Are you a great leader?  The world needs great leaders; the world depends on great leaders.  Today I want to discuss five signs of a great leader, and I want to encourage you to become a great leader, because the world needs you.

Without further ado…

5 Signs of a Great Leader:

1. Great Leaders Show Mercy

“Cowards are cruel, but the brave love mercy and delight to save.”

~John Gay

Once when I was a kid I was playing basketball in front of our home in the parking lot.  I knew I shouldn’t have been playing because the family car was parked in the parking lot at the time.  I tried to be careful, but in an attempt to make a shot, I hit the rim of the basketball goal and the ball flew and hit the car’s windshield; cracking the windshield.

I knew my father would be upset; livid.  And so I told my mother what happened instead.  Later that day, my father, my mother, and I took a drive in the newly damaged car. Yet, til’ this day, my father has never mentioned the broken windshield.

I’m talking about mercy!  Great leaders show mercy, people will make mistakes; people will blunder, always remember to show mercy.  I have never forgotten that act of mercy.

2. Great Leaders Have a Vision

“The very essence of leadership is that you have to have vision.”

~Theodore M. Hesburgh

 

Hellen Keller said, “It’s a terrible thing to see, and have no vision.”  Great leaders have a vision; they know where they’re going.  They can see the future.

Can you see the future?  Do you know what is next for you and the people you lead?  If you don’t, begin to develop a vision today.

Write down what you will accomplish, make it clear, and then set out to accomplish it.  You must have a vision to be a great leader.

3. Great Leaders Take Responsibility

The price of greatness is responsibility.

~Winston Churchill

 

Some like to blame, but leaders take responsibility.  Leaders take responsibility for their actions, and for the actions of those in whom they lead.

Being a great leader is a heavy burden, which is why few choose to bear the weight of it, but if you are to be great, you must lead, you must take responsibility, you must be accountable to those in whom you are leading.

4. Great Leaders Lead by Example

“Example is not the main thing in influencing others, it is the only thing.”

~Albert Schweitzer

 

Anyone can talk, anyone can make declarations and commands and demands, that’s not leadership.

The only way to lead is through your actions.  Great leaders take great actions and they inspire others to take great actions.  No great actions, no great leadership.  Are you taking great actions, are you inspiring others to follow?

5. Great Leaders Influence

“The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority.”

~Kenneth Blanchard

Leadership is not authority; leadership is your ability to influence.  Are you positively influencing people?  You can, and you should.

You have the ability to lead with greatness, to be an example, to influence, to have a clear vision and to show mercy, so do it.

In Closing

Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.”  Hopefully this article has inspired you to be what you know you can be.

Thank you for reading and be sure to share this article with your friends.

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