Leadership Basics

These next sections are going to be more about you than anything else. Take a deep breath when you need and set aside the negative feelings that may, yet probably, and for sure will, show up. It’s only normal as we explore the strongest parts of you and the weakest. 

We want to give you an affirmation for you to repeat, “My strengths are a gift to myself. My weaknesses are a gift to someone else.”

You see, your strengths are what you rely on to thrive in this world. They are for you to leverage and tap into when necessary to manage and navigate all types of situations. Your weaknesses are a gift to someone else because it’s an opportunity for someone’s strengths to complement you. A puzzle piece to your puzzle piece. Without our gaps and weaknesses, other people don’t have room to expand and use their strengths. 

As you continue through this course remember this affirmation. 

Defining Leadership

There are many definitions of leadership:

Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.- Warren Bennis

Leaders are those who empower others.-Bill Gates

Leadership is influence-nothing more, nothing less. -John Maxwell

There are several leadership styles that have proven through time, research, and corporations to be more effective than others. What matters most is the leadership style(s) that works most effectively for you and your tribe. In order to discern what that is, let’s start with identifying what type of ideal leader your team needs.

As demonstrated by the multiple examples of leadership, there is no one way, one approach, or one right fit for every situation. What works for one business doesn’t work for another. What works for one team structure won’t work when a new member joins. What one family sees as morally and ethically sound another might perceive as unreasonable. The single, consistent trait of leadership you can count on is that versatility is necessary.

“Leadership is the mastery of acting as a catalyst for change while inspiring yourself and others to achieve a focused goal through knowledge, abilities, skills, and competencies.” Jen Butler, MEd

ACTIVITY: Ideal Leader Biography

Once finished having a clear image on an ideal leader, you’ll move onto assessing your knowledge, abilities, and skills. 

Click Here to Download “Ideal Leader Biography” 

Step 1: Think about the ideal leader for your office. Be very clear about whom they are, how they behave, whom they interact with, how they follow up, and what impact they make on the organization as a whole. Close your eyes if you need to imagine them easily. WARNING: You may or may not be describing yourself. Be ok with that and move on. 

Step 2: Consider your vision, mission, and mantra, as the leader must be able to follow the road map.

Step 3: Save the file to your desktop. File Save As “Ideal Leader Biography,” Click Save 

Step 4: Fill in all boxes under each header. Be very specific. Add additional boxes if necessary. 

NOTE: The more clear you are on the Ideal Leader the easier it will be in later activities. 

Step 5: Go back through each entry you wrote down and ask yourself this question, “On a scale from 1-10, with 1 being non-existent and 10 being mastery, how emergent is this knowledge point/skill/ability/attribute in me?” Write the number in the small box to the right of your entry. 

Step 6: Those items you ranked yourself a 9 or 10, CONGRATULATIONS! You are one step closer to mirroring your vision of the Ideal Leader for your practice. Go to your Personal Development Plan (PDP) and list these items in the box marked Strengths. 

Step 7: Any item you ranked an 8 or fewer, list under Gaps. These items will be the start of your Personal Development Plan. 

Step 8: IMPORTANT: Remember to SAVE the document when you have finished.