What defines a competent person?i have met some of these GMs and CEOs n most of them know nothing beyond good english.Who is with me on this one?

OKAY so I came across a gem, and it's a presentation by one of the best CEOs in Kenya. I'll reveal that much much later, with the link if Wazuans are interested. The presentation is titled 'LEADERSHIP' is all about growing leaders.

Herein lies the problem. I agree with @gogeta, we have very many bosses but very few leaders...

Excerpts:
“I start with the premise that the function of leadership is to produce more leaders, not more followers.” Ralph Nader

Experiences that have had most impact to this leader:
•Always learning as it never ends
•At ISEAD and other business schools, one learns how much they don’t know

According to him (yes it's a man), leaders have certain ingredients, key among them being vision and purpose. Other ingredients:
• Influence
• Integrity/Authenticity
• Creating positive change
• Attitude
• Respect
• People development
• Self Discipline

@mlefu, pole pole. Now that I've got your interest...

What comes first Vision, People or LEADERS?

• Some people never see it
• Some people see it but never pursue it on their own
(they are followers)
• Some people see it and pursue it
(they are achievers)
• Some people see it and pursue it and help others see it
(they are leaders)

@wasee, I can't argue with your position. However @Edge starts with competence then narrows it to GM and CEO (positions of authority).
@gogeta's view was leaders were knowledgable and hardworking then they become senior to focus on management and leadership.

Hence my going on and on about leadership. You see it's possible to be competent and be a follower, or in most cases just an achiever. I discovered that few make it to leadership.

And what I learnt from the presentation I'm sharing is that true leaders, more than any 'skills' and 'knowledge' must have a VISION - because a vision is the conduit for a leader to inspire and influence others.


If are a leader and you want to build a ship,
you may choose to drum up people together to collect wood
and then assign them tasks and work,

but on the other hand, you may teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.

muganda
plagiarism is a crime in information/copyright world kindly cite ua source bwana as quality leaders always do
no hard feelings bro

Neither kenyatta nor moi nor kibaki can be considered remotely competent when compared to Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore...

In 1901, Wilbur Wright obviously disappointed with a failed flight experiment said these words to his brother Man will not fly for a thousand years. But in one last effort, the Wrights turned to wind tunnel tests and finally uncovered the secrets of heavier-than-air flight.


Some rules of a successful leader:
• Be ready to make tough decisions
• Learn to listen to your team members problems
• Don’t be afraid to challenge the experts
• Never neglect details
• Keep looking below the surface appearances
• Only by attracting the best people will you accomplish great ideas
• Never let your ego get close to your position – or when your position goes, your ego goes with it

• Fit no stereotypes
• Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier
• Rules for picking people
– look for intelligence and judgment
– and most critically, a capacity to anticipate, to see around corners

• Great leaders are always great simplifiers – simplicity is the rule of the game
• In making decisions, when the information is in the 40-70% range – go with your gut – don't wait to get up to 100%
• The team in the field is always right
• Have fun as a leader – work life balance!



Bottom line
“If your actions inspire others to
dream more, learn more, do more
and become more, you are a leader.”
John Quincy Adams

Mr.Muganda Sir,am with yu,but a little earlier i got lost in the thread.From yua post i read that great leadership skills are very essential to move up,i agree with yu but not in totality.
Have yu eva noted how some of these leaders are egocentric?
But leadership is not all,qualitative and quantative knowledge is very important.
What is yua take on a business english course?

From personal experience, I think the most critical element of leadership is credibility. This is a critical element that is mostly forgoten and I am not sure if that is because most people giving talks about leadership are usually leaders and never want to address credibility issues or for what reasons.

Also the aforementioned qualities by Muganda are crucial, but in my view credibility is everything. All other leadership qualities have tentacles tied to this one key quality.