LEADERSHIP CHALLENGES FOR THE

YOUTH TODAY
Characteristics of a Filipino Youth

 15 to 30 years old ( as stated in Republic Act No.

8044 on Youth in Nation Building Act)
 Mentally and physically fit
 A dreamer
 Has a strong drive to fulfill his dreams and uplift
his status in all aspects as well as those around him
 The Filipino youth comprise more or less 40% of
the total Philippine population. If there are 80 million
Filipinos (latest survey, 2003), then there are at least 30
million Filipino youth in the country. In 2007, the projected
population is 88.7 M. So 40 % of 88.7M is equivalent to
35.48M Filipino Youth in the country.
The youth sector is composed of the youth worker,
youth farmer, youth student and the youth in the community.
Provision in the Constitution
According to the Constitution Article II Section 13,
“The State recognizes the vital role of the youth in nation
building and shall promote and protect their physical,
moral, spiritual, intellectual and social well being. I shall
inculcate in the youth patriotism and nationalism and
encourage their involvement in public civic affairs.” If this
is the case, they should be given a chance to make their
importance felt; to be given protection in their physical,
spiritual, intellectual and moral states.
 After the discussion of part I, the students will
be grouped into 5-6 members, and then they will
choice a leader. Each member will contribute their
ideas regarding their observations of the important
role of youth in the society and to identify the
contributions of youth leaders in the country. Each
group will be asked to discuss their consensus to the
class (Leaders will discuss their output)
 According to Elihu Root (1856 – 1937, U.S. lawyer and
Statesman): “there are two entirely different theories according to
which individual men seek to get on in the world. One theory leads a
man to pull down everybody around in order to climb up on them to
higher place; the other leads a man to help him in order that he may
go up with them.
The true essence of being a leader is the one who helps
everybody around him in order that he may go up with them.
Simple (dictionary) definitions of a leader:
1.one who shows the way
2.one who acts as guide
3.one who directs the affairs or actions
4.one who influences or controls the opinions, thoughts or actions
Questions to ponder:
Do you consider yourself a leader? If yes, what made you one?
Why should you want to be a leader? What does a leader do in an
organization?
 LEADERSHIP DEFINED

Leadership is the ability to persuade others to seek defined

objectives enthusiastically. It is a human factor that binds a group
together and motivates it towards the attainment of desired objectives.
Leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an
organized group in its efforts toward goal setting and goal
achievement. (Rachmann, 1987).
Leadership is the process of inducing a subordinate to behave in a
desired manner (Donnelly, 1981).
Leadership is one form of dominance, in which the followers more
or less willingly accept direction and control by another person. (Kuhn,
1990).
Leadership is the ability that brings to success the potentials in an
organization, community and its people.
 UNDERSTANDING THE BASICS OF LEADERSHIP

 GIVING VISION
The leader has a clear idea of what he wants to do – professionally
and personally – and the strength to persist in the face of setbacks,
even failures. Unless you know where you are going, and why you
cannot possibly get there.
 PASSION
The underlying passion for the passion of life, combined with a very
particular passion for a vocation, a profession, and a course of action.
The leader loves what he does and loves doing it.
Without hope, we cannot survive; much less progress.
The leader who communicates passion gives hope and inspiration to
other people.
  INTEGRITY
Know yourself is the key word.
The leader never lies to himself, especially about himself,
knows his flaws as well as his assets, and deals with them
directly.
 MATURITY
It is important for a leader to be matured, for the needs to
have experienced, and grown through that experience.
 TRUST
It is not as much an ingredient of leadership, as it is a product
of leadership.
It is a quality that cannot be acquired, but it is earned.
It is given by co-workers and followers, and without it, the
leader cannot function.
  CURIOSITY AND DARING
The leader wonders about everything, wants to learn as much
as he can, is willing to take risks, experiment, and try new things.
He does not worry about failure, but embraces errors, knowing
he will learn from them.
 LEADER IS LIKE A PREACHER
He has the capacity to convince others, through his eloquence,
through his communication skills. He ought to be one who is able
to relate well with sincerity.
FUNCTIONS OF LEADERSHIP

1. The Leader as an Executive:

The most obvious role of the leader in any group is, he is the
top coordinator of the activities of the group. In his executive
capacity, the leader does not ordinary carry out the
necessary work; he assigns it to other group members.
2. The Leader as a Planner:
The leader often assumes the role of planner deciding the
ways and means by which the group shall achieve its ends.
This may involve both the determination of immediate steps
and the long-range planning of the future steps to attain
goals and objectives.
3. The Leader as Policy Maker:
One of the most important criticisms of leader’s functions is
the establishment of group goals and policies.
a)From “above” that is dictated by the authorities’ super
ordinate to the given group.
b)From “below” that is dictated by the decision of the group
membership as a whole.
c)From the leader himself when he has autonomy to make
policy decision.
4. The Leader as Expert:
The leader is often distinguished as a source of readily
available information and skills.
5. The Leader as Controller of Internal Relations:
More than any other member, the leader governs that
specific details of group structure and by so doing he may
function as the controller of the in-group relations.
6. The Leader as Surveyor of Rewards and Punishment:
Particularly significant from a member’s point of view is
the leader’s power to apply reward and punishment,
which enables him to exercise control over the group
members. Sometimes the rewards and punishment are
concerned with relatively external thins, e.g., when a gang
divides stolen loot or when a worker is given an
unpleasant task his foreman.
7. The Leader as Arbitrator and Mediator:
It is his task to act as both judge and conciliator. It is within
the power of the leader to reduce or to encourage
factionalism within the group, depending upon what
personal aims he seeks to achieve.
8. The Leader as an Exemplar:
In some kinds of groups, the leader may serve as a model
of behavior for the group members thus providing them with
a concrete indication of what they should be and do.
9. The Leader as a Symbol of the Group:
Group unity is likely to be exchanged by any factor that
makes the groups distinct entity.
10. The Leader as a Substitute for Individual Responsibility: Not
common in certain types of groups, the leader plays an
extremely important role for the individual member in
relieving him of responsibility for personal decisions and
act that he wishes to avoid.
11. The Leader as Ideologist:
It is the leader to furnish the ideology; he serves as the
source of beliefs, value and norms of the individual
members.
12. The Leader as the Father Figure:
The leader serves as the perfect focus for the positive
emotional feelings of the individual. He is the ideal object
for identification for transference and for feeling of sub-
missioners.
PRINCIPLES OF LEADERSHIP
A LEADER…..
Does not create fear among his followers, but create
enthusiasm.
Does not only have goals; but also has a vision, a dream.
Does not only know how to discipline others but also knows to
discipline him/her.
Does not only hear, but delegates work among his followers,
but also empowers them and makes them fruitful.
Does not only decide on what is right, but discerns what is
right.
Does not only provide an open atmosphere, but also creates
open mind.
Is not only keen on winning, but also sees failures as
opportunities for success.
GUIDEPOST FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP

Be flexible
Be consistent in setting policies.
Strive for a good match between leaders and tasks of
situations.
Choose the most appropriate strategy for making
decisions.
Always remember: subordinates expect you to help.
GUIDELINES FOR EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP
1. The leader’s awareness of self.

BOSS LEADER
- drives subordinates - coaches subordinates
- depends upon - depends upon goodwill
authority
- says “I” - says “WE”
- fixes the blame on - fixes the breakdown
breakdown
- knows how job is done - shows how a job is done
- says “GO” - says “LET’S GO”

i.e. skills, maturity, expectations, norms,

2. Understanding the group’s characteristics, size and
cohesiveness.
3. Understanding individual characteristics
i.e. recognizing differences of opinions,
background, etc.
4. Flexible of approach.
i.e. the ability to use one style of leadership to
other
5. Understanding motivation.
i.e. what drives one to move
6. A sense of mission
i.e. the belief to lead, the love to work, devotion to
people/organization, etc
7. High character
i.e. honest, courageous, sincere, dependable, etc.
8. Job competence
i.e. the leader should know what he /she is doing
9. Good Judgment
i.e. the ability to recognize which is important and
which is not
10. Energy
i.e. to always have the zest to do a task expected
of him at all times
SKILLS OF A LEADER
1. Working with people
i.e. listen, help, encourage, motivates, etc.
2. Defining issues/priorities
i.e. recognizes the needs of the organization/members,
the real objectives and knows to do at all times
3. Handling of meetings
i.e. setting of agenda, dealing with problems,
encouraging participants, etc
4. Organizing
i.e. remember that organizational structure positions are
created in every organization so that the flow of
organizational communication becomes systematic. But
one should not be bossy. Decision should come from down
lines.
5. Financial Skills
i.e. remember that finance/money is the lifeblood of an
organization. The leader has the responsibility of taking
care of it and translating it to service-better and efficient
service.
6. Communication skills
7. Training people
8. Political skills
i.e. knowing how to deal with people from all walks of
life
9. Public speaking
10. Supervision skills
i.e. being guided by the by-laws; knowing how to get the
best out of staff/members
ADDITIONAL THINGS TO REMEMBER

A good leader should have a BASE – group of people who sees

the individual as their leader ( how can you lead if you don’t have
people to lead upon )

Power can be bad, it can be good. A good leader should know how
to define good objectives.

There are myriads of things one can talk about on how to be a

good leader, how to be an effective leader, how to manage an
organization well, etc., but the best way to learn leadership skills is
through experiencing it.

The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men
the conviction and the will to carry on.