Becoming a leader is not as easy as it seems. It requires an accurate unification of a leadership characteristics and leadership skills. Not only leadership characteristics and skills are required, but there are also traits that a good leader should have.
“If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader”, once Dolly Parton says about a good leader. Also, as what John C. Maxwell said that leadership is about influencing other people’s lives. It is not about having a good degree, position, or flowchart. From those two quotes about leadership above, one of the characteristics of a good leader is inspiring people to do something more not only for their own sake but also for another’s.
Furthermore, John C. Maxwell on his book A Life of Leadership and Inspiration states that there are three characteristics needed to be a good leader. First is consensus building, as George Bush says “A leadership is someone who brings people together”. So, a good leader is the one who understand the importance of consensus building and bringing people together in order to make something better. The second characteristic is humility. As Maxwell says “All great leaders are humble. Instead of talking about their own accomplishment, leaders are looking to give the team the credit”. And the last characteristic of a good leader is risk taking. A good leader is never afraid to take risks and will do what needs to be done even if he or she has to through a hard way.
Not only those three characteristics, there are also many characteristics a good leader should have, as Barbara White stated in her article, Seven Personal Characteristics of a Good Leader. A good personality the most important thing that a leader should has – confident, enthusiastic, tolerant, focus, committed, and tough.
In short, leadership skills and characteristics – consensus building, humility, and
References: http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/leadership http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/leadership.html “A Life of Leadership and Inspiration” by Todd Eliason on http://www.success.com/articles/606-a-life-of-leadership-and-inspiration “Seven Personal Characters of a Good Leader” by Barbara White on http://ezinearticles.com/?Seven-Personal-Characteristics-Of-A-Good-Leader&id=59305