Leadership checklist.

• Author: WIESNER, PAT

THE HERO BRINGS IN THE BIGGEST ORDER THE COMPANY HAS EVER HAD; THE LEADER GETS EVERYONE IN THE COMPANY TO TRY THEIR BEST TO DO THE SAME; AND THE MANAGER MAKES SURE THERE IS A PROFIT.

If you define management as "accomplishing objectives through people," then slavery is a form of management. In the galley (big rowboat) with all the slaves chained to their oars, is the guy standing in front with the whip a leader or a manager?

Some say you manage resources and lead people. If you are a leader, you have followers, people who want to help you achieve your goals. If you are a really good leader, your goals will become the goals of your followers. The leader in you will inspire the group to storm the hill against nearly impossible odds, while the manager in you will see to it there is a profit at the end of the day.

To be a truly effective leader one must also be a good manager, or all the hill-storming will be inefficient. So assuming that all the management skills are honed, how do we know we are using this as a good platform for being an even better leader? Some things to think about:

* First, do no harm. If there were a sort of Hippocratic oath for leaders, it would probably be the same as it is for medics. If you are in a position of leadership, you can do a lot of harm or a lot of good by the way you deal with those you lead. The worst boss I ever saw operate was a screamer and seemed to enjoy belittling and berating his people in groups. He was disliked, almost despised. He couldn't hold good people, and the ones who stuck hated their jobs and performed like it. The best one I ever worked for made me feel like I was critical to the success of the project. I was happy and proud of my work.

* Measure your success in the people you develop. The single most valued skill in business today is the ability to grow others. A manager/leader who can get the best possible individual work out of each member of a group will be in high demand indeed. The only...