each of these ideas and lose the overarching ideas themselves.

Initiative

You probably hear this word quite often in statements like “oh that person doesn’t show any initiative”. Often I find the term is used in relation to how a person thinks, but the word actually means to “initiate action”.

Dictionary.com describes it like this
–noun
1. an introductory act or step; leading action: to take the initiative in making friends.
2. readiness and ability in initiating action; enterprise: to lack initiative.
3. one's personal, responsible decision: to act on one's own initiative.

The more I think about it the more it makes sense. In most cases it is not that people do not know what to do, or what to try. They normally at least have an idea.

They just have no desire to take action. Or just do nothing.

They don't act!

So Take Action.

Today.

Show initiative.