To be a leader is a privilege that comes after showing of devotion to develop oneself and others.

A leader must possess variety of traits and knowledge in order to do this.

Self-Aware

A leader must know himself very well. A leader must be aware of his weaknesses and
strengths and has the courage to accept what he/she lacks. More importantly, a leader must be
conscious of what kind of leader he/she is. With this, he/she must be able to fill the gap in order
to become a better leader.

Mindful of his Team

A leader does not limit growth only to himself. In fact, the very essence of being a
leader is to lead and create new leaders. The key to achieving objectives and goals is through
his/her team. Hence, it is imperative that leader should capacitate his/her team through
experiential, social and formal learning. Coaching that is engaging and goal driven is can be
utilized for this.

A leader does not only show and encourages competence, intelligence and
productiveness. He must demonstrate compassion and empathy. He must be aware of the
plight of his/her team whether it involves professional or personal matters. A leader must
consider that the mental health of his people is of paramount importance.

Colleagues

A leader must not be afraid to break barriers with different teams including other
organizations. A leader must have the courage to start conversation that may lead to realization
of goals together. Never be frustrated if at the onset, people will not buy in. It is the leader’s
obligation to convince these people, sooner than later. As the saying goes, “alone we can do so
little, together we can do so much”.

Technology and Environment

A good leader knows his company’s strengths and weaknesses but a great leader knows
the threats and opportunities before they present themselves. Being aware to your environment
enables you to plan ahead. You can direct your resources to a more realizable plans and make it
even future-proof.

In terms of technology, age should not define our ability to adapt to changes brought
about by technology. These changes present an opportunity. As leaders, we should be able to
determine its impact to our organization. As leaders, we should have the ability to explore with
conviction the opportunities that technology may bring to us and to our organization. Reality
or not, this may help us predict the future for our organization.

The effect of climate change in inevitable. A leader, it is a grave mistake not to consider
the effects it may bring to our people and organization. We should epitomize in instituting
changes that help curb its effects and prepare our organization to its consequences.

Awareness and Appreciation of Laws and Regulations

As leader, we should be constantly aware of the changes and development on laws and
regulations that may affect the well-being of our people and the organization. We should be
able to create and implement policies that may curb the effects of these changes. For instance,
COVID 19 pandemic forced many companies to cease operations and resulted to massive
unemployment. Great leaders were able to mitigate its effects. Created and implemented
policies on continued payment of benefits. They were able to re-purpose their employees that
consequently helped the organization and provide continued employment for their people.

Visionary

A visionary leader is determined to abandon the thought of status quo. He/she has the
clear mind on how the future would be and sees it as an opportunity. Although mindful,
he/she is not bothered of the challenges that he/she may encounter. In creating opportunities, a
visionary (future ready) ready leader put values not only to achieving organizational goals,
creating opportunities and instituting changes for the organization but most importantly to its
people, the most important resources in the organization.

I will re-evaluate my strategies in creating strategic deliverables for my team and how to
convince them to enthusiastically participate in achieving them.