How to Become a Great Leader

Leadership is a hot topic and will always be one. We seem to linger in a perpetual leadership vacuum. Today's Presidents and CEOs, generals and coaches, don't stand in comparison with the great leaders of the past - or so we are told - and in times of crisis, people cry out for someone who can show them a way to escape the looming threat. There’s a general myth that leaders are born rather than made, that somehow Nature produces a peculiar species of human being who is bigger, more powerful, smarter, braver, and more charismatic than the rest.
But waiting for such a rare bird is futile, for there are many crises that never find the natural born leader it needs. The real challenge in leadership is to find a way to build leaders. The main way that business schools and government departments attempt this is by studying the past. Learning from history has its advantages, naturally. There are lessons to be learned about how World War II was won, why the Chicago Bulls were such a successful basketball team, and why Wall St. banks, led by greed and short-sightedness, created the financial collapse of 2008.
But today's crises never completely mirror yesterday's, and it would be better in the first place to build leaders who can prevent crises before they arise. In my view, a great leader is inspiring, uplifting, a uniter of differences, and someone who brings out the best in human aspirations. I named this model "the soul of leadership” and set out to see if leaders with a soul could be trained.
Knowing that business, politics, and the military are not spiritual enterprises, I didn't formulate the training along "soft" or idealistic lines. Instead, I used a "hard" criterion: what groups actually need. If you aspire to be a great leader, the first requirement is that you look and listen, so that you can find out the true needs that a situation demands to be fulfilled. There are seven such needs:
1. Safety, security
Situations of threat and instability. People feel insecure. Discontent is in the air. You can see nervous faces, feel the prevailing anxiety. Who is going to make the situation feel safer?
2. Achievement, success
Situations of unrealized achievement. People feel unsuccessful. They want to be more productive, but there’s not enough fire or passion. Who is going to step up and provide the motivation so sorely needed?
3. Cooperation
Situations that are incoherent and fragmented. There’s no team spirit. The group disintegrates into bickering and petty wrangling. Meetings go on forever but reach no conclusion. Who’s going to be the glue that brings coherence to the situation?
4. Nurturing, belonging
Situations mired in bad feeling and apathy. Everyone is going through the motions, doing what they need to do but inside feeling totally disengaged. The atmosphere is stale and routine. There’s no personal support or trust. Who’s going to bring heart to the situation and make others feel that they belong?
5. Creativity, progress
Situations dominated by old solutions and stale ideas. People feel stymied. The atmosphere has no creativity; it feels like yesterday’s news. Everyone agrees that something new is needed, but all that emerges are small variations on the status quo. Who’s going to bring the spark of creativity to the situation?
6. Moral values
Situations that are spiritually empty and corrupt. The weak feel hopeless, the strong are cynically taking advantage. People talk about righting wrongs and bringing back the right values, but no one knows where to start. The future feels like wishful thinking; the present is oppressive and suffocating. Who will bring hope and a renewed sense of innocence?
7. Spiritual fulfillment
Situations that symbolize the human condition. People are asking the big questions: Who am I? Why am I here? Many are seeking for God. There is talk of a higher reality, yet faith is lacking. Who can bring the light and demonstrate that holiness is a living reality?
Having looked and listened, you will know the situation you are in and the need that is crying out to be fulfilled. As you can see, the "hard" criterion that shaped this model of leadership eventually leads to moral values and spirituality, because in reality those aren't "soft" needs. Every human being has a yearning for them. But unless the basic needs are fulfilled, appealing to a group's ideals is usually futile.
In the next few posts I'll detail how each need arises and how you as a leader can bring about change in other people's lives. The most common cause of leadership failure is ego, which means that someone is looking out for number one rather than the group. Ego is a legitimate basis for action - it's the second need above safety and security. We all want the good things in life; our instinct is to provide for "I, me, and mine." But the collapse of Wall St. and many disastrous wars have resulted when leaders get stuck on ego. You can be a great leader, with all the rewards this carries, while still serving the needs of the whole group. In essence, that's what the soul of leadership is all about.

The Laws of the Universe | The Rabbit Hole with Deepak Chopra

Courtesy of YouTube/ The Chopra Well

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Shyam Sooraj
HR at BBGroup
Best leader knows what is happening among their employees and vice verse .Here closed board rooms getting opened for loyal and productive employees. This is possible, only through transparent business strategy which is 'simple' and revealed to all working force. In light of today’s economic landscape and business competitions, organization will find it quite difficult to incorporate employee engagement in all aspects of its external and internal operations .Thus, boss becomes a 'control freak' . So, the root of this bigger problem , can be addressed by placing an effective and transparent organizational strategy with the involvement of employees. We may term it as 'employee engagement in strategic decisions'. Here not only boss but the organization as whole wins the hearts of its employees. The Top 10 Tell-Tale Signs Of A Bad Boss shall be eliminated from canteen corners. Many of the organizations, the strategies are framed and distributed to workforce. This is set as measurable KPIs. Since employees are not having involvement in strategies, they are least bothered to shoulder the same. As a result, employees fail to understand the purpose of KPI and they become an average in 360* culture. Business Strategies and annual or quarterly action plans should come not from closed board rooms, but from the hearts of employees. Then, their brain stop thinking on target and start loving the targets with heart. This is nothing but winning the hearts of employees. How can an organization build an atmosphere where KPIs are getting framed by hearts of employee and boss becomes a sign board signaling right road?. 1. Be approachable 2. Make employee feel involved. 1. Ensure employee work life balance.- It is very important. The real work life balance is an atmosphere where employees inspire their families to dream with the goals of their organization. So organizational goals become employee responsibility. Because it is the dream of his/her family. 2.Be transparent in all approaches 3.Simplify organizational strategies. Let employees grasp mentally , understand and live on it. 4.Effective internal communication in the organization. 5.Effective flexibilities and job rotations 6. Employees suggestion box 7. Trust, reliability, Straight talk, listen for understanding, making commitments. 8. Fairness in the work place. In such organizations, the varied strengths of each boss and employee are fully embraced and achieves sustainable success. Here all are winners; Boss, employees and families and organization becomes a religious institution where all love to be. Shyam Sooraj
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9 hours ago
LikersGerald Washington, Richard V., sule kocer, +37

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  Amanda El Hajjar
  Marketing Manager at Plus Holding
  Very well elaborated