Things Leaders Do
I am not a person who is particularly fond of manuals on “how to become a leader” or the “7 steps to becoming effective” or books on “how to win friends and influence” but I really liked Jeff Immelt’s recent interview in FAST COMPANY (July 2005) where he provided a quick and dirty list of the 10 “Things Leaders Do.” Check it out.
1. Personal Responsibility.
“Enron and 9/11 marked the end of an era of individual freedom and the beginning of personal responsibility. You lead today by building teams and placing others first. It’s not about you.”
2. Simplify Constantly.
“I always use Jack [Welch] as my example here. Every leader needs to clearly explain the top three things the organization is working on. If you can’t, then you’re not leading well.”
3. Understand Breadth, Depth, and Context.
“The most important thing I’ve learned since becoming CEO is context. It’s how your company fits in with the world and how you respond to it.”
4. The importance of alignment and time management.
“There is no real magic to being a good leader. But at the end of every week, you have to spend your time around the things that are really important: setting priorities, measuring outcomes, and rewarding them.”
5. Leaders learn constantly and also have to learn how to teach.
“A leader’s primary role is to teach. People who work with you don’t have to agree with you, but they have to feel you’re willing to share what you’ve learned.”
6. Stay true to your own style.
“Leadership is an intense journey into yourself. You can use your own style to get anything done. It’s about being self-aware. Every morning, I look in the mirror and say, ‘I could have done three things better yesterday.’ ”
7. Manage by setting boundaries with freedom in the middle.
“The boundaries are commitment, passion, trust, and teamwork. Within those guidelines, there’s plenty of freedom. But no one can cross those four boundaries.”
8. Stay disciplined and detailed.
“Good leaders are never afraid to intervene personally on things that are important. Michael Dell can tell you how many computers were shipped from Singapore yesterday.”
9. Leave a few things unsaid.
“I may know an answer, but I’ll often let the team find its own way. Sometimes, being an active listener is much more effective than ending a meeting with me enumerating 17 actions.”
10. Like people.
“Today, it’s employment at will. Nobody’s here who doesn’t want to be here. So it’s critical to understand people, to always be fair, and to want the best in them. And when it doesn’t work, they need to know it’s not personal.”
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This is a great synopsis. If leaders just keep to these 10 principles we would have a much more enjoyable and profitable environment for organisation to function in.
I have to agree with you on your opening statement “I am not a person who is particularly fond of manuals on “how to become a leader� ….. BUT I do think there is a lot a value in the points you have written out for us.
So here is a little paragraph I wrote that I need to remember.
Leaders with ethics (point 1) will keep it simple (point 2) working to develop their community (point 3). Setting priorities, measuring the outcomes and rewarding accordingly (point 4). Teaching from what they have learnt (point 5). Leading according to who they are and not who they think they should be (point 6). Setting boundaries in which people can flourish (point 7). Sticking their necks out and asking the questions that matter (point
Empowering people (point 9) whilst choosing people that work with each other and not against each other (point 10).
A further thought on point 7
People sometimes equate Freedom with being allowed to do what ever they want to do, but this is not the case. Here are a couple of links that keep the concept simple but very thought provoking:
• Boundaries are all about freedom and recognizing when these freedoms have been crossed. Boundaries give us a framework in which to negotiate life events. http://www.victimbehavior.com/boundaries/index.html
• A quick page and a half read, will make you think twice. I sometimes get the feeling that “New economy� companies think there should be no boundaries. So I guess that is why I like this document as the left column Freedom Company Symptoms is how I have seen many of these organisations to be http://www.abadvisors.com/pdf/TheFreedomofBoundaries.PDF
Correction (point
is actually point eight) —– 
Aythya, can I be your friend? and if you start getting flack for your opinion on boundries give me a shout, I’ll back you all the way.