When we think about leadership, we think of seven things.
1. A leader must be passionate, engaged and excited. It doesn't mean that he or she needs to be rah-rah or that he or she has to micromanage.
2. A leader's greatest importance is often building teams and setting direction. A great leader is known by the fact that he or she has developed the next level of leadership. There is nothing worse than a leader who has left the cupboard bare in terms of the next level of leadership.
3. A great leader must set clear goals and clear directions for a company.
4. We believe that great managers don't micromanage. They have a very clear idea of what is going on and they have a clear sense and a finger on the pulse and they know what is going on but they don't micromanage. They often use what is called loose tight management. In essence they are very loose with terrific people where they need to be but tight in making sure things actually get done.
5. We find and we are a believer in this concept taken from an old Adrian Gostick book “leaders praise often.” They use the concept that no one is invisible. This means that when somebody does something well they are recognized for it in some way.
6. Great leaders are not afraid to make hard personnel decisions. This doesn't mean that they quickly fire people, but they are very cautious in allowing bad people to fester in their organization.
7. A great leader is emotionally mature. Most people know each day which leader is "showing up". I.e., leaders' moods and behavior is consistent and predictable. A great leader possesses high emotional intelligence and is able to temper these things well.