Inspired to write to this while preparing for The Demystification of Quality-Leadership workshop.

team building and leadership expert michael cardus

The question of “why should anyone be led by you?” is STUPID. It’s like asking “Why should anyone follow you?”. Lead / follow where? In what role, context, etc… There is no such thing as a free standing leadership role. Following that argument there is no such thing as a leader. There is managerial-leadership, military-leadership, BUT NOT “leadership” or “leaders” all by themselves.

Managerial accountability includes the use of leadership within the role of manager. You cannot be an effective manager without getting those you manage to move along with collaboration and enthusiasm with the Goals of your manager and you as a manager.

You can’t be an effective manager without being good at deciding and delegating tasks to your team, determining their effectiveness, and valuing the accountability and authority to manage others work.

The emphasis on “leadership competence” is placed where it ought to be, on competence in the role / work rather than upon some generic leader competencies (or upon some personality profile you took).

There are NO special traits or personalities that are associated with something called leadership. By believing this you fall victim to a Euthyphro fallacy, believing that you are a good leader, therefore all good leaders must have the same personality and traits as you do, because you are a good leader.

Charisma is the antithesis of effective in role-leadership it develops blind followership and removes the democratic relationship of a team of skilled, competent people working together to achieve common/shared goals.

Other “assumed leadership qualities” such as courage, initiative, proactivity, energy, flexibility, open-mindedness, imaginativeness, innovative, resilient, etc… are all everyday qualities that are needed for any working role.

Conclusion

The question ought to be – “what level of complexity, value for the work, current knowledge and skills, effective wisdom in the role, and normative temperament (NO behaviors that are so extreme in one direction or the other); Do I need to have in order for others to find me competent in my position?

But that does not sound as easy as the original question does it?

What do you think?

What is a competent manager to you? How is leadership conjoined to your current work? Do you think that there is special traits or qualities that leaders have that are inaccessible to others?

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