Everyone knows that great leaders are made, not born. However good that statement sounds, we still want to know how we "make" or turn people effective leaders. And other questions need to be answered about the process of leadership development.

So how DO you boost your leadership skills? If you want to improve your ability to lead, where should you focus your attention? Why are certain leadership talents more important than others?

To Boost or not to - that's a good question

Would you want to be a leader with more skills? Yes, especially when you consider the opportunities "more" skills offer you. You would want to effectively plan a strategy or generate purposeful agenda to meet the challenges of your daily situations.

You could employ different skills to encourage your team to perform beyond their ordinary level, bridge the gaps causing low morale in your followers or coach and counsel people who face difficult circumstances.

With more skills, you would be better prepared to take action with greater confidence, and you would act more decisively.

Having more skills means you have:

=> More options, styles and capabilities to choose from,

=> More approaches to evaluating or solving your "problems",

=> More opportunities to innovate.

In the world of leaders, you must agree that "more is definitely better!"

Quo Vadis? Whither doth thou goest? Where should you focus your attention?

Taking a journey involves having an intent and a destination in your mind. Your leadership training, development and educational efforts demand the same kind of purposeful mind-set.

Your reasons for improving your leadership abilities will depend upon your working conditions, operating environment and other organizational factors.

For instance, what types of situations do you face, how will your leadership skills be applied?

- Will you lead a special or critical one-time project?

- Will you lead others who directly report to you or are under your direct influence?

- Will you lead people who are outside your sphere of control [such as, your clients, partners from other companies, or members of your community]?

You must focus your attention on providing service through your leadership. To look at leadership in this light, you will need to know what types of leadership service are required:

=> Should your style be dictating or nurturing;

=> Should more of your time be spent listening and observing;

=> Should your behavior be motivating or modeling;

=> Should your role be instructing or supervising and so on.

Leadership is not a "wondering-about" activity - when leaders are aimless. their followers are clueless, and everyone's efforts are worthless.

Show and Tell or tell and show - it depends on your talents

Because you do have strengths and weaknesses, you owe it to yourself to investigate your talents honestly and deeply. Are you a strong communicator, do you usually think about or see things in a positive light, can you easily adapt yourself to deal with changes, are you flexible?

Your strengths will empower your effectiveness and your weaknesses will betray you and disgust, disappoint or discourage others. The trick you need to turn is found in using your strengths to analyze and overcome your weaknesses.

Let me explain myself -

I have a fairly strong ability to react to and perceive the subtleties of my surroundings - but there are times when I realize that my understanding of someone's behavior is wrong. When I'm incorrect in my assessment, it would be wise for me to acknowledge my error and apologize for being insensitive to that person's plight or burden.

Another way to overcome your weakness is to delegate your authority to and share your power with someone who has a greater strength, more time or a stronger relationship than your do. But you should always be aware of your skills, knowledge and connections to others.

In a word, you want to maintain a constant inventory of your attributes, tendencies and shortfalls.

Your portfolio of strengths will affect your decisions to embark on prudent courses of action, with knowledge of your weaknesses you can defend the threats to your mission by developing alternative plans or assign tasks to other people.

Once you have determined the state of your strengths, you can use your skills-inventory

=> To act in innovative or more creative ways;

=> To establish appropriate and effective patterns, structures or solutions;

=> To support and propel the momentum of your leadership power.

So then the questions remain: will you step-up to the challenge, are you willing to awaken the great leader that slumbers inside you?

If so, you can be "made" into a leader of great promise. There are leadership training courses, workshops and programs available to all sizes of budget and ambition.

I believe you were born to bless the world with your God-given greatness. Please don't deny us the energy of your unique, meaningful and worthy contributions.

Copyright 2003-2005, Mustard Seed Investments, Inc., All rights reserved.