In his book, Leadership Rules, Jo Owen shared what he learned after he spent several years studying what makes leaders effective. From the world’s foremost bankers and managers to the world’s oldest tribes in Africa, he discovered ONE THING that great leaders have in common: professionalism. By that, he meant that the best leaders in modern and ancient tribes were all extremely effective in their trade. For leaders, the trade of professionalism included a wide range of skills which included: communicating, motivating, clear thinking, making decisions, monitoring and all the other activities that leaders have to learn. Equally important is that all of these skills also have to be learned in context. The way a banker makes a decision is completely different from the way a city planner makes a decision. Putting a banker in charge of running a city, or a city planner in charge of running a bank could be asking for trouble. Becoming more professional and effective at the skills of leadership will give followers the confidence to follow their leader.
How can you apply your leadership skills in the context of where you lead?
