And Why do you care?
If you're Taking the Reins of leadership or have the desire
to become a leader then paying attention to this 1
leadership lesson, which you see played out in the media
each and every day, is by far one of the most important
lessons in leadership you will ever learn.
To take the reins and attract followers you need to have
leadership persona! What is persona and how do you get it?
You begin your path of learning leadership skills by
learning about your-self and how your whole self which
includes your body language, body carriage and body energy
affects others before you ever even open your mouth. Taking
the reins of leadership means you must take the
responsibility for self growth, self-awareness and
management.
Regardless of Hillary or Barack's politics, their views on
the war in Iraq, homeland security or health care in
America… you are either attracted to them or you're not.
That is persona! And what's more no matter how smart you
consider yourself or how up on the candidates particular
political views you are…again you are either attracted to
them or you are not. If you're not then no matter how much
you might want to follow that person or vote for that
person you will find it difficult or almost impossible.
I dare say that Hillary Clinton has more experience than
Barack Obama and therefore may be considered by some to be
the best candidate, but she doesn't seem to be well liked
and therein lays the problem. People do business with and
follow individuals they know, like and trust. Individuals
that have persona! Though sometimes illusive this one thing
can make the difference in our presidential elections and
in your successful taking the reins of leadership.
A list of synonyms for persona is: character, personality,
façade, front, face, qualities and guise. When you look at
this list you don't see anything that tells you why people
respond to Hillary one way and Barack another. In my
previous articles I stated that leadership comes from
within and has to begin with knowing who you are and what
effect you have on people. You either effect them
positively with your persona or negatively and it certainly
behooves you to find out which if you choose to be a person
who takes the reins of leadership.
While it's imperative that you be who you really are, in
other words you must be authentic or people see through you
and do not trust you, you may need to adapt your style to
meet the needs of the situation and the people you want to
lead. In learning your leadership skills you may need to
learn to soften your tone or posture or voice.
When I feel deeply about something then I tend to come
across very serious and stern which is not always
appealing…so I understand that Hillary might be feeling
very deeply about her role and the responsibilities that
come with that role. She may be…now trust me here, I have
no inside track to Hillary…I am merely surmising, that she
is a caring, hard working, and serious minded candidate.
The problem seems to be that again regardless of either
political candidates views they are either just plain easy
to be around and likable or they are not. Therein lays
their success and yours as a leader.
Do you know how you come across to the people you want to
lead? Do you know what your persona is? If you don't then
that had best be the first step in your learning leadership
skills because no matter what else you do…whether
individuals follow you as their leader or choose to follow
someone else…it will come back to your Persona!
My suggestion is to take the first step in learning
leadership skills by learning about your-self and then
learning more about managing your-self so that you come
across as the leader you choose to be. In other words when
you decide to take the reins of leadership then growing
your Emotional Intelligence is essential.
----------------------------------------------------
Jean Starling has an MBA in International Business, is an
author, trainer, & business consultant. With over 20 years
in leadership, management, consulting & training she is an
expert at leading to break-through results. Author of
Taking the Reins, a book of stories that teach leadership
in an innovative way. Visit her online for your gift,
Become a People Whisperer. http://www.taking-the-reins.com
Contact mailto:jean@Taking-the-reins.com
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