"Seven Ironclad Attributes of an Exceptional Leader"

The following is an excerpt from "Millennials into Leadership: The Ultimate Guide for Gen Y's Aspiring to Be Effective, Respected, Young Leaders at Work" by Lisa Orrell. An excerpt of the book's introduction can also be found in the Knowledge Network.

We all know much has been written on the subject of leadership and many business writers and motivational speakers have codified the attributes they believe are essential for leaders. Frequently, however, their descriptions focus upon traits that make a leader personable, affable and well-liked. It’s nice to be liked, but: Leadership is not (just) a popularity contest. As a young leader, you will be faced with making decisions that won’t make everyone happy. And that’s okay. As long as your employees respect you, the ones who were not happy with your decision will (normally) get over it.

We live in a time plagued by cynicism and doubt, especially in regards to leaders and their motives, not only in corporate, but also government. This creates a special challenge for young leaders today who need to be trusted and respected in order to achieve the kind of ‘popularity’ that will enable them to achieve success, as well.

• When the leader is respected, which means they are at the very least trusted and probably liked as well, then this enables the leader to make proposals that followers will take seriously.

• If the respect for the leader is strong, then the followers will likely accept the solution being offered, even if they are not that convinced by the arguments that the leader is putting forward.

• If the leader is not respected, then people will follow them only if they see no other viable choice. But people will also (eventually) leave and seek a leader they do respect.

Someone Has to Follow the Leader

Almost everyone can describe the characteristics of an exceptional leader. Their descriptions may be based on a single great boss or on a collage of desirable features that they recognized in several leaders, but most people seem to have some idea of what’s essential. But whatever else might be true about the role, you’re not a good “leader” unless you have followers who respect you.

Leadership and management are often used in the same breath, largely because those who are appointed managers seek also to be leaders. I mentioned this in the previous chapter, but to recap (briefly), here are 2 key points:

• Managers have subordinates who obey commands in a basic transaction of obedience in return for pay and conditions. But when working for manager without strong leadership qualities, who you don’t respect, you (as an employee) are probably on the look out for another job. Basically, you just don’t want to have to report to that person ever again.

• Good leaders, however, have followers who choose to follow them. And good leaders often have followers who are happy to be working for them, and compensation isn’t their number one priority. They may even get job offers for more pay, but they just really like their boss and don’t want to risk getting a new one that makes their lives miserable. And, yes, a bad boss makes your life miserable, so don’t be one.

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